Review: A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians

Name -A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians

Pages -544

Author -H. G. Parry

Publisher -Orbit Books

Genre -Historical Fantasy, Politics

Rating -4/5

ISBN -9780356514703

Source -NetGalley

Review no. -38

Synopsis -

It is the Age of Enlightenment -- of new and magical political movements, from the necromancer Robespierre calling for revolution in France to the weather mage Toussaint L'Ouverture leading the slaves of Haiti in their fight for freedom, to the bold new Prime Minister William Pitt weighing the legalization of magic amongst commoners in Britain and abolition throughout its colonies overseas.

But amidst all of the upheaval of the enlightened world, there is an unknown force inciting all of human civilisation into violent conflict. And it will require the combined efforts of revolutionaries, magicians, and abolitionists to unmask this hidden enemy before the whole world falls to chaos.

Review-

Set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, or to be precise, the Age of Enlightenment (1979-1994), 'A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians' is a sweeping, epic tale dripping with politics, history, magic, pain and darkness.

It is set in an alternate history where magic exists but is very strictly controlled, where people are allowed to use magic only for their self defense. Slavery exists and the slaves are spellbound, which means they are compelled to do any job that their masters want and their bodies move automatically to the orders given to them.

 

One such slave is Fina, who was plucked from her home and family and thrown into the horror of slavery. Many things were snatched from her but her strong magic wasn't one of those things because her magic was just too powerful to do so. So, one ordinary night, when she hears a voice inside her head to rise to the rebellion, she sets on a journey to achieve freedom for all the slaves, using her powers.  

France is in the middle of a revolution to achievement their motto of Liberté, égalité, fraternité. But as the revolution continues, it unveils a France that people had only seen in their worst nightmares.

In England, Prime Minister William Pitt is trying his best to legalize magic among commoners and abolish slave trade. But the situation in France and Saint Dominigue makes it not only harder, but almost impossible to pass these laws in the House of Commoners.

What I really liked about this book was that this book is a perfect blend of history and magic, that is, the book included real-life characters and instances but still magic was a very important element to the plot. Also, I highly appreciate the level of research that the author had done before writing this novel which is highly evident in the novel. The setting of the novel alternates between London, France and the Carribean islands. The words were crafted in such a manner that the reader would be able to feel for each and every character.

What I didn't like about this book is that it is really long (544 pages) and some parts felt downright boring and stretched on. I really wish it was edited to be shortened as it took me eons to finally finish reading this book. Also, there instances where I had no idea what was going on.

I recommend this book to history geeks (being a geek is a good thing) and politics lovers.

I thank Orbit books and NetGalley for giving me this wonderful opportunity.