by T.A. Barron
FIC BAR, Teen section
Book 1
****
Merlin (then known as Emerys) washes up on a shore with a woman who claims she's not his mother. Emerys soon figures out he has powers when he gets mad at a boy who calls him "demon's son." Emerys gets mad (who wouldn't!) and thinks "Burn. Burn to hell." The tree in back of the boy suddenly catches on fire, and the kid gets stuck under the tree. Emerys tries to save him in vain, also blinding himself. Then Emerys sets out on a journey to Fincayra, meeting Rhia, Cwen, and many other creatures and humans. I liked best that there was always action, and there were many characters. Emerys always seemed to be moving, and that kept the story going. I was happy when I found out there were four more in the series. There are more and more characters, like the great Dagda, whso can transform into a stag, and the evil Rhita Gawr, who can transform into a boar, Trouble, a hawk, Stangmar, the evil king of Fincayra, and Shim, the short and big-nosed giant.
E.K. (5th grade), 2004
Book 3: The Mirror of Merlin
Merlin is forced to fight the evil Nimue, who has prisoned the Marsh Ghouls. He also must travel to the future to see what happens and save his best friend. This is indeed very interesting and suspenseful. It will hook you on to reading it.
S.N. (8th gr.) 2005
