Talisa's Song [Paperback]

Grade 6-8–In this sequel to The Minstrel's Daughter (Coteau, 2004), teenage Talisa Thatcher is slowly resigning herself to the fact that, while she is a gifted musician, she isn't a magician like others in her talented Uglessian family. While taking music lessons in neighboring Freyfall, she meets a young man named Cory and, through him, becomes involved in political intrigue that necessitates fleeing with him back to her native land. Both Freyfall and Uglessia are rich and fully realized lands, but the characters never come fully alive; even Talisa's budding relationship with Cory is rather stolidly depicted. Although much magic is hinted at, very little actually takes place, which may disappoint some readers, and the plot moves slowly through the entire middle portion of the book. Steer fans looking for rich and complex fantasy worlds to the books by Tamora Pierce or Ursula Le Guin instead.–Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
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Talisa Thatcher thinks she's useless - because she's the only one in her family who can't perform magic. But she learns the power of her own gift of music when she has to save the life of a young man unjustly accused of murder. This second book of the trilogy -set in Freya, a land simmering with magic and intrigue -tells the story of sixteen-year-old Talisa Thatcher and a talented young carver, Cory Updale. In Uglessia, Talisa's family is renowned for its great magicians. Her own gift--to write and sing beautiful songs - seems next to worthless. Talisa apprentices herself to a master musician in the city of Freyfall and gets caught in the middle of a street riot. Cory sees her danger and saves her. Through him, she learns about Freyan farmers turned off their land--an echo of the famous Highland Clearances.

Linda Smith is the author of the popular Freyan Trilogy fantasy series which includes Wind Shifter, Sea Change, and The Turning Time. Titles from that series were finalists for a number of book awards, while her most recent title, 2003’s picture book, Sir Cassie to the Rescue, was “highly recommended” by CM Magazine. She has also published poetry and short fiction in a number of anthologies and periodicals, and has had her work broadcast on CBC radio.