Septimus Heap: Book One-Magyk by Angie Sage

Septimus Heap is the seventh son and doubly magical. But he was stolen from his mother by a midwife who proclaimed him dead shortly after he was born. In return, the Heap family was gifted with a baby girl with purple eyes, who they were to pretend was their own and never say a word about how she came into the family.

Ten years later, things have not gone well for the Heap family. Though their daughter, Jenna, has been a joy in their lives, all the Heaps are magicians, and magic has undergone a steady decline since the assassination of the Queen and the death or disappearance of her baby daughter. The Academy of Magyk has all been shut down, and the teaching of Magyk halted.

But not for Silas and his sons. They rescued much of the magykal library and took it home with them, where they keep on studying magyk. And all of them, Silas, his wife Sarah, and their sons, loves Jenna dearly and would do anything to keep her happy and safe.

So, when the Extra-Ordinary Wizard, Marcia Overstrand, comes to see them, they aren't happy to see her. But she reveals that Jenna is actually the lost Princess, and that the Supreme Custodian, the new ruler of the city, is coming to take Jenna away, and possibly kill the rest of the family, and Jenna as well. The Heap family must flee to keep themselves safe, while Jenna travels with the Extra-Ordinary Wizard to the Tower that is Marcia Overstrand's home to keep her safe.

For unknown to all of them, the Supreme Custodian actually works for The Necromancer, DomDaniel, who wants to take over the city around the castle, and the entire country. Only Jenna's presence, which DomDaniel cannot enter, keeps the city safe. And when the Supreme Custodian forces her and her family to flee, the time is ripe for him to take over.

Jenna is taken to the tower, where the Extra-Ordinary Wizard and her Ghostly Mentor, the former Extra-Ordinary Wizard, and now exceedingly dead Alther Mella try to keep the city and country free, they are joined by Silas Heap and his son Nicko, along with their pet wolfhound, Maximillian and Boy 412, a member of the Young Army, which answers to the Supreme Custodian.

Chased by The Hunter, a fearsome foe dedicated to tracking down the escaped Princess and her companions, the group must make their way to the Marram Marshes, and Aunt Zelda, a powerful witch who lives with the company of Boggart, a Boggart who is almost friendly.

Meanwhile, DomDaniel is bent on taking over, and has picked a new apprentice while he was practicing black magic and Necromancy in the South. He rarely refers to his apprentice by name, but his apprentice is Septimus Heap. Whose side will Septimus follow? That of his original family, or the man who has raised him, taught him magic, and beat and berated him when he fails? And is this boy really Septimus Heap, the seventh son? And will his family take him back into their bosom if he is?

Unexpectedly lengthy for a kid's book, Septimus Heap: Magyk weaves several cherished tropes of fairy tales and fantasy stories into one cohesive whole. Child stolen, evil magicians, good magicians, a friendly ghost, babies switched at birth, lost child who turns out to have fabulous magical powers, and of course, the Princess raised by a commoner family who suddenly discovers that she really is a Princess. Oh, there are more, but that's a small smattering of the ones in the book.

Despite all these things being rather cliché in fantasy, Angie Sage still manages to put them together in a way that is deeply satisfying to read despite still being cliche in many cases. For instance, the Princess, before she is revealed, was hoping that she would turn out to be a Princess raised all unknowing by commoners, but of course, she really is a Princess being raised by a loving family of commoners, which not only makes it cliché, but self-referentially so. It provoked both a giggle and a groan as well.

But other than that, the series was extremely enjoyable. I suspect that many of the young readers will guess at the true identity of Septimus Heap early on, as the coloring of the Heap family is extremely distinctive, but so much goes on that even with the not-so-startling revelation, kids will find this keeps their interest. With engaging characters and an interesting tale, Septimus Heap will resonate with those who both love fairy tales and books like Harry Potter. Recommended.