Magical

by Victoria-Melita Zammit, V.M. Zammit

There aren’t a lot of people who can say that there’s a backdoor to another dimension in their back garden, but Arian Klein can. And there aren’t a lot of people who can say that they would rather fight dragons than face reality, but Arian Klein can say that too. So why does she feel like passing through this portal with Kendra was, maybe, a terrible idea?

Genres: Fantasy

162 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 14, 2018

About the author

Victoria was born and raised on the Mediterranean island of Malta, and has always loved reading. Her father, an author in his own right of non-fiction texts, spent most of her childhood instilling in her a love of books, an appreciation for history, and a love of culture and travel. Her mother encouraged her to read from a young age, especially Maltese texts. Her older brother was the reason she started reading fantasy books when he introduced her to the Harry Potter books at the age of 7.

At 19 she started her BA (Hons) degree in English Literature at the University of Malta in which she specialized in nineteenth century literature and literary theory. In 2016 she joined the same University for a Masters in Interpreting Studies. By 2019, she had moved to Glasgow, Scotland to study a Masters in Science Information and Library Studies. She graduated with a specialization in cataloguing and acquisition studies, and is now a school librarian in Milton Keynes.

She currently spends her days watching YouTube, playing video games, reading and writing. She writes poetry for her partner (a German teacher), fantasy fiction and LGBT romance stories.

Reviews

[N.J.M. Hemfrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not my usual read but I got through it in no time at all, as it is a very entertaining, humorous, and heartfelt book. It’s a story that fills you with “good feels” for the two main characters whose quirks and personalities keep you keen to follow them anywhere. There are some shocking moments too that help layer the narrative. Having the story split between the present and flashbacks was a bit jarring at first, but I swiftly got into the flow and looked forward to learning more of Arian and Kendra’s pasts. The fantasy world beyond the portals reminds me of anime and RPG video games which is only a good thing! The use of the fantasy world to explore the inner insecurities of both Arian and Kendra was brilliant, and I think very relatable. I think we’ve all imagined at some point how different we may able to act if we weren’t stuck in the mundane worlds we are. This book will click with a lot of readers of all ages and intrigue them to embark on more adventures with Arian and Kendra. I know I am.

[Paul Portanier · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun fantasy novella that I enjoyed from beginning to end. The relationship between Kendra and Arian is engaging, and it's nice to see some good LGBT representation in a genre dominated by burly white men. Hoping to see more of the world behind the "swirling purple portal thing" soon.

[Timothy Borg · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written book. The book has a good balance between being plot driven and character driven. Also, the plot shifts between the main story idea and the personal lives of Arien and Kendra which makes the book a melting pot of different stories. I also enjoyed seeing proper queer representation in the book. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to find good local literature.

[Marthese Formosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to read this book while it was a draft and yesterday (14th August)I finally got a papercopy.

Magical follows Arian and Kendra who discover a private portal and use it to escape a bit from reality and to go on an adventure. Arian and Kendra are protective of each other and both are strong. They are not rushing to have sex -thumbs up for that. Their family situations are different though.

The world building is done mostly through questions and answers, which was a smart move as in a novella, there isn't much time for extra narrative. There's a lot happening at once and a lot of sequences.

The feeling of the setting, apart from it being fantasy, feels a bit like Malta and a bit like abroad (think Greener Europe).

With it being so short, there are of course a lot of things that were left out. For example, we only see their friends in flashbacks. I was also not that big of a fan of the speech language used, but that's a personal pet peeve. There definitely were some funny moments.

As with regards to the format, I absolutely love the cover. The font and the paper feel are nice as are the page numbers. However, while the font size may be perfect for some people, I thought it was too big which led to a lot of paper waste. The margins were also too narrow and there is a lot of white space. I guess that's a generic amazon-ebook-in-print feature.

It's a good novella with potential to be part of a series.

[Deborah Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author via Voracious Readers Only. Although this novella was well written, it was a lightweight romance about college age women with some odd magical elements thrown in. Those of us who read books for the magic/paranormal and expect a riveting plot are bound to be disappointed.