Landovel

The Poison Taster, The Secret Keeper, The Truth Teller
By Emily Rodda
Reviewed by Mia Macrossan

I am a judge for the 2024 Aurealis Awards. This review is my personal opinion and does not reflect the opinion of any judging panel, the judging coordinators, or the Aurealis Awards management team.

Emily Rodda is a well known and much loved Australian author of  award winning books such as the Rowan of Rin series, His Name Was Walter, Eliza Vanda’s Button Box, The Shop at Hooper’s Bend and The Glimme. I have just listed some of my favourites out of the more than 100 books that she has written.

She is a firm believer ‘that books stimulate the imagination and teach logic and empathy in a way that games and movies can’t… in order to develop reading stamina, and thus gain the tools to move on to more complex books, children need a good supply of fast-moving, entertaining stories that will grip their attention and make them want to read on.’ (http://www.emilyrodda.com/)

With Landovel, a huge story, so big that it comes in three parts she has provided exactly that. It is a true-to-form fast-moving, action-packed, fantasy adventure, full of suspense, heartache and heartbreak, with a winning hero, diverse friends and many disparate and engaging characters.

Derry  is the poison taster for Cram, the unscrupulous leader of a cutthroat gang of pirates who capture, keep and sell slaves. Derry is reserved, silent, self-effacing as a matter of survival. His one talent, reading for Cram, is what keeps him alive, since his withered arm means he can’t do the work the other slaves do. He becomes acquainted with Num, a boy who speaks only rarely and then in rhyme, Straw, a strong-willed slave girl whose open defiance Derry very much admires and Cat, clever, selfish, charming, a master at outwitting authority. The hopes, dreams and schemes of this group is what drives the story.

They travel from Cram’s Rock to Free Landovel to True Landovel meeting many subtly drawn and memorable characters along the way to the heartstopping and touching ending. They often face difficult decisions which means they learn, grow and change as the story progresses. It is a world where heroes fight for justice, freedom and for what they believe in, but who are they, where have they gone and how do you become a hero?

The work is rich in themes, slavery, freedom, country life versus city life, the benefits and pitfalls of technology, the art government et al.  Cat is obsessed with Gifting, the medical procedure which boosts a natural human ability to a higher level, an interesting concept, one sure to raise many questions with enquiring readers. Another thread throughout is the importance of books, of stories, of words and of reading.

This is one of those stories which ideally you want to devour in one sitting, so be prepared to give up a couple of days and dive deep into the story of Derry and his friends in the richly detailed fantastical world of Landovel. It comes in a carefully designed boxed set, with the 3 spines spelling out the title, ideal for gift giving. While intense and violent in parts, children from 9+ will be enthralled.

Allen & Unwin Children’s 2024
Emily Rodda