Nightwalker: The Warlocks of Talverdin, Book 1

by K.V. Johansen

After his guardian dies, Maurey is reduced from student to unpaid servant at his grammar school and bullied because of his black hair and eyes, which make him look as if he is related to the sorcerers... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1551434814
• ISBN13: 9781551434810
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
• Length: 196 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 7.3" x 8.3"
• Age Range: 10 to 13 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 8

Customer Reviews

The Story Siren Reviews:

Why I haven't heard more about this series, I don't fully understand. Being a fan of fantasy I've read more than my share and to find such a well written fantasy novel that is relatively unknown is always a surprise. Although the novel doesn't have the outstanding depth of other fantasy greats like Eragon and Harry Potter, I wouldn't discredit Johansen's story telling ability. Her world of Nightwalkers and sorcery is just as if not more entertaining than its lengthy counterparts. It would have been easy to fully immerse myself and read the entire novel in one sitting if I would have actually had the time to do so! It's faced paced which is always a plus with me and the elements of action, humor, adventure! The characters were likable and witty without seeming phony. It was just overall a good novel and an enjoyable read. I'm dying to start the next book.

A great book

Reviewed by Simon Smith (age 9) for Reader Views (5/08) "Nightwalker: The Warlocks of Talverdin" is a book that tells about an odd boy named Maurey. He is odd because of his black hair and eyes. Also, he is the son of a warlock (his mother is dead before the story begins) and was called a nightwalker even before people knew that he was a nightwalker because he just looked like one. A nightwalker is a kind of sorcerer that, using a shadow, can disappear into a dimension called the half world. This is a place where everything is made out of shadow. Nightwalkers are able to perform spells as well as go in and out of the half world. The other power that the nightwalkers have is being able to see very well in the dark. You might think that it would be cool to be a nightwalker, and if you think so, then you are right. Or at least you would be right if almost every human on the earth did not try to destroy you. The method that the people used to find, take out, and destroy all of the nightwalkers, was an odd thing -- a creation of alchemy called philosophers' fire, which only harms warlocks. Philosopher' fire is difficult to find and making it is very dangerous because if you don't do it exactly right it could kill you. Maurey has to flee for his life after the rings -- the only things which he had left from his mother -- were taken from him and he was put to the test by Philosophers' fire to see if he was a warlock or not. After being proved a warlock by the Philosophers' fire, Maurey meets the Baroness of Oakhold, who attempts to free Maurey because she knows that humans have more evil than warlocks. You'll be amazed at the unusual way that she tries to free him! I really liked how the author described the half world and how the adventure unfolded in "Nightwalker: The Warlocks of Talverdin." I didn't understand the beginning very much when I started but it gets better when the book goes on. I think this is a very good book for boys and girls, aged eight and up.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

Maurey used to be a student at the grammar school at Fowler College, but that was before his guardian passed away. Suddenly all of his tuition money, paid through college degree level, mysteriously disappeared. Now Maurey is an unpaid servant at the school, and whipping boy for bored students. In addition to being a charity case, he bears a striking physical resemblance to the sorcerers who were driven from the land many years ago. He is insulted, harassed, even assaulted, at virtually every turn. His only escape is the dark tunnels underneath the school. His extraordinary night vision helps him navigate and elude his captors. Until tonight. Tonight he got away from the bullying students and ran directly into the King, along with the master of the school and the King's Chancellor. As a result of the impact, the chain around his neck bearing rings from his mother, the only thing he has that connects him to her, falls out of his shirt. First accused of theft, closer examination of the rings causes a much greater stir. Maury finds himself locked in a dungeon, waiting to be tried for sorcery. If his greatest fears about his ancestry are true, Maurey will undoubtedly be killed. His only possibility for help seems to be a very unlikely and unwise choice. All I can say is WOW! I've read a fair amount of fantasy/paranormal books, and this is one of the best I've come across. Amazingly well-developed and imagined, both character and story-wise, intelligent, and witty. It's books like this, and the knowledge that it's only book one, that make me love this job! Reviewed by: Carrie Spellman