Sophie Masson

Stand-alone novels:


The Firebird — (2001) Young adult. Available for download at Audible.com. From Author's website: This novel is based on the Russian fairytale, Prince Ivan, Grey Wolf and the Firebird ... and tells the story of the three sons of Tsar Demyan — brutal Yuri, sly Igor, and melancholy Ivan. All three young men must leave the court of their father to bring back the Firebird, a fabulous bird which has invaded the Tsar's precious garden. But Yuri and Igor try everything in their power to stop Ivan from getting anywhere, and it is lucky for Ivan that he has two friends to help him — the shapeshifting Grey Wolf, and the mysterious youth Bogatyr. But he also doesn't know if this quest is really for him, for his heart is back with feisty Princess Tamara, daughter of the King of Vahktania, who, alas, has been promised in marriage to his horrible brother Yuri.

The Firebird: "All is Already and Long Ago Ruined..."

The Firebird is a story made up of a range of Russian folklore, from the gnome-like 'leshis' to the greedy tsar to the Firebird itself. It reads like a fleshed-out fairytale, and contains much of the imagery and themes associated with such stories — everything from the persecuted younger brother to the quest narrative to the malevolent ruler of the land to the magical helpers and objects. For this reason, the story may sound rather predictable (and often it is), but as Russian folktales are not often delved into by Western writers, it is worth tracking down for a read.

Ivan is the youngest son of Tsar Demyan, and bullied by his two elder brothers, the brutal Yuri and the sly Igor. Tsar Demyan has the greatest garden in all the world, the centrepiece of which is the apple tree from Avalon on which grows a single golden apple. This apple is said to give the one who eats it immortal life, and so naturally the tsar has it guarded day and night. One day however Ivan is walking in the gardens and spots the beautiful sight of the Firebird — devouring the golden apple.

Fearful of his father's wrath, he takes a feather left behind by the bird to the tsar and explains the situation. The tsar is immediately obsessed with the bird, and orders his three sons to fetch it — promising the kingdom to the one who brings it back. The three set off, with Ivan determined not to let his evil brothers claim the beautiful bird before hand. A love interest is thrown in for good measure, Princess Tamara, whom Ivan loves but who is betrothed to Yuri. By finding the Firebird, he hopes that he can free Tamara from this dreadful fate.

The journey makes up the bulk of the book, and is brought to life with amazing characters and vivid imagery of forest and desert lands. However, the story itself is quite a tangled lot of threads that aren't always tied together. Several times there are characters and situations introduced which — though interesting — have no real bearing on the completion of the story. Likewise, there are a couple of characters who go about in disguise, but their "unmasking" is often rather confusing — in one case a person's real identity is attributed to two totally different characters.

It often falls to several fairytale cliches; obviously this will be the case if the book is a fleshed out fairytale, but the way in which this is presented is not done in a particular original or creative way. For instance, an innkeeper's wife gives Ivan a flute. Why? Because she can see he has a "good heart". This in itself is rather silly — what makes it worse it that the flute has no real purpose in the course of the story. If you're going to use fairytale elements, they need to make sense within the course of the story.

So why should you bother with The Firebird? There is something about Sophie Masson's wonderful poetic prose and the charisma she displays on every page that is appealing. The characters are well drawn, the settings are beautiful, and she melds several cultures together to make a whole — the afore mentioned Celtic Avalon, the Greek legends of Medea, the Russian Firebird and even a retelling of the French myth of Melusine.

Plus I've always had a bit of a thing for the mythological Firebird/phoenix (my favourite character in Harry Potter is Fawkes the phoenix). Sophie Masson is a great author, and although The Firebird isn't her best work, it's still an enjoyable read. —Rebecca Fisher

The Tempestuous Voyage of Hopewell Shakepeare — (2003) Young adult. Publisher: Hopewell Shakespeare, a young apprentice in London, is bored with his lot and besotted with the Globe, where his distant cousin, William, is already famous. William's plays fuel Hopewell's fantasies of love, glamour and fortune beyond the confines of London; he joins the crew of a notorious buccaneer, Captain Richard Wolfe whose ship the Golden Dragon is embarking on a search for the legendary Lost Island ruled by the Lord of Alchemists. But Hopewell is soon uneasy with the second mate Davy Jones and the waif-like ship's boy Kit Sly, and is beset with strange visions of a beautiful woman and predictions of a White Ship. When the Golden Dragon - ever a pirate ship - pursues and is wrecked by just such a white ship, Hopewell seems to be the sole survivor, and is cast up on an idyllic island inhabited only by an elderly scholar Dr Prosper Bonaventure, a girl, Flora, and her goat, Caprice. This is a place of illusion and transformation, where doors open on to the places of one's innermost dreams. But who from the wreck is truly lost, and who has survived? What is real and what is illusion? Who is evil and who is good? Who is boy and who is girl? And which is the true Lord of Alchemists who manipulates them all? As Hopewell struggles through the twists and turns of the enchanted world, the scales begin to fall from his eyes...

Snow, Fire, Sword — (2004-2006) Young adult. Two related novels have been published in Australia: The Curse of Zohreh and The Tyrant's Nephew. Publisher:  On the island of Jayangan, old beliefs and magic exist side by side with new pop songs and motorcycles...Adi is a fisherman's son, proud to be studying with the greatest of traditional sword makers. Dewi is the daughter of a healer, curious about the world beyond her quiet village. Neither Adi nor Dewi is prepared for the sudden violence that transforms their lives. Both are propelled into an epic battle in which even the mystical spirits of Jayangan are threatened and helpless. Charged with a desperate quest to find the mysterious Snow, Fire, and Sword, Adi and Dewi know only that if they fail, their beloved homeland will fall to an evil shrouded in impenetrable darkness. Can two children of the modern world succeed where the most powerful and ancient spirits cannot? Set against the backdrop of a mythic Indonesia, Sophie Masson's gripping fantasy will leave readers breathless.

In Hollow Lands — (2004) Young adult. Publisher: When twins Tiphaine and Gromer are lured from their peaceful home into the strange world of the magical korrigans it is the beginning of an extraordinary adventure. How will they break the spell of their enchantment and how are they connected to Bertrand du Guesclin, fighting against the English?

Malvolio's Revenge — (2005) Young adult. Author's website: A novel in three acts! It is Christmas Eve 1910, and in the drenched Louisiana countryside, a band of travelling players is struggling to try and find shelter in a massive downpour of rain. They have been trying to tour a once-famous play, Malvolio’s Revenge, a continuation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, in the glittering city of New Orleans but have had all the theatre doors closed on them; and have attempted to put the play on in the countryside, but have been gulled and swindled at every turn. Then, around the bend of a road, they literally fall over the gatepost of what looks like a derelict plantation mansion, called ‘Illyria’…Only two people are left in Illyria, an old black woman with strange green eyes, called Marie Laroche, and her charge, the last of an old aristocratic French Creole family, the beautiful, confident 16 year old Isabelle de Casteljaloux. They make the players very welcome, and soon propose them a strange but very tempting bargain: they will gain them entry into a New Orleans theatre, in return for going along with the company, and taking part in the staging of Malvolio’s Revenge: but in disguise! And so the stage is set for a wild, fun ride into a dark secret, adventure, comedy, and romance…in an atmosphere redolent of old New Orleans, in the exciting beginning of the jazz area!

The Madman of Venice — (2009) Publisher: The London home of Matthew Ashby is visited by the beautiful, famous half-Venetian musician, Emilia Lanier, begging him for help. A young Venetian girl, Sarah, has been accused of witchcraft by a wealthy merchant's wife, and has since disappeared. Is she in hiding? Or worse — kidnapped or murdered? So with his daughter, Celia, and his clerk, Ned, Matthew Ashby sets off for Venice and into a greater mystery than could ever be imagined. They must draw on all their wits and ingenuity to find allies in unexpected places. When Master Ashby is kidnapped, Ned and Celia have to race against the clock to find him as well as Sarah — but nothing is as it seems, not least the mysterious Madman of Venice ...