Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Magonia
    Magonia
    Magonia
    Audiobook9 hours

    Magonia

    Written by Maria Dahvana Headley

    Narrated by Therese Plummer and Michael Crouch

    3.5/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    “Maria Dahvana Headley is a firecracker: she’s whip smart with a heart, and she writes like a dream.”  —Neil Gaiman, bestselling author of The Graveyard Book and Coraline

    Aza Ray Boyle is drowning in thin air. Since she was a baby, Aza has suffered from a mysterious lung disease that makes it ever harder for her to breathe, to speak—to live.

    So when Aza catches a glimpse of a ship in the sky, her family chalks it up to a cruel side effect of her medication. But Aza doesn't think this is a hallucination. She can hear someone on the ship calling her name.

    Only her best friend, Jason, listens. Jason, who's always been there. Jason, for whom she might have more-than-friendly feelings. But before Aza can consider that thrilling idea, something goes terribly wrong. Aza is lost to our world—and found, by another. Magonia.

    Above the clouds, in a land of trading ships, Aza is not the weak and dying thing she was. In Magonia, she can breathe for the first time. Better, she has immense power—but as she navigates her new life, she discovers that war between Magonia and Earth is coming. In Aza's hands lies fate of the whole of humanity—including the boy who loves her. Where do her loyalties lie?

    Neil Gaiman’s Stardust meets John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars in this New York Times bestselling story about a girl caught between two worlds, two races, and two destinies.

    Don’t miss Aerie, the stunning, highly anticipated sequel!

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateApr 28, 2015
    ISBN9780062365828
    Author

    Maria Dahvana Headley

    Maria Dahvana Headley is a New York Times bestselling novelist, memoirist, and editor, most recently of Magonia, Queen of Kings, and the anthology Unnatural Creatures (coeditor with Neil Gaiman). Her short fiction has been nominated for the Nebula and Shirley Jackson Awards. She lives in Brooklyn in an apartment with a seven-foot stuffed crocodile and constellations on the ceiling. You can find her at www.mariadahvanaheadley.com

    More audiobooks from Maria Dahvana Headley

    Related to Magonia

    Titles in the series (2)

    View More
    View More

    Related audiobooks

    YA Fantasy For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The In-betweeners

      Nov 12, 2019

      Two years ago, during the Writing Popular Fiction MFA winter residency at Seton Hill University, a discussion broke out amongst my students in a critique workshop geared toward young adult (YA) writers: They didn’t think YA novels were really written

      6 min read

    • Article

      The Bone Shard Daughter

      Sep 9, 2020

      RELEASED 10 SEPTEMBER 448 pages | Hardback/ebook/audiobook Author Andrea Stewart Publisher Orbit Books Epic fantasy has long had a thing for One True Kings. You know the drill: a dreadful tyrant is murdering people for fun and generally imperilling t

      1 min read

    • Article

      Morbidity & the Miniature

      May 11, 2018

      Morbidity & the Miniature
      14 min read

    • Article

      The Final Truth

      Jan 21, 2020

      The Final Truth
      5 min read

    • Article

      Don’t Have A Bird

      Aug 2, 2020

      There are so many rites of passage you’ve already missed out on, and the school ball is destined to become another item on that ever-growing list. You try to delay the inevitable until every breath from your lungs sounds as if cystic fibrosis is cack

      12 min read

    • Article

      Ask A Silly Question

      Aug 5, 2022

      I SIT IN THE DOCTOR’S OFFICE. He asks: “So, when did you know?” I say: “Always.” Because I’ve heard that simplicity gets results. It is one phrase that has spanned my lifetime. No matter what setting, country or occasion, it remains un defeatable. Li

      12 min read

    • Article

      No One Lives Here

      Mar 29, 2021

      FROM ISSUE #49: SURVIVAL STORIES GENEVIEVE ANNA TYRRELL is a visual artist and creative writer. She earned her BS in Electronic Media and Film at Towson University and her MFA in creative writing at the University of Central Florida. Her writing has

      8 min read

    • Article

      A Kind Of Magic

      Oct 2, 2022

      The first thing I notice about my new therapy appointment is that I’ve worn the wrong shoes. I’ve done everything else correctly: washed my hair, used deodorant, selected an age-appropriate shirt, practised my calm and knowledgeable voice. But thongs

      5 min read

    • Article

      A Space for Life to Grow

      May 17, 2021

      A Space for Life to Grow
      9 min read

    • Article

      Polished Concrete Flaws

      Apr 24, 2022

      Polished Concrete Flaws
      7 min read

    • Article

      Falling

      Mar 1, 2021

      Falling
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Funny Thing About Aging

      Nov 12, 2022

      The Funny Thing About Aging
      5 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems

      Mar 1, 2022

      On bed rest desire becomes a sheet.Let it fall over mewithout hands. Let it. Before I knew I was in dangerI did not get up. After,when I say how long I lay downhow can I make you understand it was an order? In bed what time has done to me iswhat it c

      2 min read

    • Article

      A Letter to My Sons

      Sep 25, 2019

      A Letter to My Sons
      7 min read

    • Article

      Finding The Words

      Jun 3, 2023

      Finding The Words
      5 min read

    • Article

      A Debut Novelist Imagines Life After Her Own Death

      Aug 4, 2022

      I was 17 years old when I died. The post A Debut Novelist Imagines Life After Her Own Death appeared first on The Millions.

      9 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Magonia

    3.5/5

    201 ratings21 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      amazing
    • 3/5
      The book is beautifully written and the characters of Aza and Jason are awesome, but the plot, to me, was ridiculous and I just couldn't get past it to lose myself in the novel. Secret sky ships and bird people just never quite gelled for me. I found the idea ludicrous from the start and the world-building wasn't quite strong enough to overcome my prejudice. But, damn, the prose was astonishing. I kept reading, in spite of my eye-rolling just to feast on more of the gorgeous writing.
    • 3/5
      This book was pretty awesome :) Unlike any other fantasy book I've read this year. It was original, well written and had likeable characters. I found myself immersed in this book and read it whenever I could - but tried to savour it so much. The world-building was cool, although somewhat lacking since we only got a glimpse of what Magonia is really like - hopefully there is more in the sequel, if there is one! :D It didn't bother me too much though because we were as much in the dark as the main character, who by the way, was quite awesome. She was believable and not one of those characters who does everything perfectly, she is a human being - kind of. The secondary characters were interesting and not thoroughly explored but there is potential for more and they really added to the plot! I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait for the next instalment! hopefully there is one :)
    • 5/5
      Amazing captivating story, didnt want to stop reading this book
    • 5/5
      wonderful.
    • 5/5
      I'm really conflicted writing this review.

      I super enjoyed the first third of this book (even though it was the most emotional, heartbreaking opening to a book I've ever read!), but as soon as the sci-fi elements kicked in it all sort of went downhill for me until the the last few chapters (again, so emotional!). The feel of the story changes completely and it began to drag. I didn't connect with any of the new characters and the fictional world/civilisation didn't spark my imagination. Considering this is about actual old timey ships in the freaking sky I'm really surprised it didn't work for me.

      All in all a classic case of me not caring for the plot at all but falling in love with the characters. The way the author wrote the connection between Aza Ray and Jason is the sole reason I kept reading this book and why I'm going to read the second one in the duology.

      3.75 stars for this one.
    • 4/5
      Aza Ray has spent her life struggling to breath, the fact that she’s made it to fifteen years is nothing short of a miracle. At her worst, she hallucinates ships in the sky with people sliding down ropes to the earth. But what if she wasn't hallucinating? What if there was another world up in the sky that coincided with our own below? What then? On earth she has a family who loves her, and who have gone to great lengths to keep her alive. She has Jason, her best friend, an OCD geek genius, who could maybe be something more than just a friend.

      I was about 70% done when I realized I’d started another series. It’s okay, the world is interesting enough that I want more information. t have all the back story, yet, but I’m hoping we’ll get some of that in the next book. I also need some more world building of Magonia itself. I have lot of questions, just like Aza.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely captivating.

      This unique fantasy had me from the first chapter and before I know it I had finished over one-hundred pages of this can't-put-down novel.

      Aza Ray's story is full of great humor, friendship, love and hope.

      Love this!
    • 5/5
      Aza Ray is a teenager with a unique lung disease that makes it extremely difficult for her to breathe. She's "drowning in air." By any definition of our society she's disabled. She hallucinates ships sailing the sky and voices calling her name. Everyone dismisses it as side-effects from medication. Except her best friend Jason, Jason who she might love.

      Then, one night, she dies.

      Aza Ray is a teenager like any other, except her mother is a powerful sky ship captain and Aza Ray is her heir. By no definition of her society is she disabled. She misses her home and the mother who raised her. She struggles to learn the magic everyone else takes for granted. And she misses Jason who she might love.

      This book was so great. It's about disability and illness and how disability is so much more about society then about the individual. It's about dreaming of a different life and wish fulfillment and being careful what you wish for. It's a fairy tale. It's a dream. It's a war.
    • 3/5
      Wow. Not. What. I. Expected. At all. Here is what I think i learned.


      Heaven is real, it is really called Magonia, and you only go there after death on earth if you were born there to begin with. Magonians are where the myths of gods come from. They live on a series of floating islands and ships.


      In Magonia Magic is real. storms are made by whales, lightning by sharks, and wind by song. I didn't so much enjoy this book, as was enthralled by it. I couldn't put it down, even though it was hard to follow and barely made sense to me. I give it a 4/5 for brilliant imagery. However, since it was not my personal cup of tea, overall rating is a 2/5.
    • 4/5
      My girlfriend and I read this aloud to one another. It was a fun book for that sort of thing! It's the story of Aza Ray Boyle, a teenaged girl with a mysterious and debilitating ailment of the lungs that she expects will kill her at any moment. I'm not going to say much about the plot because it spoils it, but there is a really really gut-wrenching and memorable scene in this book, and the magic is really bizarre and out there, stretching even my suspension of disbelief in a fun way. The voices of Aza and her best friend are so well drawn and the plot goes topsy turvy so early that I felt like this book was exciting and unpredictable, with a core of teenage feeling that you really cling to while all the wackiness ensues.
    • 4/5
      Magonia is one of those books that you would either hate or love, fortunately I felt the latter while I was reading it. It's about a teenaged girl named Aza who has been sick ever since she was little. Her affliction remains a mystery in the medical field.  Her family loves her and would do anything to give her a semblance of a normal life. Her bestfriend Jason adores her and can't bear the thought of losing her. But Aza is really sick, and before her 17th birthday, she succumbs to her unrelenting illness.However, Aza's story doesn't end there, in fact it's only the beginning. You see Aza is not of this world, she belongs to the sky where she is destined to lead her kind. Up in the clouds her lifelong illness can't touch her, she is strong and powerful, and that power would prove to be both a blessing and a curse.What I like about this story is the voice of the narrators. Aza tells her story in a manic-like voice, but her bravado in the face of her illness makes her a sympathetic character. Jason's pov is told in a semi-functioning, somewhat unhinged voice, from a boy who is hopelessly in love with his bestfriend. It was interesting to see if these two would end up together and how they'll make it work.One thing I question though, and it applies to other YA novels as well, is that Aza and Jason act older than their age. Jason particularly does some pretty amazing and unbelievable things to help Aza, I would've also liked there to be more world building, especially when Aza was already in Magonia. It's such a unique and fascinating world and I wish it was described more vividly.I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.
    • 4/5
      "For the first time in my entire life, I have power. More than power. I feel like I belong. Like this is my ship. Like this is my country. Like this is my destiny."

      I have so much respect for writers like Maria Dahvana Headley who are so immensely creative that they can create an entire world. There’s nothing cookie cutter about this novel and I love that!

      Aza is a young girl with a lung disease that doctors are unable to diagnose. It’s hard for her to breathe, so every day is a struggle, but her family and best friend Jason support her, making her life a little easier for her to bear. One day Aza sees a ship in the sky, but her family thinks she’s hallucinating from her medication. The only person who believes her is her friend Jason Kerwin. Jason mentions Magonia, but Aza thinks it’s a myth. Something goes tragically wrong and she wakes up in an unfamiliar place. She discovers that she’s in Magonia, which is another world, but in Magonia she’s healthy and powerful. She can breathe. Earth and Magonia are dependent on each other and Magonians think a war between them is imminent. Aza feels torn because she still loves and misses her Earth family, but she’s starting to feel like she belongs in Magonia.

      Maria Dahvana Headley is super smart and her intelligence shows in her references throughout the novel. Jason is constantly reciting pi and he’s read the Annuls of Ulster. She references Shakespeare, Casablanca, Moby Dick, E. E. Cummings, Animal Form, Icarus and Jacob Grimm. I love stories that incorporate those types of details.

      I love the prose; it’s smooth and conversational. It has a natural flow that meshes well with her wonderful storytelling and fully developed characters.

      I’ll never view storms the same way again. Whenever I see a storm, I’m going to start thinking, “That’s Magonia foraging the Earth again.” I wouldn’t be surprised if I started staring at the clouds looking for ships. This novel was so refreshingly different, so if you love fantasy, you’ll love this one.
    • 4/5
      Unexpectedly surreal and haunting, but with just enough geekery and typical teen moments to somehow seem realistic. Aza Ray can't breathe, and somehow manages to make it to a sickly, snarky adolescence on oh so little oxygen. For a minute you fear this is going to be another sick kid with a bad attitude story-turned-movie.

      And then.
      In the sky, as half-bird and fueled by songs from a bird that flew into in her chest, she is a superpower. Also, a boyfriend who speaks in pi, a giant squid, and lots of lightning. And a crazy power-hungry bird-person-mom. And I'm still not quite sure what really happens here.

      "trembling adored tousled bird mad girl" - Robert Smith
    • 2/5
      First of all, I absolutely hate books that start series without being clear about it. I have no objections to reading the first book of a trilogy, if I know from the beginning that it is the first book of a trilogy. I may even willingly read the first book of god-knows-how-long series, just preferably after at least couple of the next books is available.
      But I hate when something is selling like a stand-alone novel, but "the end" is not the end of it. Not at all.

      OK, so, this is the first in a series. So, the author spends a lot of time on world-building. I could forgive it, if the world is beautiful, interesting, or at least does not defy logic. Sorry, not here. It's ugly, it's just the earth mirrored in the sky, and it shows author's poor knowledge of physics (or geophysics, whatever).

      So, are there any redeeming qualities? Like engaging and believable characters? Sadly, not really.
      In the beginning Aza is engaging enough, but as the time goes, she becomes more and more Mary Sue-ish. The Chosen One.
      Jason is better, but just marginally. And they have the same voice. Ok, they are alike. Still. Longer phrases might have helped. Really. I mean, {{[]}}?
      Obviously, I am not a fan of such writing style. Don't know, maybe, it's brilliant. Just not for me.

      And the love story? Sickeningly sweet. Love overcomes everything. Rock, water, earthquakes, lightnings, death... Everything. It's postulated. And eventually boring.

      Summary: In my opinion, the best and the most impressive part of this book is its cover. (And marketing campaign.) The writing is not on par with it.

      I believe I will skip next books in this series.

    • 5/5
      Oh my this was a wonderful, amazing and delightful story! I fell into it quickly. Couldn't put it down. The imagery was beautiful. I loved the characters. Magic was every where and I laughed and cried and hung on to every word. Will there be a part two? I need more of this story to continue. Such a good story.
    • 3/5
      MagoniaUniquely strange3 stars I almost gave up on this book, in the beginning. Slow start and I didn't like the protagonists annoying and abrasive personality. In short, a VERY cynical teenager (Aza Ray Boyle) suffers her whole life from a breathing disease which is basically causing her to drown on air. She loses her battle with it and is transported from earth to a world hidden from earths view where breathing is easier, a world (Magonia) where ships sail through the clouds and is inhabited by bird like, other worldly creatures. This is Aza's true home. Not so content with her new life in the beginning, Aza eventually softens and accepts her position (she's the chosen one and for the first time in her life, feels useful) but soon discovers that war between Magonia and earth is coming (a flooding of earth that's unbeknownst to humans). Aza makes a decision. The end. There are a lot of things about this book that were interesting and unique (pirate ships, birds nesting in your lungs, bats used as sails, flying whales) but there were quite a few things that grated on my nerves(long drawn out sentences, weird and random dialogue, Aza). I enjoyed the fantasy element very much and recommend it. It's a pretty neat story. Also, if there is a sequel, which is a possibility, I'd read it.
    • 4/5
      When reading a book, there's one quality of a story that I crave over everything else (i.e. good editing, relatable characters, witty dialogue): CREATIVITY. And, I'll tell ya what, Magonia has it in spades.I can honestly say that I've never read anything like this before. Maria Dahvana Headley has the most Vivid of Imaginations, and I reveled in every word of it. I totally LOVED Headley's writing style, both Aza and Jason's voices, and the wildly creative world that she created. In fact, there were only two things that kept Magonia from earning all 5 Stars for me.1. Aza goes through this "phase" towards the middle of the book that kind of annoyed me. It was almost like she was stronger as a weak human girl than she was as a strong Magonian one. I get that she was kind of going through a Big Thing, but still, she didn't quite seem like herself for a while there.2. And this is probably just me, but I kind of feel like the last 2/3 of the book was rushed. At just over 300 pages, Magonia isn't what I'd call a long book---I would have liked to have had 50-100 more pages of story to fully explore Magonia's history and customs. I would have liked to have had a little more detail about the sky ships, the Rostrae, and the power of song. But you guys know me, I'm just greedy like that.I can't find anything about a sequel anywhere, but I definitely feel like there's a lot more of this story left to be told. If ever a ship sets sail for Magonia again, you can bet I'll find a way to stowaway on it ;)
    • 3/5
      I was fascinated by the book cover first and then the summary of this book. So I took chance on it. Overall, it was a good book. The world that the author built in Magonia was amazing. It was so colorful and full of magic. Aza is a different person in Magonia than she is in the real world. I liked her better in Magonia. She is strong. The reasons that I gave this book only 3 stars is because when I first started this book I did not pick out anything in the first several chapters as interesting. In fact, I started this book while laying in bed. Some of my best times to read. Because the story had not picked up yet, I quickly fell asleep and could not remember anything that I had read in those several chapters. Also it seemed that the story was rushed and details glossed over. I wanted to know more about this fascinating world and the people in it. I did not have a close connection with anyone in particular in this book. Although, I must admit that this book is different from the books that are currently on the bookshelves. This is a good thing.
    • 3/5
      So this book. I hate when something starts out so unbelievably amazing and then dissolves into complete mediocrity. The 1/3 of MAGONIA was awesome. I had all these wonderful John Green vibes and I actually cried at one scene. The voice was so intoxicating. But then...not so much.As soon as Aza goes up, the amazing voice gets strangled in a complicated world full of rules and history and just strangeness that failed to captivate me. One of the big problems with this book (and others like it) is that Aza is thrust into this sky world with a million questions (rightfully so), but guess how many get answered? Not many. And instead of demanding answers, Aza just lets people dismiss her and literally put to work swabbing the deck. It was extremely frustrating. Worst of all though, is that the plot and worldbuilding is so complicated and unique in the sky that Aza's character fades into generic girl in a fantasy novel. Maybe if she hadn't be so dynamic and alive in the first 1/3 of the book, I wouldn't have noticed as much, but she was so I did.Also the introduction of a love triangle was so anemic as to be pointless. And yet it looks like it might develop more in the sequel. Bleh. Overall, this would have been one of my favorite books if the last 2/3 of the book (the fantasy) had lived up to the 1/3 (the contemporary). I love fantasy YA, but this just didn't work on that level. I will anxiously await this authors next contemporary offering, but I won't be returning to Magonia.
    • 4/5
      3.5 (liked it a lot) I wanted to read Magonia because I was first drawn to the premise of the girl who has these respiratory issues because illness books have always appealed to me. But then I realized it was a fantasy and she is misplaced--because in this universe in the skies, she is strong and has no illness. I like the main character Aza she was very smart and full of life even though she was so sick. her and her best friend Jason were pretty obscure people. they know all kinds of random knowledge and we're constantly challenging each other. since they've been friends for years and years since they were 5 they have a very special and deep bond. As part of her disease she sometimes runs fevers and hallucinates and when she all the sudden sees a ship in the sky, everyone assumes that it is a hallucination. But when they find a feather, of all things, in her lungs then we start to see the fantasy aspect of the story. jason is very well read so he's heard of mythology and such of people claiming to come from a place called Magonia throughout history and when they are on land, they say they for there by falling from the sky. there is a story event of a man who came out of nowhere with a rope and an anchor and it appeared like he was drowning in the air. the story especially stuck with Aza because of her lungs and her breathing problems that seems to be very unique to her and the disorder is even named after her. After seeing the ship, she sees all sorts of birds along with crazy weather. Them she starts to think that the birds are talking to her and of course that is a link with the feather. She is in her room and thinks that a bird flies into her chest and is speaking through her. Next thing we see her rushed to the hospital and then we know we are all of the sudden out of Aza and in Jason's perspective and it seems like Aza has passed away. Jason works hard, using all of his knowledge and connections into looking into ships in the sky. He hears her screaming at him from a distance at her funeral and he doesn't stop searching. The world building takes a whole new step as we get back into Aza's perspective. She is all of the sudden able to breath, and her body feels strong. She learns a lot about her past, and shocking secrets about her family, and why her lungs were so bad on the ground. She tries to grasp the differences in this whole new species that she is a part of. They work with the birds, their skin is different, so is their language and thinking. She is surrounded by a whole new cast of characters and she is rightly suspicious of everyone. But she does form bonds with some of them, and some are good decisions and others lead to plot developments and twists she didn't want to believe. I enjoyed this book, and although it felt like some parts got a little slow, I was easily distracted by other things going on, and I am sure that had something to do with it. But I certainly want to keep reading, and find out more about this strange world in the sky and how Aza fits into it. I also am eager to see more of the chemistry and deep bond between her and Jason, how the alliances she made while sailing will play out. Bottom Line: Intricate world building, relatable main character, and fun read.