Books: Malfuria

Catalina Soleado is a teenager who can change the world with a flick of her wrist. Or rather, the ink from her pen, but that she doesn't know when she starts her apprenticeship with an old mapmaker in Gaudi's mythical Barcelona. One day, a flying ship brings shadows wearing harlequin masks into the singing city. Her friend El Cuento, the wind that breezes through the alleys and collects stories to tell her, helps her flee when things get tough. Together with Jordi Marí who inadvertently gets caught in the events, Catalina tries her best to cope. Initially with being hunted and accepting that she is a witch of sorts, and then with saving the world from Evil.

The Malfuria trilogy is simply enticing. It is fantasy away from 'normal' fantasy, not following standard paths but growing out of seemingly unbound imagination. Set in a semi-imaginary Spain, using real as well as fantasy Spanish and Catalan names, including a myriad of references to other characters of history or fiction yet without clearly linking to them.

Malfuria, by Christopher Marzi, is written in German and I am not aware of any translation yet but if you like fantasy in the widest sense of the word and read German, have a look at it!

The website, by the way, provides samples from each book.