Rating: 
Summary: An extraordinary and evocative work
Review: An extraordinary and evocative work of contemporary fantasy that clearly establishes Mahy (when writing for the more mature reader) in the same league as Susan Cooper, William Mayne, Alan Garner, and Peter Dickinson, The Tricksters adds nuanced layer upon layer in its depiction of a girl's sexual and emotional coming of age. I read this book when it first came out, and have returned to it more than once. It is certainly a book that rewards reading at all ages (I'm in my forties now)and I have recommended it successfuly to teenagers, college students, and other adults. It lead me to read Mahy's many other books including Seventeen Kings, Forty-Two Elephants; An Alien in the Family; Memory; The Horribly Haunted School; and The Changeover. These range from picture books to novels, but none fail to deliver a startling, often electric, shock of reappraisal of our individual relationship with the world. In The Tricksters, for example, the three ambiguously identified young men of the title are as palpable or as elusive as the protagonist's own thoughts and feelings are about the role she will play in life, and in her family. The unsettling mixture stirs her longing for innocent childhood with a growing (and appalling) understanding that nothing will be the same again as she grows. Really, a quite remarkable novel... I would most closely compare it with a long overlooked book, Thunder On the Left by Christopher Morley, best known as the author of The Haunted Bookshop. Like Thunder, I foresee that Tricksters will still have devoted readers fifty and seventy-five years from now.
Rating: 
Summary: Suspenseful Urban Fantasy
Review: Every Christmas, the Hamilton family spends the holiday season at Carnival's Hide, a house built ninety years earlier by but never lived in by Edward Carnival, a prominant forester and gardener, on the shores of New Zealand. Every Christmas, they recount how Edward's son, Teddy, was lost and presumed dead in a diving accident. This Christmas, however, will be different.Not only do they welcome Anthony, a visitor from England, in taking part in their celebrations, but their second oldest daughter, Harry (short for Ariadne), encounters three strangers on the beach on night. At once intimidating and attractive, the three brothers claim to be descendants of Edward Carnival. Their true origins, however, seep into the world of the unreal and will affect the members of the Hamilton family in many ways, from romance to unrest to family secrets. Are they who they claim to be or, as she believes, manifestations from Harry's private novel? Her own infatuation with one of the brothers could put her family at risk before she discovers the truth. Margaret Mahy weaves a skillful tale full of intriguing characters and atmosphere in an urban fantasy which is fast paced and suspenseful. Her use of language is clear yet often poetic as she infuses the fantastic with the real as she juggles this family of unique characters and their guests, both welcome and unwelcome.
Rating:
Summary: An unforgettable modern-day masterpiece
Review: I checked this book out of my public library based on its cover,which is usually not the best way to find great literature. Yet in this book, I found a character that was so much like me, that I thought that my Felix was around the corner. This absolutely stunning piece tells the story of Ariadne(Harry) Hamilton,the most real person of a family that craves uniqueness. She sits in her attic room writing a romantic story and thinking ghostly thoughts.Then one day while walking on the beach, she meets the three men that will change her family forever. These men captivate the family, captivate Ariadne, and captivate the reader as well. As Harry lets one of the men,Felix, come closer to her, the other two find their way into the hearts of the rest. When the final climax comes, the reader is stunned and moved. The last few pages alone are worth the money.
Rating:
Summary: I loved it!!!!
Review: I found an ancient copy of this book in my not very well funded library. I loved it. It is about a girl named Harry with wild red hair, who loves to read,tries to write a book, confronts 3 enigmatic spirits and faces up to the big family secret. I thought it was an incredibly well written book about things that are hard to write about, and wish very sincerly they would print it again so I could buy my own copy. What's wrong with publishers?
Rating:
Summary: the story is still w/ me since i was a teenager
Review: i love this story. you get wrapped up in family life, fantasy & all of the characters. i re-bought this book from over 10 years ago. if memory serves me, the haunting was extremely well written as well. perfect for pre-teens, teens & even older.
Rating:
Summary: A great book for ages 11-14
Review: I read an older copy hiden in the back of my school libary about 2 years ago and read it in about 5 hours. it was great but short. Margaret Mahy is a great athur and you should read all her books.
Rating:
Summary: Mystery, magic, and romance
Review: If you're looking for a story that's a little out of the ordinary, pick up "The Tricksters" by Margaret Mahy. "The Tricksters" is romance, supernatural phenomena, mystery and family drama all rolled into one book full of rich detail and fully realized characters. Mahy's writing is superb. There is nothing basic about the basic plot of "The Tricksters" buy I'll try to sum it up as briefly as possible: Harry (really Ariadne) is on Christmas vacation at the beach (New Zealand - the seasons are swapped) with her family. The five Hamilton children and their parents have been returning to "Carnivals Hide," their vacation home for several years. The place is a family tradition for them and holds the romance and intrigue of the mysterious past of it's original owners, the Carnivals. The children often retell the story and play pretend games involving young Teddy Carnival, a former resident of the home, who tragically drowned, leaving his poor grieving father to sink further into the seclusion of Carnival's Hide.
This Christmas, Harry and her family are surprised by three unexpected visitors. Ovid and his twin brothers Hadfield and Felix appear on the beach one day. They perform magic tricks and speak in eloquent riddles and tell of a connection to the Carnival family. To Harry, they appear to have been born straight out of her own imagination - the romance novel she is secretly writing - and she suspects they are not the jovial, romantic brothers they portray but a mystery of a more sinister nature. Who and what are the three tricksters and what is there true business at Carnival's Hide and with the Hamilton family? Magically, the answers are teased out in riddles and hints until finally they culminate in the revelations of a family secret.
Rating: 
Summary: This Book Not For Me
Review: My review of this book was that it was a very long and drawn out boring book. I feel sorry for those people who actually like to read boring books like this. I can kind of tell if a book is boring if in the first twenty and a half chapters are so boring that I would rather do my chores instead of reading this stupid book. I can't help it , but man the only interesting part in the whole book is the last three chapters, but even at the end of the twenty third chapter it was so boring that I could hardly stay awake to read the end of this stupid book.
Rating:
Summary: Mystery, magic, and romance
Review: On the surface The Tricksters is a great young adult novel. For the training literary reader who can dig deeper than the simple plot will allow, this book provides so much more than a fun read. It is a book that will haunt you long after you put it down. Drawn in by Harry Hamilton's enthusiasm for writing, I was drawn to her character because she was so much like me. The mysterious air of the ghostly Carnival brothers adds just the right touch of romantic flare that I need. And the brooding, family secret that lurks just below the surface keep me reading until the early hours of the morning. A page turner, if there ever was one!
Rating:
Summary: If I were Oprah, I'd pick it for my book club!
Review: On the surface The Tricksters is a great young adult novel. For the training literary reader who can dig deeper than the simple plot will allow, this book provides so much more than a fun read. It is a book that will haunt you long after you put it down. Drawn in by Harry Hamilton's enthusiasm for writing, I was drawn to her character because she was so much like me. The mysterious air of the ghostly Carnival brothers adds just the right touch of romantic flare that I need. And the brooding, family secret that lurks just below the surface keep me reading until the early hours of the morning. A page turner, if there ever was one!
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