I loved Sabriel on first read, because I was fifteen and the idea of such a calm, skilled, collected female protagonist really got me. I reread it recently, and while nostalgia carried the day, I definitely see that she was perhaps not put up against the challenges that her character seemed to demand, if that makes sense.

If you go on to read the sequels, I'd be interested to see what you think. (I'm suppressing my own comments because I don't want to influence your read of it.)