Read The Magicians (2009)

Online Book

Author

Lev Grossman

Genre

Fantasy

Series

The Magicians

Rating

3.46 of 5 Votes: 4

Your rating

ISBN

0670020559 (ISBN13: 9780670020553)

Language

English

Publisher

Viking

Shops

Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble

Free Online

The Magicians (2009) - Plot & Excerpts

I didn't know anything about this book before I read it. I had never read a synopsis or review before starting, and so I had no expectation that it would be like fan fiction for both Harry Potter and Narnia.After reading the reviews here, I get why this book is polarizing.This book is really heavy, and the main character is unlikable. Basically it's a book about teen angst, self-sabotage and self-hatred, PTSD, and nihilism, as told through the lens of young adult fantasy.If you're expecting Narnia or Harry Potter, this is not it.It was a good book, with lots of both complexity and action. A very interesting and engaging read, and pretty wrenching. This was a harder read than I expected from something I'd been told was "Harry Potter for grown-ups". I disliked the main character frequently, and about halfway through, I figured out why, and I had a pretty good idea of how the story was going to end.This is a book about discontent, not magic. It keeps something a little hollow all the way through. The rating system here doesn't really allow me to express the odd combination of appreciation and dissatisfaction that results.