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The Magician King (The Magicians, #2)
by Lev Grossman (Goodreads Author)
by Lev Grossman (Goodreads Author)
Glad I went ahead and read this despite not wholly loving The Magicians; I think this book is much better. There is more of a plot, more momentum, an actual quest, a sense of urgency. Also, Julia's side of the story is revealed - everything she did while Quentin was at Brakebills in the first book - and this is a great addition. Julia is certainly one of the stronger characters. For those who read The Magicians but are on the fence about whether to read the next book, I would recommend it. It's less C.S. Lewis, more Philip Pullman.
He'd tried playing hero, and it wasn't his game. What you lost was a lot realer than what you gained. (p. 234)
"You're saying the gods don't have free will."
"The power to make mistakes. Only we have that. Mortals." (p. 246)
He'd tried playing hero, and it wasn't his game. What you lost was a lot realer than what you gained. (p. 234)
"You're saying the gods don't have free will."
"The power to make mistakes. Only we have that. Mortals." (p. 246)
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Jun 13, 2012 08:06am
See, as soon as I finished the Magicians I thought, "I have to read the sequel. Immediately." I loved the first one - though you're right, it was definitely somewhat wandering.I'm psyched to hear this one is even better. It's in the mail to me now.
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Cool, I hope you enjoy it! Grossman has an incredible imagination, it just needs to be harnessed/focused to produce something more streamlined. Then again, I know people who loved the first book and hated the second, so...who knows! I'm interested to hear what you think.
The less-streamlined plot struck me as a more literary approach to a very full genre, honestly. Kind of saying, "even if magic were real, it wouldn't be like it is in the books, and in all likelihood, you wouldn't be the protagonist."But then, I never really studied literature, and it's a tag that I feel like anyone can use if they frame it properly. Except Stephenie Meyer. Eugh.
I agree that the protagonist being less than heroic (being actually kind of sulky and passive) may be realistic. However, I'm not going to give the author a pass on the wandering nature of the narrative by calling it "literary." I've read many books where very little happens, and the focus is on character or something else other than plot, but there is still a sense of momentum that keeps you reading. I remember feeling pretty frustrated by the second half of The Magicians because as imaginative as it was, it didn't seem to be going anywhere in particular. (And even a good deal of the magic seemed to be based on C.S. Lewis and other sources.) But you're right that it's unique within the crowded "magic" genre.
