Status Update

Jayson is starting

Notes:
(1) I'd like to think I've evolved as a reader, as a person, as a connoisseur of taste, but apparently not. The last time I read this series was in 2009, and so far my old reviews reflect exactly how I feel about them today.
- On the flip side, should I expect my opinion of a book, or any subjective artform, to change over a span of time? I am still me after all.
- So far I'm 2/2, we'll see how this one fares.

— Aug 21, 2023 01:05AM

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Jayson’s Previous Updates

Jayson is finished

Notes:
(1) In my first review of this book, I noted that the end battle was disappointing, bringing the book down a few notches.
- I have to agree with my past self. It felt clunky and never hit the right notes for me.
(2) A closing note on the series: I was skeptical how they'd incorporate all the footnotes, copious throughout the text. I'm pleased to say that I didn't notice them. The narration was rather seamless.

— Aug 25, 2023 10:05PM

Jayson is 74% done

Notes:
(1) To me, the absence of any romance cements this firmly as middle-grade rather than young-adult.
- Sure, there's a long-standing crush on a teacher and brief mentions of certain characters' attractiveness, but nothing more than that.
- At this point in the book, the two principal characters have gotten over their enmity and sort of bonded. Shame there wasn't another book to explore this relationship further.

— Aug 24, 2023 09:20PM

Jayson is 61% done

Notes:
(1) Kitty spends three years learning magic only to have a bit of breakdown when she realizes it was a huge waste of her time.
- Not unusual, I hear people talk about their college degrees the same way.
(2) Part of the reason why this book's the best of the three is that the main characters are actually likeable and act nobly.
- Kitty's no longer a thief and terrorist.
- Nathaniel's no longer a careerist snob.

— Aug 23, 2023 09:15PM

Jayson is 37% done

Notes:
(1) I was right, flashbacks are a regular thing now. Meaning we get four points of view: (1) Nathaniel, (2) Kitty, (3) current Bartimaeus, (4) ancient Bartimaeus.
- It makes the book a lot less stuffy. The first book, by contrast, was all aristocratic/bureaucratic manners and pretense.
(2) I'm rooting for Nathaniel to end up with Piper, his demure secretary.
- She's sort of like his Moneypenny or Pepper Potts.

— Aug 22, 2023 09:45PM

Jayson is 20% done

Notes:
(1) So far, there's been two separate flashback chapters set in Ancient Egypt. Last book used a flashback as a prologue too, but never again afterward.
- I presume flashbacks will continue, given they're no longer limited to prologues, and given they feature the titular character.
(2) Like Harry Potter and Percy Jackson, John Mandrake here gets all the girls' attention.
- Top tier magical ability will do that.

— Aug 21, 2023 10:30PM