The Magicians - Lev Grossman

The Magicians

By Lev Grossman

  • Release Date: 2009-08-11
  • Genre: Literary Fiction
Score: 4
4
From 1,539 Ratings

Description

Lev Grossman’s new novel THE BRIGHT SWORD will be on sale July 2024

The New York Times bestselling novel about a young man practicing magic in the real world, now an original series on SYFY

The Magicians is to Harry Potter as a shot of Irish whiskey is to a glass of weak tea. . . . Hogwarts was never like this.”
—George R.R. Martin
 
“Sad, hilarious, beautiful, and essential to anyone who cares about modern fantasy.”
—Joe Hill
 
“A very knowing and wonderful take on the wizard school genre.”
—John Green
 
The Magicians may just be the most subversive, gripping and enchanting fantasy novel I’ve read this century.”
—Cory Doctorow

“This gripping novel draws on the conventions of contemporary and classic fantasy novels in order to upend them . . . an unexpectedly moving coming-of-age story.”
—The New Yorker

“The best urban fantasy in years.”
—A.V. Club


Quentin Coldwater is brilliant but miserable. A high school math genius, he’s secretly fascinated with a series of children’s fantasy novels set in a magical land called Fillory, and real life is disappointing by comparison. When Quentin is unexpectedly admitted to an elite, secret college of magic, it looks like his wildest dreams have come true. But his newfound powers lead him down a rabbit hole of hedonism and disillusionment, and ultimately to the dark secret behind the story of Fillory. The land of his childhood fantasies turns out to be much darker and more dangerous than he ever could have imagined. . . .

The prequel to the New York Times bestselling book The Magician King and the #1 bestseller The Magician's Land, The Magicians is one of the most daring and inventive works of literary fantasy in years. No one who has escaped into the worlds of Narnia and Harry Potter should miss this breathtaking return to the landscape of the imagination.

Reviews

  • Watch the tv show

    2
    By Andrewqrom
    Narrative structure: okay Descriptive voice: great Characters… sigh: I was constantly distracted by Quentin’s attention to the most useless of details and frankly the juvenile methods he uses to “get what he wants.” I’ve never seen such pouting before, a main character on a magical adventure to another land being such a drag. This book feels like catcher in the rye with somehow less charm but somehow tries show itself as being emotionally “gritty.” It’s whiny. There were so many missed opportunities here, so many opportunities the show on SyFy has taken advantage of. It’s distracted how doom and gloom Quentin is. It’s disappointing that Elliot is nothing more than a high functioning alcoholic except for when the plot requires him to not be. “Janet” (on the show she is named Margo, which is honestly such a good change) sorta just boils down to a mean, straight to the point, sexual deviant who likes discord. Oh yeah, Hoberman. According to Grossman, Hoberman’s the fat one. That’s basically his whole character. Poor poor Alice. On the show, they explored her pain regarding her brother and such and I felt for her. I felt for her struggle to be patient and to seek answers. In the book, she’s just a sexual conquest and even she uses sex as a weapon. Quentin does. “Janet” does. This book doesn’t understand how sex works. It doesn’t understand how relationships work. It doesn’t act upon its greatest opportunities because Grossman doesn’t want to commit to them, he’d rather have characters throw around fat jokes and have ruminate on incel thoughts. I’m telling you, the book is long, full of weird word choices (hermaphrodite, being my favorite) and its main character is basically a sheltered white boy who has never seen people different than him and acts like it. Watch the show, you literally lose nothing if you don’t read the book. All the book will make you do is scream at it for not taking advantage of its own premise. (The show suffers from its own poor choices too. But every point that’s expanded on from the book itself is fleshed out and feels authentic to what the books are about: a normal world with magic.)
  • Meh...

    1
    By Flimdwidget
    Not much here to like. The characters are flat, the story is slow, and boring. Don’t waste your time.
  • Love the show. Can’t get into the book.

    3
    By Heather7936
    I’ve been trying for a year. I’ve made it 29%. The writing style just isn’t for me. I do love that this inspired such an amazing show though.
  • Better than Expected

    4
    By Epetuss
    So I’ll keep this short. I’m up to date on The Magicians Tv Series (January 2019) and after looking at all these 1-2 star reviews I was pretty hesitant to pick up this book, in fear that it would be make me appreciate the show less. However, I’ve found to appreciate the characters more. The book is vastly different from the tv-series. You could even say it’s just a different timeline; Quentin is complex and very down to earth. His sadness and depression don’t trump his decision making, but influence it greatly. He’s more than just a mopey character in this. You finally understand his decisions in great detail. I will say this book is extremely thorough, sometimes highlighting random details that have no real meaning in the book. But this helped me grasp each situation better. 4/5, can’t wait to pick up book #2.
  • Love exploring this world

    4
    By CoKie Kola
    The author has done a fantastic job creating this world that scratches at a Harry Potter itch, but with a creative take on magic school. Unfortunately, I saw the show before reading the book and the show had really taken this story to the next level... that said, I’m really looking forward to the next book in the series. In my experience reading books adapted for the screen, book is better than movie & TV show is better than book. I still respect the original work, just wish I’d gotten to it first!
  • book review

    5
    By Mady Null
    highly recommend. very well written, great character development, and really keeps you interested. so sad to see it end.
  • Snoozer

    1
    By Abby RP.
    So boring. Felt like a poorly written rip off of Lion Witch Wardrobe and Harry Potter that was trying to “be cool.” i stopped reading 3/4 through and had enough. Wish i could get my money back!!!
  • Terrible, horrible, and oh so boring

    1
    By Viktoria's flame
    Can't believe I even got halfway through this book before finally tossing it aside. God its so boring. Anyways I have three big issues with this book. First off let me say descriptive writing is nice, but should be used in moderation. I don't need to know the hues and scents of every single tree Quentin (the main character) walks past. He describes every single idiotic thing to the point where I became very agitated. Secondly, can I just ask the author what sort of crack he was smoking when he came up with this fantasy world. At some points the storyline is so screwed up. I felt critically disturbed during many scenes in the book. This is also coming from someone who read Game of Thrones and watches American Horror Story. Lastly Quentin. Oh Quentin you are the worst main character I have had the burden of following in this adventure. He is shallow, and just keeps on pitying himself. We get it, your best friend and one true love didn't fall for you and your friends don't pay attention to your whims and woes. Boo hoo who cares. You don't have to be so boring. But sadly you are and those the very reason I absolutely despise this book.
  • A cult classic of our generation

    5
    By Lamarok
    It's an incredible book about the coming of age as a wizard involving drugs, sex, magic and violence and the struggle of living with untold power at your command. 10/10 adult Harry Potter
  • Good book

    2
    By Clintoffogus
    Hard to get into but when you do your hooked. Some slow parts but overall good story.