The Magician is the second book in the six-part The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series, and it is almost as fun as the first one. Like The Alchemyst, the pace is high, there’s an abundant use of myth, and I was unable to put it down. But I got three points I need to mention:
- At the end of chapter 18, the titular magician plans to violate rule 16 of the Evil Overlord List:
But he’d be sure to ask him … just before he killed him.
- In chapter 29 it was good to see that one of the main characters got as fed up with the sulking and whining of her twin-brother as I did. Luckily the story was about to kick into overdrive, leaving him no chance to transform into some emo-dragon-boy.
- I thought it was too convenient to kill off a very powerful nemesis who holds a huge debt over one of the protagonists, just after said nemesis awakens the magical powers of said protagonist.
Small issues aside, the book was good fun. Mythical creatures running loose and destroying Paris, an Elder race waiting to be restored to their former power (Ia! Ia! Cthulhu fhtagn! anyone?), humans long thought dead … good, good fun.
Book Three, The Sorceress comes out this May. Good.
- Michael Scott — The Magician (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel)
I am dying.