Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Magician King by Lev Grossman

5 reviews

deathmetalheron's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

The Magician King starts off much slower than its predecessor. It splits the narrative between POVs of Julia and Quentin. Julia's parts are all very interesting and worth reading, and in the first quarter of the book are the real incentive to continue going. Quentin's sections in the first 100 pages are quite dull and seem to be very repetitive in regards to his stasis at the beginning of the first book--it feels very retread, and there isn't enough world-building and (necessary) characterization of Julia to continue going. 
However, once Julia and Quentin and thrown back to Earth the stakes are immediately raised and they continue going farther and farther, and The Magician King ramps up the same level of introspection and satire that made the first Magicians so lovely. Gone are the Harry Potter analogues, as the group is firmly in Narnia territory. Grossman's sardonic and sarcastic prose sits very well and his consistent references make it truly powerful.
About three-quarters in this book becomes near impossible to put down--Julia joining the Free Trader Beowulf culminates in the reader's realization that just as much as Brakebills, the underground magic scene is just as conceited and loopy and will guarantee Julia nothing. The climax--while unbelievably tragic and graphic--sends home the fact of Dean Fogg's assessment that magic pretty much ruins everyone. 
The ending of this book is actually chef's kiss. In a complete send-up of fantasy endings, Quentin achieves all and loses everything. It is so beautifully funny and ironic that I was literally busting up laughing. 
If this book were a duology or simply an 800 page story, this ending would be succinct. I know the trilogy will continue but if it ended here--I truly think it would've been a powerful story.
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muckl3t83's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I really enjoyed the first book of the series. The sequel was a bit boring in comparison. It had its moments that I enjoyed but most of it just seemed kind of pointless and I just never cared about any of it. 
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medini_l's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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nytephoenyx's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really, really enjoyed this (as expected). It got its hooks into me because I finished this over a week ago and I am *still* angry about the ending. It's a great ending in a writing sense - I was so wrapped up in everything else the possibility didn't occur to me. But it's strong and dramatic and sets up *so many* questions for the next book and in that way, it's brilliant. I haven't seen much of the show, so the content is still new and exciting for me!

My biggest qualm is the way Julia's story was handled. There's an aspect to the general journey that I understand, but her critical moment was absolutely unnecessary and could have been handled without sexual violence.

Otherwise, this book had a great sense of urgency, a lot of appropriately frustrating moments that kept me engrossed as a ready, and the right balance of magic and not to be compelling without feeling impossible (in its setting).
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literarywreck's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Third Read, 2022.

I'm too attached to the show to give up on this series. I liked this book a lot better divorced from the first one. It still has some misogyny (and other harmful -isms) but significantly less than the first. The addition of Julia's perspective was a nice upgrade from only Quentin's.

I still have a lot of issues with the use of
rape as character development
in Julia's plot. I detest the message that comes along with that choice and
especially the choice to both remove Julia's shade and start her transformation into a goddess with it, which felt like a type of commentary on the outcome of sexual assault in terms of personal growth (as if to say, sure, it breaks you, but it also makes you into a better form of yourself?) which just wasn't Grossman's to make in the first place.
 

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Second Read, 2021.
Made it fifty percent through before tiring of having my filter for blatant misogyny constantly on. There are better books to put my energy into. DNF.
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First Read, 2015.
Ugh. Why did I finish this.
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