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A review by nglofile
The Magician's Lie by Greer Macallister
3.0
3.5 stars. For much of the book I'd been firmly 4, but I was less enamored of the last quarter or so.
When Ada is apprehended under suspicion of murdering her husband in a manner too similar to her trademark illusion, she is asked for her version of events. To buy herself time, and because any story must begin at the earliest relevant part, she starts with her youth. I loved the hook of this approach. As she winds back to different formative times in her life, interspersed with the present-day conversations with the lawman, she seems completely believable and sympathetic and strong and vulnerable all at once. Yet, we as readers are teased with the reminder that the book is entitled The Magician's Lie! This was most compelling. It had been a while since I spent time with a book with little idea of where it was going. Sure, there were hints, conventions, and suspicions, and some of the developments were ones I hoped would be avoided, but it was a good ride.
audiobook note: The production structure makes perfect sense: Julia Whelan voices Ada's telling of her story while Nick Podehl takes on the narration of Virgil's chapters. Both offer strong readings of their respective primary characters. I was less impressed with how each performed voices of opposite genders. In Whelan's case, her choice to enact Clyde with a low-pitched, measured drawl gave the sense he was slow or backwards more than alluring, and I found it difficult to see him as any sort of match for Ava.
When Ada is apprehended under suspicion of murdering her husband in a manner too similar to her trademark illusion, she is asked for her version of events. To buy herself time, and because any story must begin at the earliest relevant part, she starts with her youth. I loved the hook of this approach. As she winds back to different formative times in her life, interspersed with the present-day conversations with the lawman, she seems completely believable and sympathetic and strong and vulnerable all at once. Yet, we as readers are teased with the reminder that the book is entitled The Magician's Lie! This was most compelling. It had been a while since I spent time with a book with little idea of where it was going. Sure, there were hints, conventions, and suspicions, and some of the developments were ones I hoped would be avoided, but it was a good ride.
audiobook note: The production structure makes perfect sense: Julia Whelan voices Ada's telling of her story while Nick Podehl takes on the narration of Virgil's chapters. Both offer strong readings of their respective primary characters. I was less impressed with how each performed voices of opposite genders. In Whelan's case, her choice to enact Clyde with a low-pitched, measured drawl gave the sense he was slow or backwards more than alluring, and I found it difficult to see him as any sort of match for Ava.