I really wanted to love this book, especially after it received so much critical acclaim. My thoughts: ★★.5 star rating (out of 5). Then they discover the magical land of Fillory is real and launch an expedition to use their powers to set things right in the kingdom–which, naturally, turns out to be a much murkier proposition than expected. He also discovers his power has thrilling potential–though it’s unclear what he should do with it once he’s moved with his new magician cohorts to New York City. When he’s admitted to the surreptitious Brakebills Academy for an education in magic, Quentin finds mastering spells is tedious (and love is even more fraught). Quentin Coldwater lives in a state of perpetual melancholy, privately obsessed with his childhood books about the enchanted land of Fillory. Synopsis (from Amazon): Mixing the magic of beloved children’s fantasy classics (from Narnia and Oz to Harry Potter and Earthsea) with the sex, excess, angst, and anticlimax of life in college and beyond, Lev Grossman’s Magicians reimagines modern-day fantasy for grownups. Here are my reviews for each of the books in the series:
With nods to Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and the Chronicles of Narnia, Grossman reworks the stories of these books into a fantasy series for adults that blends gritty reality and fantasy. He and his friends become rulers of this land, go on quests, and face the potential destruction of the land. Over the course of the books, Quentin discovers that a magical land from a fictional series is real. The books follow the story of Quentin Coldwater, a young man who is accepted into an exclusive school for magicians. The trilogy is comprised of The Magicians (2009), The Magician King (2011), and The Magician’s Land (2014). The critics generally love these books but if you look at goodreads or amazons, the ratings seem split. The Magicians Trilogy is one of those series that people seem to either love or hate. I truly hated the audio and this may have colored my view of the entire series. I should preface this review by making clear that I read the first book and listened to the final two books as audibles. I disliked the first book, loved the second book, and felt lukewarm about the final book. Unfortunately, I feel sort of ambivalent about the series.
I finally did it! I finished Lev Grossman’s Magician’s Trilogy.