Book Review: The Magician King by Lev Grossman
The Magician King by Lev Grossman
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 2 of The Magicians
Publisher: Viking (August 9, 2011)
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Back in my review of The Magicians, I wrote that you could have a miserably unlikeable character for the sake of writing a miserably unlikeable character and that I wouldn’t mind, just as long as you could give me a reason to care about him or her. While that’s still true, it does really help if your protagonist isn’t a whiny little ingrate and actually shows growth over the course of the novel. I really think that’s why The Magician King worked better for me than its predecessor. Like, a lot better. The ending of the first book gave me hope that I would enjoy the sequel more, and I did.
Things were looking up right from the start, with our story opening with a return to Fillory, the otherworldly realm from Quentin’s beloved childhood fantasy series that turned out to be a real place. He and his friends are now the kings and queens of this magical kingdom, but after a routine morning hunt goes wrong, Quentin and Julia decide to set off across the seas to the far reaches of Fillory to take care of certain matters. But their journey is interrupted by an unceremonious ejection from Fillory back to Earth and the mundane world. Thus begins an epic quest to find their way back, with the fate of all magic hanging in the balance.
I’ll admit it, the first book had its high points, but on the whole I wasn’t too enamored. The wonderful sections featuring Quentin at Brakebills aside, I thought most of the book was directionless and tedious, and I wasn’t impressed with the characters and their attitudes until almost the very end when they discover Fillory and set out to explore it. The thing is, I loved the spellbinding world of Fillory and its amazing denizens, as well as the incredible sights and sounds. When the final pages of The Magicians teased that we may be going back, I was very pleased. That’s one reason why The Magician King worked better for me; the fact that we got to be in Fillory right away was a huge plus.
The second reason is something I’ve already alluded to, that being Quentin has come a long way from the moody, self-absorbed and aimless young man he was in book one. He has grown up a lot between the two novels in my eyes, no doubt in part due to the traumatic events he experienced at the end of The Magicians. His concern for a young crew member and the neglected daughter of a diplomat really touched me; it’s not something I would have expected in a million years from the old Quentin. In this book, he is driven and finds it possible to become excited about the prospects of adventure again, and – shocker! – in the process he became someone I wanted to read more about.
The same could not be said for Julia, however. My one gripe about this novel are her chapters, which more or less alternated with the chapters focusing on the main story. Julia’s tale encompasses her own rise to the world of magic after failing her Brakebills entrance exam, which couldn’t have been more different than Quentin’s academically formal training. Her journey through the underground magical scene is actually quite interesting, though I was initially unsure how it all related to the book’s central premise. What bothered me wasn’t so much her story, but the fact that the role of annoyingly maudlin and dissatisfied character seemed to have been passed from Quentin to Julia, though we do see that she has had to go through a lot of suffering and very difficult times. I could also appreciate how the two lines of thought eventually came together, but felt that her “backstory” was a bit distracting at first.
All in all, however, I was pleasantly surprised by my positive reactions to this book. On the whole, this was a much deeper and complex novel, but also much more entertaining and engaging on multiple levels. I liked how a lot of the world was expanded, as well as the answers to a lot questions brought up by the first book. And that ending! I can’t believe my heart is actually aching for Quentin. It’s very rare for a sequel to grab me, especially since book one failed to do so, and it’s great whenever that happens. I’m really starting to see the appeal behind this series, and this second installment has really made it grow on me.
The BiblioSanctum 
Okay. I’m convinced. I’ll admit that your review of book 1 made me hesitant, but book 2 was clearly better, and oh hey, look at that–still sitting on my bookshelves giving me the evil eye 😉
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It’s really amazing what a huge difference the character makes. And this one had a much better story with a grand quest rather than the aimless coming-of-age theme from the first book.
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Oh it’s nice to see that your opinion changed for the main character here and the leads. It’s sometimes difficult with second books but when they’re more convincing it’s so perfect! Great review!
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I’m reading the third book now and my opinion of the character has improved even more. Definitely helps!
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I’m glad the second book is an improvement on the first. I don’t know if it’s enough for me to try this series again-there are just too many other books I’d rather read-but you never know!
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I know how it is, I probably wouldn’t have jumped into this one right away if I hadn’t gotten the third book to review. I figured, heck, I might as well. But I’m actually very glad I did.
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It’s funny, I’ve noticed readers that had fewer complaints about the first book preferred that one to this, and readers like you that were a little more put off by the whininess prefer this one. Really looking forward to seeing what you think of the last. It’s my favorite of the three.
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This does seem like a very polarizing series, with opinions all over the place. People either love it or hate it, and there are those who enjoyed the first book who continued o enjoy the series, others like me who didn’t care much for book one but became more positive about book two, and others who liked the first book but thought this second one was weaker. The biggie for me in this one was an improvement in the character as well as a much better story, which was probably the most important. I’m actually really enjoying the third book, btw!
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Did I ever check if the library had book 1…*goes to check*
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They should! It’s a pretty popular series, I borrowed both one and two from the library myself.
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I just pulled book one off the shelf and it’s on the read this weekend list. I’m thinking I can get through two books…the first in this trilogy and then something else lighter.n I’m glad Quentin became someone that you’d care to know more in this one. I think if he hadn’t you might not be continuing to the last =)
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I hope you can! I practically binge read this trilogy (which is rare for me since I usually spread my series out) I’m almost finished the third book and really enjoying it. It’s like the biggest comeback ever lol.
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I think it’s a good sign when the second book is an improvement on the first. I’d much rather read a good first book and a great second book than read an amazing series debut and be disappointed by all the subsequent offerings (I’m looking at you, Grisha trilogy!!!). Mogsy, your review gives me hope for this series. Maybe I’ll give the Magicians a try after all!
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I agree, so much better when a series improves over time versus a book that blows me away and then have the sequels disappoint. LOL, oh man, the Grisha trilogy. Such a let down.
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