JJ M. (jjmahoney) reviewed Not worth your time on 9/29/2008

This review will be long, but I have a lot to say about this book.

I picked up The Magician (as I did The Alchemyst) in the hopes of finding another series to give me a Harry Potter-like fix. Like Harry Potter, the Nicholas Flamel series is fantasy set in the present day. I'm perfectly fine with that. But unlike Harry Potter, these books throw the modern world in your face...at least once per chapter. Personally, I was very put off by that. Having fantasy and magic thrown in next to iPods and World of Warcraft is very jarring and, frankly, quite annoying. For example, when Josh compares an enemy's weapon to a weapon he saw in World of Warcraft (a massively multiplayer online computer game), I nearly threw the book out the window in frustration. I know the story takes place in "present day", so stop reminding me every 3 pages!

This is just a personal preference. Undoubtedly many people like (or will like) the book. But as a huge Harry Potter, Narnia and Lord of the Rings fan, this book was incredibly disappointing. I don't mind fantasy written in the present day. Harry Potter is a great example of what I like in a story set in our time. But this book seems to want to remind you every few pages that there are internet cafes and cell phones in the world our characters live in. That's not to say that iPods and email can't be mentioned, but it just feels out of place in this and book 1 (which is weird considering they're set in the present day).

That leads me to other bothersome aspects of the writing. I can understand that these are the author's first two novels and some immaturity in the writing is to be expected, but there is an over reliance on little catchphrases and adjectives that became infuriating to read. When I read that a passage of time was "shorter than a heartbeat" for the 15th time, I started to think the author couldn't think of any other way to describe the sudden situation and I rolled my eyes (and eventually let out an audible sigh or groan) everytime I saw that phrase on the page. And there are many others like that.

I remember enjoying The Alchemyst. The talk of iPods and emails in The Alchemyst annoyed me (as previously mentioned), but it wasn't as bad as The Magician. But I remember not being able to put The Alchemyst down and looking forward to the next book. BUt with The Magician I couldn't wait to finish it so I could move on to something else. It took everything I had to finish it and quickly posted it on PBS when I finished.

Taking a cue from the author and using the same catchphrase over and over again, I found this book to be completely annoying. The best parts were of Perenelle at Alcatraz, and there were maybe 5 chapters of that. I will likely read The Sorceress (book 3), but only because I almost feel obligated to see how everything finishes. The basic premise is interesting and showed potential, but so far the way it is constructed leaves a lot to be desired.

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