On the Shelf: The Magicians

THE MAGICIANS | LEV GROSSMAN | VIKING | 2009

Like everyone else, precocious high school senior Quentin Coldwater assumes that magic isn't real, until he finds himself admitted to a very secretive and exclusive college of magic in upstate New York.  There he indulges in joys of college - friendship, love, sex, and booze - and receives a rigorous education in modern sorcery.  But magic doesn''t bring the happiness and adventure Quentin thought it would. After graduation, he and his friends stumble upon a secret that sets them on a remarkable journey that may just fulfill Quentin's yearning. But their journey turns out to be darker and more dangerous than they''d imagined.

I absolutely loved the beginning of this book. I was apprehensive, worried that it was going to be some adult fiction knock-off of Harry Potter. While that is pretty much the case, somehow the formula worked and I  loved the part of the novel set at Brakebills. However, once Quentin graduates and decides to take on the world of New York City as an adult magician, my interest wandered. What started as a promising read quickly turned into a book of fantasy that was way too similar to wandering into the world of Narnia. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy the latter half of the book at all. I would have much preferred for Quentin's desire of a magical world other than our own to be just that - a desire. Still, as I said, I loved the first half of the book, so I'm really torn about where to place it in my mental catalogue of books. 

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“For just one second, look at your life and see how perfect it is. Stop looking for the next secret door that is going to lead you to your real life. Stop waiting. This is it: there's nothing else. It's here, and you'd better decide to enjoy it or you're going to be miserable wherever you go, for the rest of your life, forever.”