The Magician

Perfect shape like new.. musty smell but still great shape and will read soon thank you... love it.. recommend

Loved it very suspenseful

All the books in this series are a great read. A book a day keeps the memory from going grey!

A great continuation of the first book and always keeping you interested

Amazing imagery and thoughful writing for this second book. I am looking forward to The Sorceress next...bring it on! Just the right balance of action, fear, intensity, and hope for what is to come. The imagery of Paris and the places that exist beneath the city are creepy intense which adds to this story. Not frightning, but compelling - Josh and Sophie have to learn quickly, but also get to learn a thing or two that the elders didn't know and that makes me wonder what else they will discover that the elders weren't prepared for...

As the action in this sequel to The Alchemyst begins, the immortal Nicholas Flamel, the twins Sophie and Josh, and the ancient but young-looking Scathach have escaped the devastation and danger in Ojai for Paris, arriving instantaneously through a leygate located in the Witch of Endor's house. They soon join up with another immortal, the Fire Master and rock star Saint-Germain. But Niccolo Machiavelli, soon to be joined by the evil magician Dr. John Dee, is in relentless pursuit of them. Meanwhile, Nicholas' wife, Perenelle, is imprisoned by Dee in Alcatraz. Like the first book, this one is a first-rate fantastical, magical thriller, filled with nonstop action and mythological references from diverse cultures. In addition to being enthralled by the story itself, readers can use it as a starting point for learning more about these characters of myth, such as Nidhogg, the Valkyries, the Celtic warrior maiden Scathach, Mars, the spider Elder Areop-Enap, Dagon, plus legendary artifacts like the swords Excalibur and Clarent. And then there are the historical characters: Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel, John Dee, Niccolo Machiavelli, the Comte de Saint-Germain, and Joan of Arc. It seems to me that a great deal of today's best fantasy is being written for middle-grade and young-adult readers, and these wonderful books shouldn't be missed by grown-ups who love a good, fast-paced fantasy thriller written by someone with a thorough knowledge of mythology and folklore. I also recommend this series to those who enjoy Brandon Mull's Fablehaven books. We are really fortunate to have two such fun, imaginative fantasy series appearing at the same time.

I happened upon this and the first book in the series (The Alchemyst) just before July 4th and have quickly polished them off. For me the use of real historical characters alongside well-researched mythology is nigh irresistible. The books move along smartly with plenty of action and a narrative that is propulsive and unrelenting. In many ways these feel more like Jim Butcher's Dresden Files books than Harry Potter. Note that these books are clearly written to be "safe" for a younger audience. No sex, and fairly restrained violence. These are exciting and tense books, but still PG (or maybe barely PG-13). I am intrigued by the ambiguity around several of the main characters including Machiavelli and Flamel and am eager to see where these books go. Highly recommended.

The problem with intensive books such as the Magician is that you run out of information quickly and the books tend to lack depth. This is clearly not the case with the Magician. By using history, natural human instinct, and mythology, Scott takes what could be a 500 page story and translates it into a whole new world. Very well written book; it expresses everything and leaves little to imagination. This book is 464 pages of fun, action-filled adventure. There is not a single dull moment in the book. Even without the fight scenes, something interesting is happening. Serious kudos to Scott, what a hell of a book.

"Two days ago Sophie Newman had been an ordinary American teenager, her head filled with normal everyday things: homework and school projects, the latest songs and videos, boys she liked, cell phone numbers and Web addresses, blogs and urls." Now, life is drastically different. Her powers have just been Awakened by the Witch of Endor, who taught Sophie the Magic of Air and made her hypersensitive to all sights, smells, sounds, touch, and taste. She's on the run for her life from the immortal magician and necromancer John Dee, and her twin brother Josh wants to be Awakened and equal to his sister. Jealousy is rearing its ugly head. The immortal alchemist, Nicholas Flamel, leads their small band of fugitives to Paris in search of another Elder to train Sophie and awaken Josh. With them is Scathach, the Warrior, whose "fighting style is at the heart of just about every martial art." Unfortunately, Flamel's wife Perenelle is not with them. Imprisoned by a Sphinx on Alcatraz Island, Perenelle waits, powerless, for a chance to escape. She and Nicholas have less than a month to live. They're ageing fast, their immortality draining from them, and if they do not reclaim the Book of Abraham the Mage back from Dee, they will die. If only their deaths were the worst of it. The Book of Abraham holds more than just the formula for immortality; it contains all the history and secrets of humanity, including spells that could heal the world and return it to Paradise, along with ones that could destroy everything, or even worse, hand everything and everyone over to the power of the Dark Elders. The bad thing is that Dee has the Book and wants nothing more than Flamel's death and the rise of the Dark Elders to the rightful place of power. The good thing is that Josh has the two most important pages from the Book, and Dee can't use the book until he gets the pages. Even better is that Josh and Sophie appear to be the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy -- "The two that are one must become the one that is all." Legend predicts that twins will be born with pure silver and gold auras, and that their powers will bring about the end of the age. Josh and Sophie have those auras, and Sophie's powers have already been Awakened. The question is: what kind of end will they bring with them? Good or evil? It all depends on who controls the twins, doesn't it? If John Dee gets his way, the Dark Elders rule the world and humanity as we know it will end. If Nicholas Flamel gets his, he and Perenelle will survive, the twins will save the world, and the Humani will continue to flourish. But even that depends on whose story they believe. Who is, in fact, telling the truth? Is Flamel really working for the good of humanity or does he have some other motive? Who really does he serve? After all, just a couple days ago, Josh and Sophie were regular teens and living regular lives. This whole world of magic and myth didn't even exist! How are they supposed to know who to believe? P