Book Review: The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this second book in the series has
about the same amount of sword fighting and monster battles as
the first -- all of it is suspenseful but not gory. The teen
twins with magical powers who are at the center of the story
are in almost constant danger. There are some scary scenes in
underground caves with giant spiders and creatures that feed
off fear and panic. One main character vanishes and is feared
dead. Two others can control fire.
Families can talk about all of the historical and mythological
characters and objects in the story. What is Machiavelli famous
for? What else do you know about Excalibur? The Valkyries?
Also, many characters in this book are immortal. Do you think
this is a gift or a curse? How do other books portray it
differently?
THE MAGICIAN is just as fun and exciting as the first book, maybe more so because now Sophie's powers have been awakened and she gets to try them out -- and she's really got some neat tricks up her sleeve, especially after she trains in Saint-Germaine's fire magic. Twin Josh is brooding over not having his powers awakened yet -- and makes some "what were you thinking?!" decisions because of it -- but he still gets a heroic warrior moment with a particularly nasty monster.
The book takes readers all over Paris -- even below it into the creepy catacombs -- where all sorts of historical and mythological figures pop up. The author, an authority on mythology and folklore, really unleashes some fascinating creatures on readers and barely restrains himself from delving into each character's complex history -- which is why the book, which takes place over just a couple of days, is close to 500 pages. No matter. This world is fun and exciting enough to let a little extra learning slip in.
THE MAGICIAN is just as fun and exciting as the first book, maybe more so because now Sophie's powers have been awakened and she gets to try them out -- and she's really got some neat tricks up her sleeve, especially after she trains in Saint-Germaine's fire magic. Twin Josh is brooding over not having his powers awakened yet -- and makes some "what were you thinking?!" decisions because of it -- but he still gets a heroic warrior moment with a particularly nasty monster.
The book takes readers all over Paris -- even below it into the creepy catacombs -- where all sorts of historical and mythological figures pop up. The author, an authority on mythology and folklore, really unleashes some fascinating creatures on readers and barely restrains himself from delving into each character's complex history -- which is why the book, which takes place over just a couple of days, is close to 500 pages. No matter. This world is fun and exciting enough to let a little extra learning slip in.
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