A review by jedwards97
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The Master and Margarita is a wild ride. Book one dashes between different moments of absurd chaos that flourishes in Moscow after the arrival of the devil, whilst book two delves into a traditional linear narrative involving the devil and Margarita. The typical “antagonist” characters, if you can call them that, are the most enthralling. Their bouts of comedy mixed with acts of terror create such an entertaining read that the book stands out immediately as one of a kind. The writing has so much deeply embedded meaning that I need to give it a second read to grasp all of the ideas and feelings comprehensively, it was so easy to get sucked up in the story (in a great way) that I felt I whizzed past much of the deeper concepts of the novel. It was my first read of magical realism, i can only hope many other works in the genre have followed suit!