A review by laurenleigh
The Magicians by Lev Grossman

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Ugh I didn’t enjoy this. I love me a magical school trope, but this was missing all the fun. The story zips through 5 whole years of school in just the first of four parts. And yet the pacing felt slow? It seemed like three separate novels that were pared way down and smashed together. The last part finally got magical and interesting, but I was over this novel as a whole by then. I almost never DNF, but I almost did a few times with this one. Mainly because of sooo many sexist, ableist, and fatphobic microaggressions. It often felt like a Harry Potter/Narnia rip off, from the perspective of a whiny, horny, privileged white guy.
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