The Magician King

The awaited sequel to the New York Times bestseller The Magicians (see my post on the first novel), The Magician King  allows the readers to return to Fillory, the magic realm that Quentin and his friends discover in the first novel. Quentin Coldwater should be happy. "He escaped a miserable Brooklyn childhood, matriculated at a secret college for magic, and graduated to discover that Fillory - a fictional utopia - was actually real. But even as a Fillorian king, Quentin finds little peace." He is restless, and the premise of the novel is his desire for a quest. Paired with this "quest" is Julia's backstory; how she learned her magic and how it impacts the journey Quentin and Julia are on. In my opinion, I liked the first novel better - we were learning about magic and discovering Fillory with Quentin. The second novel is less so about the magic itself. Nonetheless, I enjoyed reading it and could hardly put it down. There are plot turns and twists that the reader doesn't expect, and it was enjoyable, yet I feel like it could have been better in some aspects. For example, the plot doesn't come together until the very very end, leaving the reader a bit confused until the last few chapters. I believe there's going to be a third novel in the trilogy, which I cannot wait to read. This was my second book on my Summer Reading 2012, and it was a perfect summer read. But I only suggest reading it after reading the first novel. Rating: ★★★★