In the Hugo-award winning, epic New York Times Bestseller and basis for the BBC miniseries, two men change England’s history when they bring magic back into the world.In the midst of the Napoleonic Wars in 1806, most people believe magic to have long since disappeared from England – until the reclusive Mr. Norrell reveals his powers and becomes an overnight celebrity.Another practicing magician … celebrity.
Another practicing magician then emerges: the young and daring Jonathan Strange. He becomes Norrell’s pupil, and the two join forces in the war against France.
But Strange is increasingly drawn to the wild, most perilous forms of magic, and he soon risks sacrificing his partnership with Norrell and everything else he holds dear.
Susanna Clarke’s brilliant first novel is an utterly compelling epic tale of nineteenth-century England and the two magicians who, first as teacher and pupil and then as rivals, emerge to change its history.
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A haunting fantasia in the gothic vein, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell is one of the best fantasy novels of the new millennium. Much better than the misrepresentative tv series of the same name, which could not hope to capture the atmosphere of the original novel.
Great start but petered out.
I never read anything like it, and I can’t forget it.
I found this book very difficult to read – the pace was slow, nothing much happens, it did not grab my attention liked I hoped it would. I have recently seen many favorable reviews, so I may have to re-read this.
A whole world laid out for you. Very satisfying.
This is one of my favorite novels. It’s whimsical and very detailed Regency fantasy with magicians and fairies.
I had to let this book sit for a while after I finished it as i was unsure of how I felt about it.
The book centres around the difficult and changing relationship between Jonathon Strange and Mr Norrell as well as their impact upon, and the influence of their magic over, other characters and events throughout the narrative. The language is very much in keeping with the period setting and the use of actual historic events as a backdrop for the magic is inspired. There is an awful lot to like here.
However, I felt that some of the chapters, in handling a series of connected events, were overly-long and that the progress of the central plot was slowed significantly as a result. Whilst the individual footnotes were exceedigly detailed and entertaining, there were a great number of times when I felt I was being lectured and constantly having to dip in and out of the narrative was quite irritating.
I had a hard time engaging with this one…kept putting it down and when I picked it up again, could not recall much of the story. Sorry, not my cup of tea…I usually like this genre.
It’s finally finished!
This book took me forever to read for some reason. I can’t say why. It is quite a thick book, but I’ve sped through thicker ones faster. The story is average (but not terrible). And I can’t say I found it overly boring or painful. It just took me AGES to read. So my main feeling once it was done was one of relief!
A good story without much else to recommend it.
I could not get into this book, no matter how hard I tried.
Truly unusual fantasy novel. Worth the read!
This book was not something that I normally read. Did not keep me interested but then it’s not my type of book
It’s an amazing, sprawling story, and picking it up feels like a dare. Everything about it feels like it was designed with an intent to be incorrect, and I think that’s wonderful.
It is an interesting story line, but the story was just dragged on for way too long. It certainly could have been a 400 page book instead of a 850 page book…. It dragged on for 800 pages and then there was flurry of action to bring the story to an end in the last 50 pages. The author obviously had a problem bringing closure to his story…
Although this is a mighty book it is very very worth the read! At 1000+ pages it is a mammoth read but every page flies past as the reader becomes more and more engrossed in the fight between magic good and bad, between humans themselves and humans and fairies.
The depth of the characters is amazing and the continuance of such an epic read is absolutely incredible. From page one right through to the end I was transfixed and filled with an urgency/desire to know just how things would work out. The ending, like the rest of the story, doesn’t disappoint although it isn’t quite expected.
I most certainly recommend this book to anyone old enough to pick up a book!
I kind of wanted more magic, but it was still fun enough.
One of my favorite books of all times. Read it simultaneously and shared ideas and concepts with my close friend Steve Nardi. R.I.P.
I got through three quarters of the book. I found it very long and began to lose interest.
What a slog of a book. The story moves along slowly, taking pages to get to where it’s going. The footnotes alone are ridiculous and could easily fill another full volume. The conclusion is unsatisfying and doesn’t seem to align with the character development throughout the book. I am confused why this has such a high rating, it was one of my least favorite books of all time (my #1 least favorite is Don Quixote). If you choose to read this, get the digital copy as the sheer size of the book prohibits easily carrying it around. Better yet, save yourself and spend the time reading something else instead.