Jaime Reviews... The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell
By Lisa Maxwell
Published on July 18, 2017
Published by: Simon Pulse
Source: Around the World Arc Tours
Published by: Simon Pulse
Source: Around the World Arc Tours
Stop the Magician.
Steal the book.
Save the future.
In modern day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives.
Esta is a talented thief, and she's been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta's training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1902 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future.
But Old New York is a dangerous world ruled by ruthless gangs and secret societies, a world where the very air crackles with magic. Nothing is as it seems, including the Magician himself. And for Esta to save her future, she may have to betray everyone in the past.
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The Last Magician...
Time travel stories are very hit or miss for me. Throw in the words Historical fiction, and I am even more leery. But with the addition of sinister orders, the Brink and secret societies, I couldn't say no to giving this one a try. Turns out, this one was far from a swing and a miss!
I was pretty well and truly hooked from the opening scene. I enjoyed the first glimpse of the Magician, and getting into his head a little. Then we jump straight to Esta, and I was immediately in love with her. She is tough as nails brave, and doesn't take even the tiniest bit of crap from anyone, let alone a man. I appreciated her as a character to the extreme. Her ability to time travel was pretty darn cool, even from a girl who isn't always the biggest fan of the act itself. Every character in the story served their purpose, and did it in the best possible way. I love Esta, but I like when secondary characters are MORE than just that, and can hold their own right alongside the MC. These characters did just that.
The story travels in time from early 1900's New York to modern day New York. I adored the world-building, and the incredible differences and similarities between then and now. I appreciated that I never felt jarred, or thrown for a loop, after a jump. I was never once pulled from the story. In fact, I couldn't put it down. I was drawn completely in.
The Last Magician was a toss up for me, and I am so glad that it was a winning one. I am sincerely looking forward to the release date so that I can add a copy of this to my over-stuffed bookshelves, and I seriously can't wait for the sequel. A sequel which has the set-up to be a thrilling ride!
Jaime Lynn :)
