The Thinking Woman's Guide to Real Magic

"Good lord. Just as not every soap opera about lovers from different social groups is <i>Romeo and Juliet</i>, not every romance featuring a hardheaded woman and an arrogant, socially superior man is <i>Pride and Prejudice</i>, (are you listening Bridget Jones fans?). Barker is hardly subtle in her hubris: P&P references are sprinkled throughout, even when they don't make sense: why is an honest, good hearted young suitor compared to Wickham?<br/><br/>There are charming elements to this story, and a handful of interesting characters: Hirizjahnkinis, Mrs Toristel, Ilissa. But I agree with reviewers who complain of extraneous plot details that go nowhere and add nothing to the story. There are dozens of characters that abruptly appear and disappear, and the lengthy references to Orsian history apparently designed to flesh out this alternate world only drag down the narrative and make it more confusing. A reviewer once cracked that <i>The Phantom Menace</i> felt like watching C-SPAN on another planet; this is like watching the History Channel in an alternate universe.<br/><br/>Writers like Tolkien, Zelazny and J.K. Rowling were able to create fully realized universes with characters and histories which were clear, relatable and even funny. Barker is not in that league, nor does she manage the introspection of Lev Grossman's <i>The Magicians</i>. The only reason I persevered was to find out whether or not Nora decided to stay with Arundiel, and we don't even learn that, since this overstuffed mess is apparently the first in a series. Oooh, can't wait!!!"

"This book is quite slow. It takes more than half the book for the thinking woman to even be able to truly think of doing any magic. The characters are likeable and the magic system is kind of fun because it is a little different than other worlds that run on magic. I believe there is another in this series, but this story ends well enough to just move on to something else. Could totally be a stand alone. "

"This book had some good ideas, but the execution wasn't the best. Still an enjoyable read for me and I'm looking forward to the sequel (even if I was a little put out about the cliffhanger. I thought this was a standalone okay?)"

"I had mixed feelings about this book at first.<br/><br/>The main character, Nora, tended to insult great authors of the past. Her contempt for Austen and Tolkien's writing seemed to fit the title's arrogant connotations and was nearly enough for me to set the book aside before it had begun.<br/><br/>About a third of the way through, I was glad I stuck with it. Halfway through, I was glued to it, shirking my responsibilities, dreading that it would end.<br/><br/>Nora's journey won me over completely. Some reviews said the book was too long, full of boring conversations and pointless events. I disagree. I've thought that about other books, but not this one. If it was a thousand pages, I still would have called it too short.<br/><br/>The characters had depth and warmth, and were flawed, yes. They were realistic to me, even in a magical world. I wanted to stay in that world and hated being wrenched from it. The only thing curbing my disappointment when the book ended was hearing of a pending sequel.<br/><br/>Great book!"

"Amazing magical story that really takes you to another world! Best book in the series yet"

"DNF 15% I am so confused! I can't connect with the characters and where I kind of get what's happening it's told in a way that overall makes me feel stupid because I'm just so confused."