Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell: A Novel

Description

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 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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864 pages

Average rating: 7.57

14 RATINGS

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1 REVIEW

Community Reviews

lnthurman
Sep 24, 2023
10/10 stars
This book took me to truly unexpected places – I don't know if I've ever been this surprised, delighted, and ultimately gripped by a story. The way it escalates and changes so that by the end you feel like you're in a different world than the one where you started, and the way that change feels inevitable, is stunning. I cannot believe this was Clarke's first novel! What the hell!

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