I loved it." - Sara Gran, author of Claire Dewitt and the City of the Dead and Dope "Like a novel by a 21st-century Muriel Spark, this book about smart women, dangerous games, and the roles we play in life enthralled me. 106 New York, NY 10025 (917) 748-9360 - EMPLOYMENT Columbia University. “Edgy and erudite, sexy and engrossing: This is one seriously fun book.” - Emily Barton, author of Brookland It's that book, and oh so beautifully readable." - Ken Bruen, author of The Hackman Blues and The Guards
James’s gripping storytelling, and you'd have the tone and flavour of Davidson's novel. Imagine Iris Murdoch, channeling Janet Evanovich and cribbing the sheer art of P.D. "For many years, those in search of an erudite, smart, sassy, vibrantly intelligent mystery blog went to Jenny Davidson, and she wrote too of deeply intellectual matters on an easy in yer face tone. "The Magic Circle is elegant, brutally smart, and utterly absorbing- A Secret History as directed by Whit Stillman.A delirious, hypnotic page-turner about the ruthless games female friends play with, and on, each other.” - Megan Abbott, author of Dare Me "Jenny Davidson has created nothing less than an intellectually captivating story with The Magic Circle.I found this novel to be absolutely intriguing from start to finish." - The Book Barista Comparisons to the work of Muriel Spark and Donna Tartt (Megan Abbott called the book A Secret History as directed by Whit Stillman) are wholly deserved" -LargeHeartedBoy "Jenny Davidson's The Magic Circle is an intriguing and rewarding novel that follows the friendship and immersion of three smart young women in live action role playing games. "There's an adventurous imagination at play and Davidson's formidable intelligence is like an electric current running through the pages of this compendious book." -Los Angeles Times Mazel Tov: The Story of My Extraordinary Friendshi.“Davidson deftly orchestrates a startling collision between the classical and the contemporary, reality and play.”- Kirkus.Have I Ever Told You Black Lives Matter by Shani King.The Smartphone Society: Technology, Power, and Res.Stress Relief Coloring Book for Adults by Jenny Pa.The AOC Generation: How Millennials Are Seizing Po.Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets.A Moveable Feast: The Restored Edition by Ernest H. Three female academics devote themselves to the study and design of daring games based on the history of Columbia University's neighborhood, but the games go too far when the mysterious brother of one of the girls gets involved.Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith.Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell.I'm so sad that I didn't enjoy this book as much the second time around- that always feels like a brutal kick from Nostalgiaville- but if the themes speak to you, and you feel like getting lost, you might enjoy it as much as I did in the first go. I'm also giving it two stars because now that I've actually read THE SECRET HISTORY, this kind of feels like a derivative variation on the same themes. I thought the bits about games and game theory were fascinating and it's clear the author did a lot of research with the setting and the subjects of the book. It's wild and daring and interesting, and the writing is good (when not reflecting dialogue). I'm giving it two stars because for the right reader, this will be a five star read. It also seemed like it was trying a little too hard to be edgy, and since I prided myself on being ~edgy~ in my early twenties, maybe that was lost on me because, in my mind, this book was life! Now, reading it as an older adult, I was like, "Nobody is like this!" I don't think anyone actually talks like this outside of, say, fundraising parties being held at art museums or maybe college faculty meetings.
The way the characters talk is ridiculous. I recently reread it and found to my regret that a lot of the sensationalism was lost on me this time. Sometimes, when you read a book, you read it at just the right time and it ends up being a perfect fit- and to me, fresh out of college and kind of broody and miserable, longing for the fiercely intelligent discourses and the safe-but-dangerous feeling of being ensconced with my peers, I found that it was basically everything I wanted. I actually loved THE MAGIC CIRCLE the first time I read it, too, as an ARC (almost ten years ago). And I actually did love THE SECRET HISTORY, even if it is a pretentious paperweight of aspirational classism and intellectual snobbery, it was beautiful and dark and just a little bit smutty, and if there's something a dirty-minded pedant like me loves, it's literature with an actual bang.
Dark academia with shades of Ancient Greece? You know someone's out there ringing that "For those who liked THE SECRET HISTORY" cowbell.
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