The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell

The Last Magician (The Last Magician, #1)

by Lisa Maxwell

An instant New York Times bestseller!

"Will keep you guessing until the last page." -Cinda Williams Chima, New York Times bestselling author

A girl travels back in time to find a mysterious book that could save her future in Lisa Maxwell's "splendid series opener" (Kirkus Reviews).

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.

Reviewed by Joséphine on

4 of 5 stars

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Actual rating: 4.5 stars

Initial thoughts: The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell was one of those books that dealt with time travel very well. As a book of fantasy, that involved magic rather than science, yet Maxwell still took great care to factor in the cultures of the different time periods of New York. I loved how she addressed the main characters' clashing sentiments with regards to feminism as someone from the 21st century faced with early 20th century conservatism. If you love books with heists and gangs on top of magicians, The Last Magician needs to be on your radar.

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