The Last Magician: A Novel [Paperback]

Janette Turner Hospital (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2003

"A story of high tension and terrifying allure....Her writing has perfect pitch."—Richard Eder, Los Angeles Times

The Last Magician is about power and betrayal, sexual obsession and social ostracism. At its center is Lucy, a good girl and a whore, whose nights are spent in a kaleidoscope of identities as she dons the masks her customers demand. Charlie is a photographer, filmmaker, voyeur, and the last magician—monitoring Lucy, piecing together the splinters of evidence surrounding the death of a child and a murder that happened half a lifetime ago. A New York Times Notable Book. Reading group guide included.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this mesmerizing study of the effects of a dark secret on the people who must live with it, the author of Charades proves herself a magician with words and narrative structure. Moreover, she seems to have an artificer's skill for re-creating her fictional approach each time out: each of her novels is different from the others in theme, tone and method. The constants are her impeccable, sensuous prose and her fiercely intelligent imagination. Set in the rain forest near Brisbane and in the city of Sydney, in Hospital's native Australia, the narrative slowly unwinds in elliptical scenes and oblique references, like photos in which the subject is blurred but discernible, and will gradually come into focus. The "last magician" is Charlie Chang, a photographer and filmmaker who devotes himself to unraveling the puzzle at the heart of this tale. Twenty-five years ago, he was one of four children who witnessed the death of a fifth. One of them caused the event; blandly amoral, narcissistic and seemingly without guilt, Robinson Gray is now a famous judge, "Australia's golden boy." Charlie and the others--one woman named Catherine and another named Cat--remain emotionally maimed. The judge's son and the woman who loves him become catalysts in reopening the drama and are sucked into the whirlpool of evil it again sets in motion. Hospital enriches her story with allusions ranging from Virgil and Dante to James Joyce and Christina Stead. She offers crackling social commentary as she contrasts the lives of the homeless squatters (who live underneath Sydney's streets in a warren of caverns and tunnels called "the quarry") with the cream of Sydney's society folk. Her characters' observations about truth and illusion, about memory and precognition and the nature of moral responsibility, are provocative and insightful. Most important, this novel is an example of the storyteller's magical art. 25,000 first printing; major ad/promo; author tour. (Sept.) .
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This work is complex and disturbing, ultimately grappling with the darkest side of love. Readers who stick with her through the first slow pages will find themselves enmeshed in a chilling drama of personalities revealed through innuendo, reminiscence, and memory. Hospital pastes together her story like a photographic collage. The effect is disjointed and startling, requiring the reader to piece together the narrative, to make connections and find meaning. In barest outline, here are the lives of four people who share an ugly secret, a secret whose power becomes the driving force in each life. Charlie, a photographer, says, "Photographs beckon . Photographs seduce." So too this novel. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 5/1/92.
-Linda L. Rome, Middlefield P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (September 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 039332527X
• ISBN-13: 978-0393325270
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,957,292 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you can read this you can read anything., April 17, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The last magician (Hardcover)

The prose and plot of this story are by far the most difficult of any of hers. It took me 3 tries to get through it but was well worth the effort as usual. Take it someplace where you will have lots of time and relaxation to concentrate. As with all her stuff you'll feel disturbed and unsettled afterwards. Then you'll take it too your friends and say "just stick with it"

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite books, September 2, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Last Magician: A Novel (Hardcover)

I bought this book as a mass market paperback - I am not even sure why it was in the bookstore, since I'd never heard of the author before - and have read it at least a dozen times. A few other reviewers said it was confusing, but I found it fascinating. The author presents the story in pieces and readers have to put it together for themselves - that's why it's worth at least a second reading. Also, the book is really more magic-realism than mystery, and people who want a unambiguous ending probably won't like it, as the loose ends in this book trail past the finale. Very much worth reading if you enjoy puzzles and ambiguity.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Disturbingly emotional, clings to ones mind..., September 3, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The last magician (Hardcover)

When I finished this book, I was plagues for weeks afterword by its haunting feeling and amazingly real characters. Thats something that impresses me about Hospital, she writes with such feeling, the characters just would not leave my mind. Sometimes, however, the emotion overtook the evolution of plot, and I must say I was disappointed by the ending. But if you give this one time and are open to it, it will take you on a trip. Masterful prose.