Anne CordwainerCritiques

Set in a clunky episodic story-frame and very heavy with the dialogue, plus I found the characters inconsistent and unbelievable. The whole book reads like tiny vignette peeks into the head of one or another point-of-view, with no grounding at all into the world the book is set in, and no backbone to span the stories. It read like a college student's first attempt at building a novel. Weak weak weak.

The author has posted the first five chapters of this story up on her website, and I'd recommend giving them a read to see if this writing style suits you before obtaining a copy of the book. I feel a bit bad about disliking this book so strongly; the author seems really cool.

It's worth noting that I read an ARC edition. It's possible that the final publication has been improved.

The first chapter of this book had me wanting to rip my eyeballs out. It was horribly written, the characters were annoying (especially Liz) and it seemed too much like the author was trying to create an Americanized Harry Potter. DO NOT WORRY, it gets MUCH better throughout the book. Modern Magic takes on its own personality and is able to separate itself from any Harry Potter similarities. Half-way through the book, you'll probably think you have everything figured out...keep reading, trust me; it's worth it ;)

I love this book! I mean L-O-V-E this book! Reminiscent of the story-cycles of Charles deLint, Cordwainer captures a unique urban fantasy setting throughout the series of stories. 'Modern Magic' tells the tale of two siblings- one (John) with magical powers, the other (Liz) without. The viewpoint changes between the two, giving the reader a great look into the minds of both siblings. The magic in this book is not your fluffy kid's magic- it's dark and dangerous! The evil wizards and spells encountered by John and Liz are frightening and powerful- and poor Liz doesn't even have magic to protect her! One thing I loved especially about 'Modern Magic' is all the cool magical gizmos that John and his friends use. These devises set Cordwainer apart from most urban fantasy authors I've read. However, I do think she could have explained their uses more thoroughly. I think if the magic system is exlpained a little better to the reader that this could be a very popular series of books (it had better become a series!!). As a reader I felt a little confused over the limits of the magic. Exactly what can magic do? We get some great examples, but no one ever sits us down and gives us the rules. What CAN'T magic do? What do all the magic devises do- and how? Cordwainer could easily take a character like Liz's non-magic boyfriend and have magic explained to the readers through him. Even with the workings of magic a little fuzzy, this book was great. As a huge fantasy fan I devoired 'Modern Magic' in two sittings. I hope that Cordwainer gets a chance to see her book on bookshelves at stores all over the country, because I feel it deserves to be there- and that people would be missing out on something great if it wasn't.

It's an interesting idea. It's not well-executed. The over-arching story is quite interesting, but the "story cycle" format means the reader is forced to change gears just when the story starts really going somewhere. Instead of a cohesive tale, one is left with a disjointed but definitely connected pile of almost-story.

Cordwainer appears to have come up with the nifty outline of a story, but apparently she never felt up to the transitions that would actually hold the outline together into an actual novel. This might work in episodic TV; it doesn't work in novel format.

Did Cordwainer never hear "show 'em, don't tell 'em"? Because she's very high on the telling, very low on the showing. We're told where the siblings work, but we don't actually see them at work. We're told they're in love with various people, but there's precious little evidence of any love. (The major exceptions are in the little behaviors behind John and his wife, but those don't appear until the last few episodes.)

Overall, I'm giving it two stars for an interesting concept. The execution keeps it from any more.

I've been a fan of "urban fantasy" since before I knew it had a name. Sometime in middle school I left behind the “high fantasy” of wizards and dragons, having developed a preference for science fiction’s starships and aliens, but I never lost my taste for stories of the supernatural set in the modern world we live in. Most Stephen King fits into this niche, as well as Alan Dean Foster’s Into the Out Of, which involves the demons known to the African Masai tribe as “shetani”. And when I discovered Charles DeLint a few years ago, I was in fantasy heaven. So Anne Cordwainer’s Modern Magic is right up my alley. The premise is similar to that of J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” series: that magic-users live among us in secret.

The novel, called “a story cycle” on the cover, is comprised of “episodes” that span a decade from 1998 to 2009. The first-person narrative alternates between Liz Prospero, the only non-magical daughter of a renowned sorcerous family (Rowling would call her a “squib”), and her brother John, who is graduating from sorcerer college at the beginning of the book. As the story progresses, Cordwainer’s world-building comes into focus as each episode deals with renegade sorcerers abusing their power and how they are dealt with by the rest of the magical community. For centuries sorcerers have relied on the “family honor” system to keep themselves ethical, with apprehended miscreants being turned over to their families for discipline. But with the sorcerer population having grown, magical crime is on the rise and the system of “family honor” is proving inadequate to the task – some begin to believe that the community must come together and organize a formal justice system for sorcerers before the entire magical world devolves into anarchy. There is apparently more to this setting than the novel alone; an end note after the story advises the reader to check annecordwainer.com for more stories in the same world as well as details about events only briefly described as back story in the novel.

While the novel’s episodes appear at first to be stand-alone stories, they develop an arc in which incidents involving criminal sorcerers escalate in seriousness until the situation seems almost hopeless. Admittedly I’m not the most perceptive reader, but the writer kept me in the dark enough that I did not see the reveal of the villain coming, though it was set up fairly early in the novel. The characters have their own development arcs as well: Liz at first wants as little to do with her family as possible, resenting their superior power and her own apparent inadequacy, but by the end she accepts her family and her place in it, and realizes that she has something to contribute to sorcerer society despite her own lack of magical ability. John has great power but is cautious to a fault about the possibility of abusing it; he slowly grows to find confidence both in his power and his judgment.

Overall I’m satisfied with the book; I enjoyed the read (which occupied most of an afternoon, about four or five hours) and on a five-star scale I’d give it four. I reserve five-star ratings for the truly sublime, but Modern Magic is pretty damn good. Nicely done, Cordwainer (if that is your real name); I’m interested to see what you turn out next.

I don't really know what to think of this book. It spans 11 years and goes back and forth between the two main characters, Liz and John, a brother and a sister. I didn't really connect with the characters though. The story had a lot of action in it but for some reason, it didn't keep me hanging. All of the action throughout the years tied together in the end, and the villain was someone I definitely didn't suspect. The ending left me thinking that there might be a possible sequel but I'm not sure I'd read it. I think the story needed a touch more humor and warmth to get me hooked.

Liz and John Prospero are sister and brother, born into a powerful family of sorcerers. John is highly intelligent and a powerful sorceror. Liz has no magic and has never quite fit in with her family and their friends. The story is told over many decades and each chapter is told from a different perspective. In the course of the novel, you see the world of sorcery change as it tries to keep up with the changes going on in the rest of society. There are parallels between the non-magic and magic worlds as each culture tries to deal with the increase in crime and violence and it becomes evident that the two cultures aren't really that different.

This is a very unique book. I haven't read anything quite like it before. It was very intriguing and it makes me wonder if there aren't sorcerors all around us, practicing their magic.

An intriguing story set in modern times with sorcerers living amongst ordinary people and yet dealing with their own sort of problems. The main characters are the siblings John, a highly gifted magician, and Liz, who doesn't have any magical talent at all, and they regularly exchange the role as first person narrator. This gives the reader some interesting insights into the dilemma that can arise when two world views and the truths they take for granted clash. The book is split into different episodes, which are often set months or up to a year apart, which allows us to see how John and Liz react to the changing world around them and how they try to deal with the different crises that always seem to spring up where they are. Interesting till the last page and well worth a read if you want to discover an alternative to Harry Potter's magical world.½

Very good read. The characters were fun and believable. I know this to be true because I wanted to thump one every once in a while. Only thought out interactions between extreme differences and family members could create such a response in me. I look forward to her next book.

As a reader whose experience with fantasy is limited to Harry Potter, I approached Modern Magic with interest, but some trepidation. This was an enjoyable story, with consistent characters. It assumes you know the meanings of magic words, but even if you don't you still can figure out what is going on. The story moves forward, jumping ahead as much as a year between each chapter to show how siblings Liz and John move through young adulthood, one as a sorcerer, the other as a mundane (or muggle, in Harry Potter's world). As the action increased, it was not easy to figure out who the bad guys were. I enjoyed this book, and would read more from this author.

Liz is a mundane (a person of no magic) born into the illustrious Prospero sorcerer family. Her brother, John, is the golden boy with all the power. Growing up together wasn't easy but the real challenge will be to face down a growing threat to their magical world. In each of their own ways Liz and John will each need to give all that they have in the protection of all that they love.

This story was told in an episodic way with Liz and John's points of view alternated through the years, which is a bit unusual and refreshing. Although I thought both characters had their irritating issues, John with a maddening martyr complex and Liz with a chip the size of New York on her shoulder, it was interesting to watch them grow through the course of the book. About three-quarters of the way through I did feel the story began to drag a bit but sticking it out was worth it because of the twists and turns at the end. I'd recommend this book to teens and adults who enjoy being told a good tale without a high emotional investment (i.e. the anti-Twilight type theme).½

This was a decent book. An interesting story line, but I was a little frustrated that the nonmagical sister was so pathetic and useless, especially compared to her talented older brother. I'd probably read a sequel if it came out, but I still wish there was more to the sister.

John and Liz, siblings of the Prospero family, are born polar opposites. John is destined to become a powerful warrior, and one of the strongest of his time. Liz, on the other hand, is born a mundane, lacking any magical abilities and forced to live the simple life of the average human being. But don't think the story is just going to revolve around mundane Liz standing around while Mr. Hero John saves the day. You quickly learn that both characters serve a vital role to making their world a better place.

I thought the book was great! I was actually looking for flaws while reading it. I like to be critical in my reviews, even books I absolutely love, I like to offer up advice or point out something that could be done better, but I just couldn't find anything while reading this. At first, I thought I wasn't going to like the main characters. They were a little bitter during the first chapter, but it seems the author just wanted the reader to understand the sibling rivalry the characters grew up with. The last line of the first chapter erased all my doubt though, and I cared very much for the characters afterward. Then I thought I wouldn't like the story cycle format, but I soon realized that this format allowed the action to remain constant while remaining believable. Then about midway through the book, I thought I finally found the flaw. I had the story all figured out. Too easy I thought, it was all too obvious. But guess what? I was wrong again! The ending took me completely by surprise.

So what can I say? The book is great! The characters, the story, the writing. All of it. Consider me a huge Anne Cordwainer fan from now on. Fans of urban fantasy should definitely look into Modern Magic. But if you're not a fan of urban fantasy, don't let the stop you from missing out on this one!

Siblings John and Liz Prospero are two very different people. John takes after most of his ancestors as a very powerful sorcerer and Liz was born without an ounce of magic in her. She’s what the magical community calls mundane. Surprisingly this combination works well for the pair as John is constantly called upon to fight renegade sorcerers who are out to murder both mundanes and other sorcerers while Liz pitches in with her mundane perspective on all things magical.

With a rise in renegade sorcerers the magical community has to band together and figure out a way to move into the modern world when banishing renegades to their family heads is increasingly becoming another problem rather than the solution.

Modern Magic is a story cycle which is several short stories spanning 11 years with the Prospero family. This was my first book written this way and I absolutely loved it. It made for quick reading and pretty much every chapter is jammed packed with the action because there’s not a lot of extra story line needed to fill pages. I love that you get to know both main characters and quite a few secondary characters in detail even with these quick stories arcs. You even get to see most of them grow into adulthood and their respective responsibilities.

Each of the twelve stories all tie together neatly at the end with plenty of surprises throughout. The ending was a complete shocker that I never figured out. It had me so amazed that I almost felt like going back and re-reading just so I could see if there were any clues I missed. This book was a lot of fun and I can’t wait to read more from Cordwainer. I recommend it to anyone who loves Urban Fantasy or a great surprise ending.

John and Liz Prospero are siblings from a powerful magical family. Liz has no magic while John is destined to become one of the most powerful sorcerers of his time. Together they must face one of the largest threats the magical community has ever known.

Modern Magic is a story cycle - essentially a novel made up of shorter stories. This format worked really well for this book as it allowed the author to take us through a large amount of time while only focusing on the most important events. Each story is clearly labeled with a title and general date. Narration often alternates between Liz and John and Cordwainer labels this clearly as well.

Each story is independent and yet they all work toward the larger conclusion of the book. The stories are generally short and fast paced with great dialogue. Alternating between John and Liz gives the reader a chance to get to know and understand both main characters. The early stories provide great insight into the actions of the characters during the stressful situations they must face in later stories.

I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to fans of fantasy stories. It was a quick and enjoyable read. To get a feel for the book check out some of the sample stories available on Anne Cordwainer's website.

Thank you to Melissa at Clotho Press for sending me an Advance Reader Copy of Modern Magic. It will be officially released in February 2009.