Friday Reads: The Magician King by Lev Grossman

Man, did it ever end up taking me a long time to read this.   Mainly because of my schedule in November and December, but also because it was just a slog to get through it.

Synopsis: Quentin is back and they have been Kings and Queens in Fillory for some time.  Suddenly there is a quest, blah blah blah...

Honestly, the story isn't that captivating.   Ok - that's not true...this book tells us Julia's story in random chapters throughout and THAT is fascinating.  She is Quentin's old friend from high school who didn't get into Brakebills after taking the "test"  and became a hedgewitch instead.  Grossman took advantage of the vagueness of the first book in this regard and filled in the blanks about how Julia came into her magic. 

Quite frankly, I think this book could have gotten rid of the Fillory nonsense and told Julia's story from the start - that would have made a better book.  She was a bit player in the first book, aside from being Quentin's high school crush who he ultimately escaped when he was accepted to Brakebills.  Her story is far more interesting that his ever was.

So - if you want the nitty gritty on her path, the chapters that tell it are worth the read.  The rest of the book doesn't really cut it so I'd have to say I'm not going to recommend it.

Now I can move on to books that do spin my wheels :)