The Magicians and Mrs. Quent<\/i> by Galen Beckett (pseudonym of Mark Anthony)<\/p>\n
A purported first novel, but actually a first novel of a pseudonym, this book is written sort-of in the style of Jane Austen. Sort of. It’s like someone trying to write in the style of Jane Austen but without quite the same sensibility (for lack of a better word).<\/p>\n
It felt like a first book, but I guess this guy’s got a whole series of novels under his belt under the name The Last Rune<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Essentially, it seems like someone tried to breed Jane Austen and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell<\/i> and got something, but that thing is not likely to be able to breed itself. I’m straining a metaphor here, I see that. But “breeding” in this scenario would be a second book, which this author very much seems to want to write, leaving many unanswered (though not particularly interesting) questions hanging.<\/p>\n
Regardless of whether it breeds or not, I shan’t be there to witness it. While this book isn’t terrible and kept me sufficiently interested throughout, there’s likely to be grander skies out there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Magicians and Mrs. Quent by Galen Beckett (pseudonym of Mark Anthony) A purported first novel, but actually a first novel of a pseudonym, this book is written sort-of in the style of Jane Austen. Sort of. It’s like someone … Continue reading