Thank you to Random House Ballentine for granting my wish. This book feels unique yet nostalgic. I love a good mystery/thriller and this is one of the best I've read lately! 4 stars.

Mister Magic is a creepy, ominous, and propulsive read that you will not want to put down until the very end. Mister Magic is about a children’s television show that everyone seems to remember, but no one can find a trace of the show actually existing. When it’s announced that there will soon be a podcast about the show, this pulls the five cast members together who have not been reunited since the show suddenly ended on suspicious terms.

It’s difficult to review a book like this without giving too much away, so I’ll just say that if you enjoy books that are a little dark and mysterious, this is a fun read. I liked the cast of characters a lot and how there were constantly new questions being raised after every reveal. I highly recommend adding Mister Magic to your reading list this year!

So... a really strong story requiring an even stronger suspension of disbelief...

Is everything explained... no. Not even close. Does anything make sense, or even get addressed in the story? Again, not quite.

But what this DOES do is recapture the nostalgia of unrestrained youth, the importance of childhood friends, and the danger of conforming too closely to other's wishes.

Ultimately written about her restrained, conformist religious upbringing, White shows the power of being yourself while keeping us entertained. We all need a Mister Magic, where he comes from is the question!

My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

An Intriguing Concept with Room for Improvement - ★★★☆☆

"Mister Magic" by Kiersten White is a novel that presents a unique and imaginative concept that instantly caught my attention. White's creativity shines through in her world-building. However, while the book has its moments of brilliance, there are aspects that left me wanting more.

On the flip side, the pacing of the story can be a bit uneven. There are moments of excitement and intrigue, but there were also times when the plot seemed to drag, causing my attention to waver. Additionally, while the concept of magic is captivating, I found myself wanting more depth and exploration. The mechanics of magic, its limitations, and its impact on society could have been fleshed out further to provide a richer and more immersive experience.

Character development is another aspect that fell a bit short for me. While the main character shows promise with her complexities, some of the secondary characters felt underdeveloped and lacked the depth needed to make their motivations and actions fully understandable.

"Mister Magic" has the foundation for an outstanding story, but it left me wishing for more depth, consistency, and character growth. Kiersten White's imagination is evident, and I believe that with some refinement, this could be a series with a lot of potential.

3.5 stars rounded down

Mister magic has an unique and interesting set up. A children's TV show that everyone remembers, yet there is no footage of it. One of the main characters in the show has no memory of ever being on it, when she is found by her castmates to do a reunion. There are so many secrets and so many questions that go unanswered for our main character. I was hooked in and enjoying the ride....but as the book went on, I felt like I may never get answers.

"Either way, the rules defining this biting, lonely reality mold you, shape you, then break you. Tell you that you deserve to be broken, you're better off broken, you should be grateful to be broken. God or society or some twisted combination of the two is watching"

As you read on, there are some heavy feelings/observations dropped like this, where you know that it is all heavily metaphorical...but of what? I wasn't 100% sure until I read the author's note, and then I appreciated it all a bit more. I will leave it up to you if you want to discover that note before or after reading....but I think I would have liked to know beforehand, as I may have gotten a bit more out of it. Either way, this is a unique read that kept me wanting to know more.

Based off some other reviews I may be in the minority here, but - I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I read this in 2 days, I truly couldn’t put it down. And when I did, I couldn’t wait to pick it up again. Although I love to read and can read pretty quickly, it doesn’t happen too often nowadays that I finish a book in 2 days given I have a busy life/schedule (sorry, I digress). All I’m trying to say is, this book had me captivated from the synopsis.

I will give no spoilers because honestly, you just have to read it and interpret it yourself. I will say, it’s weird. It’s trippy. It makes you think about things that you may not normally think about (or in my case, expand on thoughts I have had). If you have an open mind, i.e. existential thoughts are present or a topic you are interested in, then I think you will enjoy this book.

Being that this is a different type of horror/thriller than one may be used to, I can see this book being confusing for some. In my opinion, thrillers that make you think outside the box are more appealing. The metaphors present really open your eyes to what is happening in parts of our world, which is in itself a whole different type of horror.

I will mention that there is *something* that influenced/impacted this story, per White herself (that’s all I will say - no spoilers/manipulating your views) HOWEVER, in all honesty, this book wasn’t about that to me. While it may have been the driving force for White, I felt something different here. It brought up different feelings and thoughts and emotions - I would love to chat more without giving spoilers so DM ME if you want to talk more about this book!

Thank you to @netgalley + @randomhouse for this eARC!

★★★★☆ Four out of Five stars!
I'm not gonna lie, I was confused at parts, but I loved it. The suspension was real, I was so intrigued. I loved the characters' relationship and Valentines dedication .
Would totally recommend

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing me with a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

The premise of this book is incredible. A children's show, Mister Magic, aired for decades, following a Circle of Friends and a mysterious host who watched over them (kind of like a spookier version of Barney). In the 90s, the show ended unexpectedly after tragedy struck on set, and all records of it were erased from media. Thirty years later, the show still has a cult following of adults on the internet who are trying to find evidence of its existence. The five surviving cast members from the final years meet up for a reunion podcast to discuss their memories of the show. Each cast member seems to remember it differently (and our main character, Val, cannot recall anything from that time at all). Was the show really as great as they remembered? What exactly happened when it ended so suddenly? And who was the strange host - was he an actor or something else entirely? Mister Magic is a horror/thriller novel focusing on memory, childhood, and how society shapes children (along with the damage that may later result from its methods).

I was immediately drawn in by that premise. The first half of the book really delivers, but unfortunately, I found the second half a bit less compelling. It's still an interesting story overall, but I'm not sure I can say I enjoyed reading the entire novel. I have such mixed emotions on this one.

I'll start with the positives. I truly did enjoy the beginning. It's so creepy, and the mystery is really intriguing. I was searching my schedule for any moments of free time I had so I could keep reading and find out what happened next. Kiersten White built a satisfyingly sinister atmosphere. Each page felt more and more unsettling; something clearly was wrong, but I couldn't quite identify what. The characters are all unreliable, so I was suspicious of everyone. It was fun to try to piece together what the TV show was and why Val left it so suddenly.

I liked the writing. It has an engaging tone, and the descriptions are strong, yet not overly wordy. It felt like the author had a lot of control over her narrative, with a deep understanding of the story and how she wanted it to be told. I also found a few lines truly comedic and paused reading to laugh out loud.

Lastly, I thought the characters were interesting throughout the first half. Each person has a distinct personality trait, and they were all likeable in their own ways. I enjoyed the relationship between Val and Isaac. The warm friendship between the main group contrasted nicely with the cold, unnerving setting. I could feel the bonds between everyone, and I was rooting for them to make it through everything together.

However, about halfway through, I noticed myself getting less interested in the plot. One thing that bothered me was how much time Val spent asking questions but getting no answers (and oppositely, how much time other characters spent asking Val if she remembered something and then getting surprised when, once again, she reminded them that she had no memories of the show at all). It was repetitive, and the lack of answers got old after awhile. The pacing in the middle is also quite slow, which contributed to my exhaustion with the plot. By the time things finally started being revealed, I realized I was way too close to the end to get a satisfying resolution.

Additionally, I didn't love the direction that the plot took and some of the explanations it gave for the TV show. The author's note at the end explains that this story is an allegory for religious trauma that White experienced. I applaud the author for writing on such a personal topic, and the metaphor she was going for does work cleverly here. It's an important story, and I'm glad White was able to write it. However, I didn't feel that the overall metaphor moved the plot in a direction that I found satisfying in light of the cosmic horror premise the book started out with... it removed some of the horror that had previously been building. I acknowledge, though, that this is a personal preference, and I'm sure many readers will find the plot more impactful than I did. I only wish the author's note had been included at the beginning, rather than the end, so that I had a better idea of what I was going into.

There were also a few more minor things that bothered me. It's tough to get into without spoilers, but there were a couple of noticeable plot holes. The novel leans pretty heavily into the supernatural, but that isn't what I had an issue with at all. The problem was that the explanations were given too quickly and in too vague of a manner, so some of the questions brought up earlier in the story weren't fully answered. The characters also didn't grow and remained very one-dimensional, which was unfortunate, since they started out with a strong foundation.

I didn't have a bad time reading Mister Magic, but I ended the book feeling far less excited than I did at the start of it. It's such an interesting concept, but it was too drawn out in the middle with a lackluster conclusion. It looks as if everyone is pretty split on this book, though, so I think some readers will definitely like it more than I did. I would recommend reading other reviews before picking it up. If you like supernatural, creepy stories centered around religious trauma, you might enjoy this one! If you're looking for pure horror and the themes don't sound interesting to you, though, you might feel a little letdown.

3.25 stars out of 5 stars, rounded down.

30 years after the children's program Mister Magic ended, five of the remaining cast members reunite to record a podcast about what happened. WOOOO what a ride! I was so excited to read this book after seeing the title, the cover, and the author. I really enjoyed Kiersten White's book Hide and I would say I enjoyed Mister Magic even more.

Val has lost all of her memories of her childhood and gets to dig into her past with the help of her childhood friends Isaac, Javi, Marcus, and Jenny. I loved the character of Val, but I found Jenny to be SUPER relatable (annoying, but relatable). The nostalgia of the show, mixed in with little internet snippets from people who remember the show make the book even more fun. It reminds me of the Berenstain versus Berenstein bears controversy. Do we really remember things for what they were?

This book has an undertone that really resonates (at least to me) with society today. Parents allowing a tv program to babysit their children - why? Who was in charge of this programming? What happened to these children as they became adults and raised their own families?

This book is so powerful on it's own, but has such a richer context once you read Kiersten White's author's note at the end. Whoa.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and Del Rey for this ARC!

This was one twisted ride! Kiersten does tense creepy, culty, thrillers so well. Similar in tone to Hide, you know something is terribly wrong from the start and have to just keep reading to discover more as more of the picture becomes clear. Following Val, who can’t remember her time on a childhood tv show 3 decades later, we slowly uncover the dark truth to Mister Magic. An indicting allegory on toxic religion, I’m sure many will relate to the circle at times. This was a really fun, creepy read!

I was really into this book for majority of the first half but i really started to lose interest. I just had no idea what the story was about. and i also suspected what happened to kitty. It seemed slightly obvious to me.

I think more or less i felt clueless as to what this book was about and it seemed to drag because of that.

Mister Magic was a great take on how the forces that shape us in our childhood play out as we become adults. How difficult it can be to overcome what we're told we are or should be, even as we try to figure it out ourselves.
My only critique would be the reveal of the dad (no spoilers) being involved didn't have the emotional punch that I think it could have had. It felt a little bit of an afterthought.

I have only have a red one other book that is author, and I really liked it. I picked this up strictly because of the cover to be honest I was not sure what to expect and it was definitely a ride! At times in this book and no idea what was happening, but that seemed to add to the greatness of it. I enjoy the writing style where they could be thrilling and lyrical at the same time. This book definitely delivered.

Kiersten White is back with a second adult horror that follows the same formula as Hide, except this time she's tackling the legacy of organized religion (particularly the LDS church) and the kids who are forced to deconstruct after oppressive, highly-controlled childhoods. Except it's a lot more fun than that sounds because Mister Magic tells the story of former child stars who are trying to remember a very strange and slightly freaky experience they all shared on a mysterious, often-forgotten children's program. The writing is clear and concise, the characters are worth rooting for, and although the end gets a bit muddy logically, the overall vibe of this book is sure to appear to both frequent horror readers and newcomers to the genre.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the early read. If you enjoyed Hide then you'll enjoy this book as well.

It was a fun and fast read that is worth your time.

Mister Magic by Kiersten White
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It’s been thirty years since the end of a popular children’s show called Mister Magic. Fans of the cult classic are desperate to watch old episodes, but there are none available. The five remaining cast members find each other and trade stories about their time on the show, and why they can’t quite remember the day it ended clearly.
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Ok, this book had the ominous level dialed up to twelve THE WHOLE TIME! I was so tense reading this that I had to read it in small portions.
Then I binged the last 40% because I couldn’t stop.
This book was totally crazy bonkers. And I think I liked it?
I really appreciated the insight the author gave me in the authors note.
And the ending was really good I thought. I think the ending was my favorite part.

A good one to go into blindly but cautiously.
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Okay, I know this book won’t hit for everyone BUT I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT COULDN’T STOP READING IT CANNOT GIVE IT FEWER THAN FIVE STARS

Kiersten White has written a trippy, unsettling horror novel that is compulsively fascinating and addictively readable.

The premise is that there was this kids’ TV show back in the ‘90s called Mister Magic that everyone remembers, but no one remembers it the same way. There seems to be no record of it anywhere, no footage, no photos, no documentation of any kind, nothing. But those who recall it agree that there were six kids who played together, imagining worlds that came to life on screen—until one day, when it went off the air abruptly under mysterious and disturbing circumstances. Now, the supposed final cast is reuniting for a podcast, and the world is ravenous for answers about the phenomenon that was Mister Magic.

I don’t want to give much more detail about the plot, except for one thing that appears to be the make-or-break piece of information for many readers’ experience with this book: (view spoiler) Personally, knowing or not knowing this would not have made a difference for me, but some wish they had known beforehand. For me, it’s more akin to a spoiler. At any rate, the author’s note at the end addresses her personal inspiration for this book, so if you find yourself not “getting” what’s going on, I suggest skipping ahead to the note at the end before giving up on the book completely.

Some might question the horrorness of this novel. I get that. While I never found myself particularly scared as I read, this story is 100% unsettling and its real-world analog can be freaky AF.

The structure of this story is incredibly clever, and the way the truth about what’s going on is subtly revealed is mind-blowing.

One device the author uses to great effect is including snippets of “realia” to provide alternate viewpoints on the Mister Magic mystery. There are forum threads, a Wikipedia article, an AO3 record, emails, security logs, and etc. Each chapter ends with one of these, and their inclusion works to further the story and intrigue.

In addition to reading the ARC of the ebook, I listened to the audiobook. Rebecca Lowman gives an outstanding performance, which may have strongly contributed to my positive experience with this book. Particularly impressive is Lowman’s portrayal of the podcast interviewer. Due to format, I did find it easier to understand the interstitial artifacts at the end of each chapter if I read those visually, rather than listening alone.

I’m definitely going to have to revisit Kiersten White’s earlier novel, Hide, but I may just jump straight to the graphic novel adaptation that comes out in September!

Review posted to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5335530991

Oh the allegories abound. This was a weird and twisted story but so good. It would have been a five star if it wasn’t for that end. I think anyone who has religious trauma will relate to this book.

I love this author's work and this book is no exception. The message is thought-provoking and honestly made me cry, as I, like many others, was made to feel I needed to be less than I was. Just enough whimsy and eeriness to make your heart beat a bit faster while also think a little more deeply about who your own Mister Magic is/was and maybe want to reclaim a little more of your self that you might've been made to blunt the edges of to be palatable for others. 10/10 would recommend to all.

The concept and execution for this book is incredible. 90's kids will love the feeling of nostalgia the Mister Magic show invokes and remembering what it felt like to have to wait for your favorite show to be broadcast. I loved the first two-thirds of this story-the small amounts of info we got as readers was enough to keep the mystery interesting and I couldn't figure out what was happening, in a good way! However, I found myself confused during the last third and couldn't keep track of what was happening. Reading the author's note at the end helped put things in perspective but I wish it was more clear as I was reading the book. Even though I didn't love this one as much as I thought I would, it was an interesting take on horror.