I really loved Hide when it first came out, so I was excited to see a new book from the same author.

Cue childhood trauma, eerie televisions, a figurehead named "Mister Magic" that's there but also isn't there...

This story had me gripped from the beginning. I loved the plot and my attention was captured through the very end. It wasn't a perfect story, there were moments that I had to re-read as I got lost in the detail/lack thereof and there were some plot holes. But overall I really loved this book.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Enjoyed the plot! The story picks up quickly and secrets start to be exposed to keep your attention span. Overall I didn’t connect with the FMC but overall I enjoyed the dark theme, and scary element.

Kiersten is an incredible writer. I first fell in love with And I Darken. When she started writing adult thrillers/horror books, I knew I was in good hands. This book is super creepy and has a sense of nostalgia.

Following a tragic accident that halted production of the beloved children's show, Mister Magic, thirty years have passed, and the surviving cast members have struggled to move on from their past. Despite their best efforts, they continue to search for the happiness, camaraderie, and security they felt while filming the show. However, with no surviving footage of the program and no record of the enigmatic host's identity, their memories are all they have left.

Then, by chance, the former cast members reunite at the secluded desert studio where Mister Magic was filmed. Although they haven't seen each other in years, they understand each other better than anyone else ever could. They share a connection rooted in the secret of the show's circle, the enigma of the mysterious host, and the possibility of discovering what really happened on the day of the tragedy. But as they delve deeper into their past, they begin to question if they've willingly returned to the studio or if they've been lured into a dangerous trap.

This novel...

Okay, so spoilers. If you don't want those, I wouldn't read this review.

Continuing. i think it's wild that she leaves her dads' funeral to go with them to see her mom that didn't even care that she was alive. Like her whole world stopped when her sister "died". Val was a boring main character. So much was happening to her and she didn't really do anything until the actual end. I enjoyed some of the side characters, because at least they felt dimensional. The book, the start of it, felt like a Mandela effect in a way? Like everyone's like "I know this existed" and people are like ?? "maybe it didn't." And it had me questioning, too. I loved that.

This book really did a good job of unsettling me to the point where I had to physically stop multiple times (mainly cause I was reading at night and because there's some triggering stuff in here so please go with caution).

I did think that some of the dialogue was juvenile especially for an adult book; felt like it was more like higher YA than adult to me. It might be intentional though. They dive so deep and remember so much about how they "Felt" when they were like 8-12 years old on this show. It's as if they haven't stopped being kids so much as they have started being adults? Like they tried to get the memories of how they felt back so badly because they couldn't remember a time when they had been that happy.

I thought it was so wild that Val "closed doors" to her memories to block out all the bad and that means she blocked out her sister? Maybe it can happen, but that just felt so unrealistic to me.

I also HATED how long it took to get answers. I think everyone was dancing around all of the point for so long. Like the secondary characters know the reason, but no one is giving us too much. Like that went on for way too freaking long and I was getting so angry that I almost started skimming to get a semblance of an answer. I felt like the ending did suck. After all the build up, the ending just didn't scratch the itch I needed it to. I didn't like it at all.

As of now, this novel gets a 3 star for me. It wasn't bad, it was very eerie, but there was a lot that didn't sit well with me.

Brilliantly creepy story of an 80’s kids show that has been scrubbed from existence. Even though everyone remembers the Mister Magic show, there is no videos on YouTube or anywhere else on the internet. Thirty years after the show was shut down, supposedly due to a tragedy, the original cast reunites. When the “circle of friends” reunite on a secluded property in a desert town where they originally filmed, they hope to find the answers they have been looking for, especially what actually happened that shut down the show. Full of nostalgia and mystery, this excellent novel should be on everyone’s reading list.

A completely unique experience! This reminded me of a Jordan Peele movie in the best way. You are unsettled immediately but also can’t look away. I enjoyed the pace of this as we are given new characters and information. I thought some of the central mysteries were parsed out well. I might have wanted a little more horror honestly and perhaps more information on the rationale behind the plan. I don’t want to give spoilers but I appreciated the practical ending. Love when it makes sense and feels consistent with the characters.

Mister Magic was a TV show that many people remember watching as children even though there is no proof it actually existed. No recorded episodes have ever been posted, no photos have been published, and when posts are written on the internet about it, they often disappear. Why?
Val doesn’t remember much of her childhood. When Issac, Javi and Marcus show up at her dad’s funeral, their presence stirs up memories of Mister Magic. They were all on the show as children until an accident happened and the show abruptly ended. Val wasn’t even there at the time of the incident as her dad had taken her away. They have finally found her for the purpose of a reunion podcast. Someone wants to interview them about the show. Val decides to join them to get answers about her past. What the Circle of Friends discovers is way more than just a benign children’s show.
The story was very interesting and suspenseful. I thought the ending could have been explained a bit better but it was still good.

I found this book to be confusing and frustrating and strange. I felt lost in some chapters.

Mister Magic is a television series for a children's show based on teaching children the rules..rules made for and by adults.

But, you cannot take your eyes off the screen. You loved "Mister Magic" in a sort of weird way.

The show was shot in a small desert town in Utah. If you read the acknowledgements it is about growing up in a Mormon community. The rules you had to follow. Cultism like.

This was not a book for me.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy.

This one is a little difficult to rate as there were things I both really enjoyed and things that just... didn't vibe well with me. Similar to the authors' other book 'Hide', I was drawn in from the very beginning, excited for the terror to come. However, the deeper I got into the book the less I found myself enjoying it. It's not a bad book by any means! Honestly, I do think there's going to be quite a few people who love this one, but unfortunately I was not one of them. The ending, like Hide, felt just too rushed to me. All in all, it was just okay for me.

I think this book was just a little too weird for me. The premise was interesting, but it was tough to get through the book. The ending was unexpected and good, but everything before the ending was too slow. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine for the ARC.

Thank you Netgalley for the advance reader copy of Mister Magic by Kiersten White in exchange for an honest review. I just finished this book and am left almost speechless. This was my third book by Kiersten White and I just like her more and more, the more I read. I don't get scared very often by books or movies, my doors are closed to that (if you've read the book, you'll get this), but this book spooked me. The sense of the unknown and what could be hiding in it, this can be terrifying. I have already recommended this book to my friends and recommend it to everyone else too.

I loved the beginning and middle but by the end it just seemed so rush that I couldn’t really understand what was happening?? Even then with the ending I had to reread it and final understood the concept by reading the Author’s Acknoledgments.

Not quite horror, but kind of. A tale of using the magical gifts of children to program them for “their own good”. The controlling, righteous adults/parents are the main villain in a plot that speaks to the author’s religious upbringing.

Think Barney with darkness. The magic that makes kids fall in love with the Purple dinosaur, is also what comes for them when they get older.

Different concept. I enjoyed the idea.

Thank you to the publisher for letting me read this on netgallery.

The former child stars of a popular children's series, Mister Magic, reunite as part of a podcast exploring the secrets behind the show, its abrupt end, and its enigmatic host. There's no tangible evidence the show existed and much disagreement about when and where the episodes aired. The story is told from the perspective of Val, who was part of the final cast but has no memory of her time on the show or why her father built a new life for them in a secluded location largely cut off from the outside world. Val soon discovers some things are best forgotten and left in the past.

A tv show that's more than just a show, creepy life lesson rhymes, glowing tvs that won't shut off, and a group of adults still haunted by the restrictive rules drummed into them while part of the Mister Magic cast are just a few of the bizarre elements making up this surreal, entertaining tale. At times, the story moves beyond the horror plot and has plenty to say about the current state of our society when it comes to equality and acceptance. In the author's acknowledgement, she talks about what a deeply personal book this was for her, and I think that deep meaning is effectively translated onto the page. This story certainly struck some personal notes for me that I wasn't expecting.

Overall, a book that walks a fine line by being both supernatural horror and an introspective look at our culture and the harm we sometimes do to our children in the name of love and the greater good. Mister Magic is a weird but fun horror story that should appeal to readers who enjoy a side of social commentary alongside their thrills and chills.

Thank you to both Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine, Del Ray for providing a copy for me to read and review.

OMG. Oh-freaking-Kay... I know it's the very start of April, but I ALREADY feel like this will be one of my favorites of the month, and maybe even the year. I am so thankful to Del Rey/Random House, Kiersten White, and NetGalley for granting me early access to the HORROR OF THE YEAR; I'm calling it now, yall!!!

When a long-running children's TV show called Mister Magic where six friends sit in a circle and play together and overcome battles with the help of their magical friend "Mister Magic" -- comes to a halting stop in the nineties, the whole world is baffled as their primetime mainstay disappears off the air for good, cultivating a cult-following and conspiracy theories for the decades to come, leaving viewers to question what they saw on this legendary final episode.

Thirty years later, a popular podcaster chooses to highlight the show's children, inviting them back to the filming locations to kick off a reunion of sorts. This welcomes back Marcus, Javi, Isaac, Jenny, and Valentina. However, Val hardly remembers a thing because her father "kidnapped" her from the studio, jetting her off to isolation so that he could protect her from an unknown captor. Now with almost all the original showrunners back in Bliss, Utah, eerie things begin to occur, like a migraine-inducing hum, creepily cheerful townspeople, and a devoted love and following of the faceless Mister Magic, whom the OG kids are afraid of naming.

As days pass in the interviewing/podcasting process, Val starts to wonder why she's here and why her father kept her from this life of show business. Was her father onto something, or was this all an elaborate escape for nothing? Time will tell, and with each waking moment, they learn that perhaps Mister Magic wasn't a figment of their imagination, and instead an ages-old supernatural being that powers the whole town's economy... I'll leave it at that, but wow. What an amazing book.

the fact that i am 100% sure this is inspired by the candle cove creepy pasta and i haven’t seen a single review mention candle cove makes me think it’s real, actually

this is? maybe top 5 scariest books i’ve ever read? it also made me cry on the train??

even before knowing this book was an allegory for white’s experience with mormonism (i had some suspicions it wasn’t too subtle) i was SO on board, and after learning how personal it was i was even more on board holy hell

it’s not for everyone but. i’m going to be thinking about this one for a LONG time.

I hate to say it but I did not enjoy Mister Magic and this is the Kiersten White book with an interesting premise that I did not enjoy after Hide.

The premise of a creepy kids show and the reunion that happens years later is great but never used in this book.

I was thrilled to receive a copy of Kiersten White’s Mister Magic not only because the nostalgia horror premise matches vibes of the Public Access TTRPG and is right up my alley but also because I LOVED her book Hide. I am happy to say I was not disappointed.

Content Warnings:
Religious fanaticism/cult (Mormon), child abuse, danger to children, references to homophobia and racism

Also, isn’t this cover amazing!?! Its so eye-catching and intense. If I saw this book in a store and didn’t even know anything about it or the author, I’d probably still grab it just for this cover.

5 Stars for Mister Magic
Kiersten White excels at character driven horror that makes you absolutely certain you know how this book is going to end, throw in a lil twist, and then even when you see the new ending coming you’re on a rush to get there because you can’t wait to see it play out!

I had a hard time putting Mister Magic down. I had to know what was going on. I had to know what Val was forgetting and if these people that had just torn their way into her life and mind were the genuine deal or all part of the darkness. White did a fantastic job with the mystery aspect of this book and making not only the main character but also the reader paranoid of ever character (including the main character herself) but also of every situation -was that really what is going on or is this all in a character’s head?

As for scares, there was one scene in particular that was written so well it felt like I was watching a traditional scare out of a horror movie and the gut wrenching was just as potent. I was practically talking to my e-reader “Don’t look! Don’t look! Its gonna get you!” but still reading, still watching the character look. Excellent writing.

All that said, I did waffle between 4 and 5 stars for this book. I loved it but I do wish it had gone harder with the horror. Instead we get the quieter side of horror with dread, eeriness, and a mystery. These are not bad things but honestly there are only about 2 scenes in the book that were genuinely scary and the rest was more creepy than scary. I decided on 5 because I could tell that this story wasn’t meant to be scare factor horror but rather a frightening commentary and the slow, soft horror of the evangelical death cult that too many people in our country are suffering from.

Recommendation
If you enjoyed Kiersten White’s Hide, you should definitely read Mister Magic for the writing style, a group of friends facing a collective of human monsters with a splash of horrifying magic, and a purpose that carries off the page and into the real world where the real monsters are doing their work daily.

If you enjoyed Mister Magic and you want to be part of something the plays on analog horror, nostalgic and horrifying kids shows, and adults going back to where they grew up to solve a mind-bending mystery, check out Public Access ttrpg. It has all that and more, goes harder than this book with the horror scenes, and is an amazing game all around.