"Thirty years after a tragic accident shut down production of the classic children’s program Mister Magic, the five surviving cast members have done their best to move on. But just as generations of cultishly devoted fans still cling to the lessons they learned from the show, the cast, known as the Circle of Friends, have spent their lives searching for the happiness they felt while they were on it. The friendship. The feeling of belonging. And the protection of Mister Magic."

Mister Magic is a story reminiscent of Stephen King's IT, following characters who come together as adults decades after the experience they share as children. A bit slow and repetitive in the beginning. The main character seems to struggle with the same internal dialogue over and over. The plot materializes as she fills in gaps of memory she has of the past, along with the reader, to discover who the characters are and out they relate to each other within the story.

Narrowing focus and picking up the pace, the climax and ending carry specific themes speaking to the author's life experience. Religious undertones are easy to pick up throughout the narrative but don't seem to overpower it's trajectory .

Nostalgic for millennials who remember growing up hearing contradictory and problematic messages from family and media, this story has suspense and character. It is a fresh and unique depiction of resilience in children, finding themselves in an uncertain reality.

I would like to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey and NetGalley for sharing a copy of this title with me.

4/5 Stars. I have been a fan of Kiersten White for years and have yet to find a book I dislike by this author. I found this 2023 adult horror intense, and I could not put it down. I liked how unique the story was with the mixture of paranormal/fantasy with contemporary. Plus, the cover is stunning!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.


Val has no memories of her life before the age of 8, but when some friends from her childhood give her the opportunity to revisit her past, she uncovers a force more powerful than the magic of childhood.

This is one of the strangest books I have ever read. Once I understood what the author was alluding to, it made a lot more sense and I was able to appreciate the story she was trying to tell. I will be thinking about this story for a long time to come.

As far as a horror novel goes, this one was pretty creepy. I also liked that it ended on a slightly disturbing note. I enjoyed the storytelling, though I found the relationship between Val and Isaac to be a bit strange.

I'll be honest. This book was not my favorite because I found it to be super triggering. The underlying messaging dealt with parental abandonment, moralism, cults, and brainwashing. I am against abandonment, cults, and brainwashing.

What I find triggering is that I don't find moralism to be an inherent evil. Morals keep people from killing, raping, lying, and all kinds of legitimate evils. I would agree that trying to squash someone's nature and their spirit is also wrong. There's a fine line. The author is careful at points in then story to specify that it is the arbitrary rules and expectations that are harmful, so I appreciate that. I just get a bit anxious and cagey about it. I know it's just a me thing.

The authors note communicates that this book stems from her own personal experience. I'm happy that she did what she thought was best for herself and family by leaving the cult community she belonged to. Leaving a cult is super difficult because you most likely have to leave the good along with the bad, mainly relationships with close friends and family.

I do think this would be a great book for discussion of beliefs.

Thank you to Random house and netgalley for the ARC

3.8
Trippy and atmospheric with just the right tension...until it wasn't. Something shifted toward the end and it felt a bit like it lost its sense of itself, which was the big thing it had going, so.

If you loved Hide, wait until you hear about Mister Magic .

Once you’re finished gawking over the cover (as I did) I will tell you a little bit about this showstopper .

Here we go….

Having read Hide I should have known that this book would blow my mind although the title threw me off a bit . Hmmm. Mister Magic? I think my head went to John Wayne Gacey and some kind of creepy clown.

Wrong

So this book is super creepy . I’m not typically one for the supernatural/paranormal kind of thing but White executed this plot with such precision she has definitely made a fan out of me .

White has become an auto buy author for me and I’m praying she doesn’t make me wait to long to release another hit . My heart bleeds for these books .

Five Stars, easy

Teaser:

Thirty years after a tragic accident shut down production of the classic children’s program Mister Magic, the five surviving cast members have done their best to move on. But just as generations of cultishly devoted fans still cling to the lessons they learned from the show, the cast, known as the Circle of Friends, have spent their lives searching for the happiness they felt while they were on it. The friendship. The feeling of belonging. And the protection of Mister Magic.

But with no surviving video of the show, no evidence of who directed or produced it, and no records of who—or what—the beloved host actually was, memories are all the former Circle of Friends has.

Then a twist of fate brings the castmates back together at the remote desert filming compound that feels like it’s been waiting for them all this time. Even though they haven’t seen each other for years, they understand one another better than anyone has since.

After all, they’re the only ones who hold the secret of that circle, the mystery of the magic man in his infinitely black cape, and, maybe, the answers to what really happened on that deadly last day. But as the Circle of Friends reclaim parts of their past, they begin to wonder: Are they here by choice, or have they been lured into a trap?

Because magic never forgets the taste of your friendship. . . .

3 stars

While the premise was good, the story felt a little disjointed and fell a bit flat for me.

I've loved seeing White become this horror novelist after her days as a YA author. The concept of HIDE had me thrilled but I felt the actual book fell a little flat. I was still excited about Mister Magic - the idea of a TV show that is scrubbed from the internet? Sign me upppp.

Imagine if your favorite 90's children show was actually something more sinister. More mysterious. And no one on the internet could find proof it actually existed. The only evidence it existed are your own memories and the therapy you received after being traumatized by the final episode that resulted in the show's sudden cancellation. That is until a reunion podcast is announced after 30 years.

Val, former star of the Mister Magic show, has no memory of her childhood or the show she was a part of. But her former co-stars find her and ask her to join the reunion show to help them find closure that they didn't get after her sudden departure from the show shortly before it suddenly ended.

I found myself compulsively reading this just to find out what Val remembered and what happened to her and Kitty.

This novel isn't subtle in its themes or ideas. This is a literal and fierce interpretation of White's own life experiences and influences. I really enjoyed how she twisted this into a relevant and relatable idea.

I loved the creepy atmosphere of this book. It had a great way of making you feel afraid of the dark. I thought some of the characters felt a little flat but the ending really messed with my head for a few days. Overall a very original and creepy book!

Absolutely loved this book. Wonderful read, building a world of the haunting creepiness nostalgia can bring and societies and shame. Also, loved the after section about the author's parallel to growing up Mormon.

This story focuses on 6 friends (Val, Isaac, Javi, Marcus, Jenny & Kitty) who were on a children's program called Mister Magic as kids. The show was magical and wonderful until the day that it wasn't. It is not 30 years later and a reunion is being planned for the cast. The public was in love with the show, but there is no one to contact, no studio, not even any video floating around the internet from the show. Did this how really take place? Who is Mister Magic? Why does one of the cast members have no memory of the show at all? Sounds good right? Well…for me it wasn’t great.
The writing is good, but the narrative and pacing was slow, disjointed, and though there was a general sense of unease about the plot, there was a lack of suspense and understanding. I honestly had a hard time connecting the dots, not moving in the dark. The unreliable perspectives of the characters, wobbling pacing, more creepy and mind-bending scenes made me even more confused! Think Stranger Things 11 mind scenes at the lab with constant flashbacks and no explanation. I think this had a lot of potential but taking until 85% to get some clarity just isn’t working.
Thankfully, the author's note was explanatory enough to understand what the was happening in this book! I appreciate that White wrote this book in response to her experiences as a Mormon and leaving the Mormon community.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine/Del Rey for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Kiersten White weaves such a feeling a mystery and foreboding into this book. You aren’t sure where it is going, but you know you don’t want to be there (while also desperately needing to know what is happening). The interstitial blog posts, Reddit threads, and emails add so much to the world and to the history of those mysterious Mister Magic show.

I remember seeing the cover for Hide last year, reading the synopsis, and knowing I had to read it. Did I love it? No. Do I still love the cover? Yes. Well, we have an exact repeat of that situation with White’s new book. I can appreciate and understand that this was a deeply personal story for her to share (read the Author’s Note after if you read this book). Some stories we just need to get out and I do love that it was so different from anything I’ve read. While I can respect her reason for writing it, I just don’t think her writing is for me. I was yearning for more of a horror element and I could not stand the characters. They’re in their late 30s/early 40s and literally read like teenagers. Which actually might’ve worked in this story if I didn’t already have the same issue with Hide. I think she might be better off sticking to the YA genre because both of her adult horror books just completely missed the mark for me. Such a shame because the synopsis for this one was absolutely fantastic. I loved so many elements of this book and wish they blended together better.

If you liked Hide, then you should absolutely read this book. It doesn’t take place in a theme park obviously but the writing style was very similar. If you grew up with a religious upbringing that you resent now, you might also want to give this a shot. Even though I didn’t love it, I’ve seen a lot of 5 star reviews for it so there’s definitely an audience this will appeal to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC to review!
Rating (on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent)
Quality of writing: 3
Pace: 2
Plot development: 3
Characters: 2
Enjoyability: 3
Ease of Reading: 3

Overall rating: 3 out of 5

2.5

I was intrigued by the premise of this story.....a reunion of former child actors from a children's tv show that ended mysteriously and seemingly disappeared from anywhere except memories. It had a trope I don't love *lost/blocked memories* but I liked the idea of where the story could go. It was weird, but I knew going in that it would be since I read Hide by Kiersten White last year and it was also weird. The plot didn't really come together for me the way I had hoped. The explanations at the end for what is going on were very tell instead of show and the writing just wasn't for me.

Reading the acknowledgements at the end, I can see how this was an important story for the author to write and I can appreciate what she was trying to say with it. I didn't love it but I think maybe readers who are new to the horror genre might like it. The setting is creepy and there's basically no gore, so it could be a good one to dip your toe into light, creepy, out-there-plot horror.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Mister Magic.

I was super excited for the opportunity to read this early. I was a fan of the author's first book, Hide, so I was thrilled to read what she had written next.

Mister Magic is hard to describe, but ultimately I wasn't drawn into it like I had been with Hide.

It's confusing, strange, and the narrative is muddled, as if the author isn't sure what she's trying to say.

Her acknowledgements does clarify what she was trying to say in Mister Magic. Her troubled relationship and eventual break from Mormonism led her to create Mister Magic, an allegory for the cultish practices and rules she once had to endure.

I get that and I respect her need to write about it.

But, I'm still not sure what the story is about.

I didn't really like the characters nor dislike them. I'm still not sure what happened.

I saw the ending coming, and I'm not surprised, though some readers expressed disappointment with it.

The writing is good, but the narrative and pacing was slow, disjointed, and though there was a general sense of unease about the plot, there was a lack of suspense and understanding.

It read like the author was trying to purge herself of her troubled feelings about Mormonism, which might explain why Mister Magic was confusing to understand.

I still look forward to the author's next book!

This book caught my attention immediately, and I remained interested until the last page. I’m giving it 4 stars because I got somewhat confused toward the end. Overall, very enjoyable!

Honestly was a bit confused by this one. The plot was a bit all over the place and the ending was predictable.

I found this book to be a little existential, abstract, complex, eccentric, and somewhat strange! I have to admit, I reread some parts to understand things, but I felt lost in some chapters, feeling numb and confused.

"Mister Magic" is a presumed title for a children's show, but its title could also be "Magic Show" or "Magic Time." Interestingly, nobody has a clear idea about the concept, title, or image of Mister Magic. The only concrete thing about the show is that six children stand in a circle in a featureless black room, saying magic words, throwing an ephemeral cape up into the air, and waiting for Mister Magic's appearance. The suspense is the key factor why everyone cannot take their eyes off the screen.

What does Mister Magic really look like? He is tall, enormous, all arms and legs, either a person or a puppet. Everyone agrees that they have never seen his face.

Even the theme song of the show is enough to make people's hair stand up. It's creepy, eerie, and irritating!

A tragic accident occurs with the shutdown of the show without any surviving video. There is no evidence of who the director, producer, or host was. Only five children survived, moving on with their lives with different memories they harbored.

Now, those children who became adults are ready to reunite for the 30th Anniversary! They find themselves in a remote desert filming compound, trying to fill the blank spaces of their deteriorating memories and confronting the secrets to find the identity of Mr. Magic!

I honestly had a hard time connecting the dots, not moving in the dark, and understanding what was going on in this book. But the unreliable perspectives of the characters, wobbling pacing, more creepy and mind-bending scenes made me even more confused. The bizarre ending didn't help me form a concrete opinion about things. You get stuck in a gray line throughout your reading. Everything is blurry. You keep walking in the dark till you see the end of the tunnel, but when you think you are finally going to see the light for seeing things from a clear perspective, you find yourself bumping into the walls of another dark tunnel!

Thankfully, the author's note was explanatory enough to understand what the hell was happening in this book!

Overall, it was an intelligent, bizarre but also exhausting, existential, weird experience! I cannot say I enjoyed it. It was something different! Not my favorite work of the author, but it was still unique, unconventional, and something original.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine/Del Rey for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

“Mr. Magic” is a fantastic, thought provoking read, leaving a lasting impression on the reader.

Kiersten White delivers a mystery/thriller with a powerful moral, which I believe will leave a lasting impression on others.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey for providing me the opportunity to review “Mr. Magic” prior to publication. I am appreciative and leave my sincerity review voluntarily.