Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

Thank you to Random House/ Ballantine for letting me read Mister Magic early.

After reading Hide and White’s middle grade series, I knew I wanted to read this and i’m still trying to process what I just read?

This book was the epitome of Barney meets Poltergeist with a hint of childhood trauma and friendship and I loved every minute of it. Granted I thought I knew how this was going to end but I was completely wrong and im very glad I was.

4 stars- this book was eerie and trippy. so into it! this book had me hooked all throughout to the very end. thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Kiersten White’s newest offering, Mister Magic, is a wild roller coaster of a ride that will leave you walking sideways for days if you forget the safety harness before opening the pages. Strap yourselves in, hang on tight, and prepare for high speeds, sudden drops, and daring loops. Things are about to get turbulent.

The Plot: Once upon a time, there was a children’s television show, the longest running series of its kind. After something mysterious happens, the show is canceled. Here’s where things get interesting: everyone and no one remembers the show; meaning that no recordings or scripts exist today, so adults who were once fans of the show have only vague recollections of it. Mostly, they just remember how it made them feel and the lessons they learned from its rules. Fast forward thirty years, and a podcast orchestrates a reunion of the show’s child stars.

We experience the story through Val’s perspective. Val remembers nothing from the first eight years of her life; therefore, she doesn’t remember being on the show at all. When three of her former cast mates unexpectedly show up at her door speaking of the reunion, she is both confused and enticed. In hopes of rediscovering the secrets of her own history, Val decides to travel with them to the gathering, and this—oh yes, THIS—is when plot-rockets blast off and readers are bombarded with all the unsettling weirdness. This is where the magic happens—where the Mister Magic happens!

This book is freaking disorienting. It’s trippier than the trippiest of dreams. We see clippings from chat rooms, etc. from commenters who doubt their own memories. After all, if there is ZERO evidence that this show ever existed, did it? And what about the very last episode: Why do some fans remember seeing the horror of it (and the horror of whatever happened on it) when it never aired on television? Why can’t some viewers remember if the host was a real man or a puppet? Whew, I was even doubting myself for a while: Does this book even exist, and am I really reading it?! One thing is for sure, this book will mess with your mind. And it’s awesome!

The journey to the truth of the past is mystifying and cloaked in darkness, but in the midst of all the strangeness, there is wistfulness in the air. The nostalgic fragrances of childhood permeate the pages. If a story can be both simple and complex, as well as comforting and uncomfortable, it’s this one.

With its mesmerizing plot, dizzying pacing, irresistible characters, and startling revelations, this book is one for readers to pounce on and to get lost in. Take the plunge. Try it for yourselves. It won’t disappoint. It’s incredible!

I really enjoyed the premise of this. For me, this started off very slow, and at times it was hard for me to even get through this. It picks up about halfway through and I could not put it down! The characters were all well developed and I felt like I really got to know and understand them. I also appreciated the "reddit" type threads of fans of "Mister Magic" discussing the show. The cover also helped draw me in. I would recommend this to any suspense fan, but tell them to just keep pushing to about the 45% mark, for things to really pick up.

What a wonderful, darkly magical story! A huge improvement over Hide, another book I've read from this author. The writing here was just so much better, the plot was tighter too. I loved everything about the concept and the execution delivered. Recommended!

Imagine: Barney but more haunted. Maybe he's a cryptid, maybe he stems from religious guilt, maybe he's a ghost. Who knows! Now, what if you had no actual proof that Barney existed? You remember the show, you grew up with it, but there's no evidence it aired. That's what Mister Magic is about. We follow Val whose childhood is a blank space, unaware that she was once one of the stars of the children's show, Mister Magic. As she uncovers her past and reunites with her former castmates, 30 years after tragedy ended the show, she begins to understand just why she may have forgotten. I loved this book. I received Hide as an ARC and I knew I needed to get my hands on Kiersten White's next horror. This book will absolutely grab you and keep you guessing until the last page.