We haven’t had a new Ben Okri for some five years so this is something of a celebration. Sadly it is not quite magical enough, not in the same league as his magnificent The Famished Road. Charmingly written with an authentically dreamlike quality in short sections, it sweeps you along with a group of people making a TV documentary about a journey to Arcadia, Greece, while actually going from Paris to Switzerland. Or are they? Nothing is certain in this book. There is a short, sharp section on meeting the devil which is outstanding and some beautiful descriptions of landscapes. A fine book but perhaps a little light for such a great author. ~ Sarah Broadhurst
P.S. - The Age of Magic was awarded the Bad Sex in Fiction Award 2014 but we still love it!
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| Primary Genre | Modern and Contemporary Fiction |
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Closing date: 04/07/2026
'The Age of Magic has begun. Unveil your eyes.' Eight weary film-makers, travelling from Paris to Basel, arrive at a small Swiss hotel on the shores of a luminous lake. Above them, strewn with lights that twinkle in the darkness, looms the towering Rigi mountain. Over the course of three days and two nights, the travellers will find themselves drawn in to the mystery of the mountain reflected in the lake. One by one, they will be disturbed, enlightened, and transformed, each in a different way. An intoxicating and dreamlike tale unfolds. Allow yourself to be transformed. Having shown a different way of seeing the world, Ben Okri now offers a different way of reading.
The Age of Magic features in the following genres: Modern and Contemporary Fiction, eBooks of the Month, Sharing Diverse Voices, General Fiction, Fiction, Recommendations
The Age of Magic is available in Paperback, Hardback
The Age of Magic was written by Ben Okri and published by Head of Zeus
The Age of Magic has 286 pages
£7.19