Mostly enjoyed this book. Neville's writing is wonderful, involving the reader quickly and thoroughly. Ariel Behn is thrust into an adventure she didn't want. She inherits dangerous manuscripts from her dead cousin and is sent on a number of travels to figure out what they are, why they are so important, and who wants them. She gets to discover all sorts of interesting facts and stories about her convoluted family as well. Stories she's never heard, as she finally has opportunity (and necessity) to interact with some members she never spent time with before. This main plot is the most exciting part of the novel.
Another piece comes with the title -- the magic circle. This is the idea that there are number of objects that must be together for the next millenium to come. With myths, astrology, and history, fictional conversations interspersed throughout the book tie together these ideas and what they might have looked like in the past. Several important historical figures, including Christ are represented as having had all thirteen of these objects together at pivotal moments in their lifetime. I guess it bothers me a bit because writing stories from history is so often stretching the truth -- taking pieces of truth and elaborating to a point that they are truly story with only a glimpse of truth. But humans believe stories so easily -- so if I didn't know the Jesus of the Bible, I might find some of these ideas and possibilities very enticing, but as it is, I mostly found them distracting and a bit frustrating.
| Title: | The Magic Circle |
|---|---|
| Author: | Katherine Neville |
| Date published: | 1998 |
| Genre: | Mystery / Thriller |
| Number of pages: | 552 |
| Notes: | repeat reading |
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