Out of Spite, Out of Mind

While the previous books all had merits and flaws, this is the first in the series that fails as a novel for one simple reason: it is the first that does not remain true to its characters. In many small ways throughout the novel (and in huge ways at the end), the characters behave in ways that are simply unmotivated.

The key to understanding any character in this series is to ask the simple question, “What is WRONG with you?” Each character starts with flaws so huge and glaring that they define their lives, and though they may learn and grow, it’s always in the context of their (hilariously) woeful starting points. This is also the basis for much of the humor and, I suspect, much of Scott Meyers worldview.

In this book, one character is under strain to the point where they lose sight of decency, ethics, and morality. That character becomes be motivated to make terrible choices that hurt others around them, and it makes sense in context of the story events, for that one person. What destroys this novel is the fact that almost every other character simultaneously loses their ability to tell right from wrong or react accordingly. This unmotivated change in the entire cast; their absence of a reasonably appropriate emotional response to events, is what makes the book work so poorly.

This book needed a more involved editor and revisions, plain and simple. It just doesn’t work as written. The sad part is that Meyers has built a great world and comedic model that deserves continuation, and even if he manages to recover, this book will stand as a jarring road bump to any future readers that discover the series.

Chapter-by-chapter, there’s still some fun parts to be had in this novel, and (until it falls apart at the end), it bravely if inconsistently wrestles with some difficult concepts. With better critique and revision, (and at a minimum, drastically different fallout in the last couple chapters), there would be a lot more hope for the series going forward.

*SPOILER FREE!!!!

I really like this series. I am invested in the characters and by far my favorite two characters are Philip and Jimmy. I like Martin as well but IMO Jimmy and Philip are more interesting/complex characters than the others. With that in mind, this book was better than I was expecting in some ways (considering all the reviews I have read), and ultimately disappointing due to the single issue of understanding WHY the major conflict of the book was necessary. If the entertainment value had been slightly higher I could have ignored the injustice of the conflict resolution or the severe beating (figurative and literal) that a major character takes in this book. You can chalk it up to “well sometimes bad things happen to people for no reason and that is just the way the world works”, but if I wanted to read a book about how the world REALLY WORKS, i would not be reading the “MAGIC 2.0” series about science fiction in middle aged England!!! I dislike the overt gender imbalance in the books (maybe i am just sick of getting blamed for the worlds problems as a guy!) as I do in most media where women are smart and sassy and forgiven for flaws and men are bumbling idiots who have to pay a huge price for the slightest lapse in judgement. As a theme, it would be tolerable, but the sheer over the top man bashing that happens is too much for my palette! I liked the humor of the book and thought that as a side note or section of a larger story with a better resolution it would have been fantastic! I like how the magic is growing with the characters and that their ideas about what they do is maturing with the series. I do not like how short this book was. Not enough to justify the $25 price tag. Again I really did like this book for the most part but the above issues keep it from being above average or excellent. 3 stars is about right and it is worth the read if you like this series and hope that it continues, it does not deserve all of the hate that it has been getting!

I have read every book in this series. The first book was great and the second and third books were decent. The 4th book is bad and this one is even worse. There are so many Continuity errors from the previous books and this one. The plot to this book is so pointless and makes no sense. They never come to a Resolution and leaves the reader a mixture of confused and frustrated. Its filled with fillers from 80s pop culture that add nothing to move the story along but seems to just be there to fill pages. At this point it seems like the Arthur is just making more in this series as a money grab.

I enjoy this series quite a lot, more as a thought experiment than anything else, but the stories are fun and easy to follow for something to read before bed. I feel like this one left a lot of loose ends that aught to be tied up, but maybe the author will do that in future books.

Without spoiling anything, I will say that the characters’ motivations seem to be confusing and conflicting at times, and when time travel is an infinite possibility, it seems to take away from any kind of urgency to resolve conflicts as they can just kind of get to them whenever.

They seem to be declining in quality as they progress, but I’ll continue to read them as I still get a good jolt of excitement from the imagination of the author and the infinite possibilities presented.

I read several reviews on this book before I read the book itself, and they seemed largely mediocre. I actually felt like this book received more hate than it deserved. I enjoyed it! I absolutely adore the first book, and thoroughly enjoyed books two and three as well. Book four was disappointing, but book five redeemed the series again. While I do feel like this is a four star book, not a five star book, as a big fan of Magic 2.0 I feel obligated to try to bring up its average star rating, because 3.5 is too low. I love Scott Meyer’s writing, and once I finish the sixth installment of the series that was just released yesterday, I will surely be reading more of Meyer’s work.

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