Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell

Susanna Clarke

Feb 2009 · Bloomsbury Publishing

About this ebook

OVER 4 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE

Shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Guardian First Book Award; longlisted for the Man Booker Prize

'Unquestionably the finest English novel of the fantastic written in the last seventy years ... Funny, moving, scary, otherworldly, practical and magical' NEIL GAIMAN

The year is 1806. centuries have passed since practical magicians faded into the nation's past. But scholars of this glorious history discover that one remains: the reclusive Mr Norrell, whose displays of magic send a thrill through the country.

Proceeding to London, he raises a beautiful woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Yet the cautious, fussy Norrell is challenged by the emergence of another magician: the brilliant novice Jonathan Strange. Young, handsome and daring, Strange is the very antithesis of Norrell.

So begins a dangerous battle between these two great men which overwhelms that between England and France. And their own obsessions and secret dabblings with the dark arts are going to cause more trouble than they can imagine.

Ratings and reviews

Worth reading. Definitely one of the best examples of modern literature. Except- i won't read it again and at times i found it irritating and difficult not to skim read. The characters are well drawn but I didn't love them. My feelings on the book are confused- it is undoubtedly excellent but I will never re-read it. It is not even close to the top of my all time favorite reads. I respect it, found it sometimes gripping and often impressive... but I do not love it. Make of that what you will I guess.

Some have said the book meanders, but I just took this for texture. Knock off two stars if you're in a rush.

It's easy to see the amount of work that went into this for the amount of detail it contains. The worlds, the story, the characters, they're all so vivid and you just have to keep reading. One of the best books I've read!

About the author

Susanna Clarke's debut novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was first published in more than 34 countries and was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Guardian First Book Award. It won British Book Awards Newcomer of the Year, the Hugo Award and the World Fantasy Award in 2005. The Ladies of Grace Adieu, a collection of short stories, some set in the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, was published by Bloomsbury in 2006. Her second novel, Piranesi, will publish in September 2020. She lives in Derbyshire.