Rating: 
Summary: Disappointment
Review: Personally, I thought the book was not worth reading. Parts of the book were in another language with no translations, the ending was disappointing, and I had the feeling there was supposed to be some kind of a point to the whole thing but found none.
Rating: 
Summary: maybe if you pronounce it 'Mr. Magoo', it makes sense.
Review: This book was too long, although enthralling. However, I kept expecting some sort or resolution, salvation, rebirth, etc. in Urfe, and it turns out he's still the same as he has been all along. The end left me disappointed, sort of like eating cotton candy - sure it's big and fluffy, but when you bite down there's hardly any substance... Try Ayn Rand's Fountainhead.
Rating: 
Summary: WOW - What a ride!!
Review: I was not able to put The Magus down from the minute I started, and I think I may have to read it again sometime soon. What an amazing ride John Fowles has created for us. It's difficult to review this book without giving all the twists and turns away, but let's just say this psychological thriller has more twists and turns than a rollercoaster. My only negative for this incredible story is the relationship between Nicholas and Alison. I'm not convinced of Nicholas's love for her. Anyway, I highly recommend reading this amazing thriller - a story that will make you think about your own life and those around you. Who do you trust? Who do you really love? Who are you? Read on...
Rating:
Summary: Definitely not a classic!
Review: The book was not horrible, I guess. Maybe if I hadn't had any expectations before starting it, I would have appreciated it more. But then again, maybe not. It does say on the back cover that this is considered a modern classic, which makes me despair about the quality of modern literature. The story is inprobable, the psychological analysis is mediocre. The book would have worked better with the original title, "The Godgame", which would at least provide a motive for the long 680 pages of reading. In other words, it would have explained from the start that I was going to witness the game played by rich, spoiled people with a lot of time on their hands. I don't watch soap, and this is hardly any better. If you're looking to read a classic, this is a waste of time. If distraction is what you're after, then it's an OK book.
Rating: 
Summary: trippy
Review: To quote Timothy Leary: "the first truly great psychedelic novel", it challenges your perception and involvement. Each page buries you deeper into the "masque", till by the time of the revelations you are truly ravished. One of the best books of the 20th century...
Rating:
Summary: Welcome to Fantastic Island...
Review: How could anyone not like this book, a literary precursor to Aaron Spelling's "Fantasy Island?" The plot is relatively simple to summarize: Nick Urfe, a world weary, brutally honest young Brit, comes to teach English on a sleepy Greek isle whereupon he is targeted by Conchis, a mysterious millionaire for a serious of blasts from the past. The "masque" that Conchis creates is almost impossible to summarize: a series of scenes, hallucinations, narratives and sensations that somehow form a coherent whole that also somehow morphs into something completely different every chapter. Maybe the point of the masque, and that of the novel, is to demonstrate why Nicholas is a bad poet, despite being intelligent and very well read. Conchis is an artist after Fowles' own heart: he is out to distill the historical moment out of his "characters." The by-product, he believes, is where you will find the artist. As a result, nearly four decades after it was written "The Magus¡± is a trip well worth taking for anyone who is not convinced our prototypical modern men and women have all the answers.
Rating:
Summary: A superb writer!
Review: This is one of those books I feel has no concrete meaning; you basically can take the story and piece the puzzle together in your own way. "The Magus" reads quickly, since the first 2/3 of the book are a puzzle. Throughout this time, I was guessing everything possible as to what was really going on in Phaxros with Conchis and the twins involved. However much as I was not pleased with the outcome of their games, the chase was indeed the best part. Fowles has a superb grasp of the English language (and other languages as well, which may upset people reading the book as much of the French and Greek is not translated). His vivid setting discriptions enhanced this novel; I felt as though I was back in Greece again. His intelligence with so many aspects -- philosophy, classical literature, languages, history -- sometimes was overwhelming, especially for a little college student like myself ;) "The Magus" should be read for entertainmnent as much as for a philosophical challenge.
Rating:
Summary: Lengthy, but worth the time
Review: John Fowles piece is striking and thought provoking while at the same time confusing if you do not gather everything you read. The Magus to readers should actually grab you and pull you in to a world you only fantasize or have nightmares about. On the other hand, this 700-page novel can seem to those that are impatient too descriptive and never-ending. Through the eyes of the main character Nicholas Urfe, Fowles really gives the reader all and then-some about the setting and the mood set by each character. The character Nicholas Urfe is your average twenty-something that leads a lifestyle full of sexuality and indecisiveness. This is the perfect setup for a character that will later on in the novel have to re-evaluate those characteristics in bizarre situations involving the rich, powerful, and mysterious character known as The Magus. The Magus offers good reading for those who can survive the first seven chapters which are as descriptive as a piece of writing can get. Fowles here has written an amazing story that can entertain the mind, especially the dark side of it. The only setback that many might complain about is the lengthiness of the story which could have delivered the same impact in a shorter piece. If you do however have the time to spare and the patience to read, The Magus could appease your need for sex, eroticism, terror, and violence...on a mental level.
Rating:
Summary: Eh...
Review: Fowles has written much better books; I would recommend this one only to people who already like reading him, and want to read even his weaker works. The book has some good moments, and one memorable setting, but that's not enough to sustain a 700 page novel. At half the length, it would have been a very impressive first novel, but... The basic premise is attractive: while conspiracies and webs of deceit are usually malicious, conspiracies _against_ someone, this book points out that (especially if you're a self-absorbed young man) it can be pretty cool to be the focus of a conspiracy of rich intelligent people, especially if one (or two or three) of them are beautiful and sexually uninhibited women. But that's about it; the premise is there, the lovely Greek island is there, but they just sit there. We have 400 or so pages of slow setup, a couple hundred pages of slightly quicker development and mystery, and then a final hundred pages of dull thud as we find that after undergoing a novel's worth of life-changing experiences the protagonist hasn't changed perceptibly, and is still the basically uninteresting jerk he started out as. The motivations of the conspirators are never really explained. Or rather the explanation is so implausible that it doesn't count; these people would not have gone to all that trouble for this guy. So I got some nice images and new mental structures out of it, but I think my time would have been better spent elsewhere. It's hard to recommend a book when my first thought after finishing it was "whew, finally! Now I can go on and read something better." The Latin passage at the end is from Pervigilium Veneris; Parnell's translation is "Let those love now who never loved before; Let those who always loved, now love the more." And that's not really a spoiler IMHO; we still don't know what happened... *8)
Rating:
Summary: A Young Man's Journey
Review: John Fowles has said this early effort by him is a "young man's book". I believe he is not only referring to his youth when writing it, but that it's great appeal is to young men beginning their journey in life. I read The Magus as a very young man and it totally blew me away. I have reread it later in life, and although it's flaws might be more apparent....it is still worth the trip. Nicholas Urfe is semi-sophisticated, callous, and not nearly as smart as he thinks he is. The older man, Conchis, like many a mentor, takes Nicholas on a mind and reality-bending journey to enlightenment. "Are you elect?" Can you learn? Will we be able to open your mind & heart? Can you learn to love rather than covet? Can you know the price and demand of real freedom? Suspend disbelief and go along with Nicholas on the ride of a lifetime. The main anecdotes Conchise tells to illustrate and instruct....the trenches of WWI, the Duke, the religious fanatic, the resistance fighter....are beautiful, concise stories in themselves and by themselves make the book a worthwhile read. But there is more, much more. 4-1/2 stars. Enjoy.
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