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Summary: WHAT A WASTE!
Review: Horribly written and totally illogical. Unbelieveable characters and actions and a plotline that is too wild and crazy to make any sense.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice try.
Review: Neville attempts to weave a story of cultural mythology that is interesting, yet somehow, fails to come together in the end. If you enjoyed Neville's other books, you will probably like this one.
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Summary: Metaphysical Masterpiece
Review: The Magic Circle has been on sale for two years at my metaphysical bookstore in Boulder, and I've talked to everyone who has read it. We all think it's the best book describing the events that have been described both in world mythology -which is what Neville says she set out to do - as well as in astrological predictions in the metaphysical world - for what is expected at the dawn of a brand new aeon. I'm impressed. This book is in my opinion a classic and a masterpiece.
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Summary: UNIQUE IN LITERATURE
Review: I have been reading Katherine Neville's work for more than ten years. My only complaint is that she doesn't come out with her books fast enough. But her work is so carefully crafted, I can certainly see why it takes so long both to write and to read. As a retired literary scholar, I can add that there is no one in the world today that I know of who is even attempting to write works as complex and thought-provoking as hers. The Magic Circle and her earlier works are unique in contemporary fiction. In my opinion, she should be given credit for expanding the horizons of modern fiction.
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Summary: History Repeats Itself
Review: This book is amazing.I agree with all the history buffs who have written in with effusive praises of this extremely complex and interwoven saga. Almost everything the author wrote about only a year ago has come to pass in reality since The Magic Circle was published. This November 9 is the tenth anniversary of the events described in the modern parts of The Magic Circle. For those who are fascinated by the cyclical aspects of history described in Neville's book, you owe it to yourself to read this one before that date. Highly recommended for the discriminating reader.
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Summary: Magic is a thorough understatement--recommended highly
Review: Be prepared for a whirlwind of ideas, surprises, time jumping, and a family tree that has branches so heavily overlapping that you need to note it down--have a pad and pen ready!But truly, the book has a unique flavor all its own. I've read it as well as the other comments, and I'm frankly surprised by those who think that Katherine Neville is trying to keep a 'trend' that is supposed to be a 'winning formula'. Writers have a style, and Neville's style of taking jumps from time to time is very well plotted and maneveured. It can keep you spellbound. If someone says the book is boring, I hope curious readers will take my word for it that it is absolutely not. I can't say enough about 'The Magic Circle'--history buffs, and all those who love to speculate about certain historical figures, will find them coming to life in all kinds of ways and presented in a different light altogether. This story is full of subtle nuances of human psychology, intelligence--oh dear me yes, is it ever intelligence--power, family, and love. Lust plays its role, but it's not what the story evolves around, and I agree completely that Neville has produced 'quality fiction'. Doubtless for some it may seem that Neville has written out of her time (no pun intended). I prefer to call her work timeless.
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Summary: DON'T steal this book.
Review: NOTE: Don't be fooled by the one-star review. I would have given this book NO stars, but amazon doesn't allow for such candid responses. I am absolutely dumbfounded by the number of positive reviews of this title. It seems some people determine a book's quality by its length: Hey! This book was 550 pages long--it MUST be great! I have news for them: Writing a loooong book doesn't make an author more talented, and reading said book doesn't automatically make the reader an intellectual--or an arbiter of quality. Yeesh. This book was awful, a complete waste of time. I had been forewarned by friends and colleagues who'd given up halfway through, but, being laid up following surgery, I decided to plow ahead. A week of my life wasted--I'll never get it back. (My condolences to those who sprang for the hardcover edition.) I admit that there were many interesting elements. And, from a purely technical standpoint, Neville does know how to craft a sentence. But these traits never synthesized into a cohesive narrative, and the payoff was a complete gyp. How this morass of myth, magic, and morality (not!) got past the editor is beyond me. Stick with THE EIGHT; skip CALCULATED RISK (a similarly flat payoff); and, above all, do not--repeat, DO NOT--bother with this one. Trust me!
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Summary: A world united by love?
Review: I read an interview where Katherine Neville said that The Magic Circle was about transformation, but I think it does a great job of comparing world religions and showing us what we all have in common, in a world that sometimes seems so filled with anger and hatred. What she seems to think we have in common is love. I for one would like to believe she is right.
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Summary: History, Mystery, Magic
Review: I once read a review of Neville's writing that started that way. I've been on a joyous roller coaster ride ever since. Don't believe a word of it when people say she writes with a formula. No other author writing today is as unpredictable as Ms Neville. No one could possibly guess the endings of her works. There are surprises on every page. And for those of you who love history the way I do, this book is the most highly recommended and historically accurate of the three.
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Summary: Lots of interesting phenonenom
Review: The reason I liked this book is because of the deep and intricate plot, the strong story line, and the likeable characters. The thing I didn't like about it was that everyone kept on interrupting me while I was reading it.
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