The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
Second book in the six-part fantasy series.
The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel, frequently shortened to The Magician, is a fantasy novel written by Michael Scott. It serves as the follow-up to The Alchemyst and is the second book in a six-volume series called The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. Its publication dates were 5 June 2008 in the United Kingdom and 24 June 2008 in the United States. The novel received a nomination for the Irish Book of the Year Award, specifically the Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year – Senior Category.
The title character of the book is the villain, John Dee. He works for the Dark Elders, aiding their plan to regain control of Earth. According to the author, Dee possessed such a wide range of abilities that he could have filled any role in the series. Scott has stated that Dee was originally conceived as the hero of the story. He was the Alchemyst of the first book, but in his own era, people primarily knew him as "The Magician."
The plot follows fifteen-year-old twins Sophie and Josh Newman. They are in Paris alongside the alchemyst Nicholas Flamel and his friend Scathach. Their adversaries are Niccolò Machiavelli and John Dee, who both serve the Dark Elders, though they are also rivals. Machiavelli aims to capture the twins and Flamel using the missing pages of the Codex, or the Book of Abraham the Mage, before Dee can travel from San Francisco to France. The twins seek out Comte de Saint-Germain, a former student of Nicholas, who teaches Sophie to wield the elemental magic of Fire. Saint-Germain’s wife, Joan of Arc, helps Sophie control her aura and separate the Witch of Endor’s memories from her own. Nicholas gives Josh the legendary stone sword Clarent, the twin blade of Excalibur, which is an ancient Fire Elemental weapon. Josh, Joan, and Scathach encounter three Disir, commonly called Valkyries, who are ancient enemies of Scathach. The Disir bring the soul-devouring Nidhogg, a monster once trapped in the roots of the world tree Yggdrasil. After Dee destroyed Yggdrasil, the monster was freed. It attacks Scathach but fails to kill her, instead capturing her in its claws before fleeing when Josh wounds it with Clarent. Meanwhile, Nicholas’s wife, Perenelle Flamel, has been captured and is taken to Alcatraz as a prisoner.
On Alcatraz, Perenelle receives help from the ghost of Juan Manuel de Ayala, a Spanish sail
- author
- Michael Scott
- release_date_UK
- 5 June 2008
- release_date_US
- 24 June 2008
- series
- The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
- genre
- Fantasy novel
- award_nomination
- 2009 Irish Book of the Year Award – The Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year – Senior Category
Lore & Background
The title character, The Magician, refers to the villain John Dee, who works for the Dark Elders and for their return to dominance on Earth. The plot follows Sophie and Josh Newman, 15-year-old twins, in Paris with the alchemyst Nicholas Flamel and his friend Scathach. They face Niccolò Machiavelli and John Dee, both working for the Dark Elders. Machiavelli plots to capture the twins and Flamel with the missing pages of the Codex before Dee can arrive from San Francisco. The twins seek out Comte de Saint-Germain, who teaches Sophie elemental magic of Fire. Josh is given the legendary stone sword Clarent. The group encounters Disir (Valkyries) and the monster Nidhogg. Meanwhile, Nicholas' wife Perenelle is imprisoned on Alcatraz, where she is helped by the ghost of Juan Manuel de Ayala and meets the spider elder Areop-Enap.
Reader's Guide
The Magician continues the story of the Flamel twins and expands the series' mythological framework, introducing new immortals such as Niccolò Machiavelli, Comte de Saint-Germain, Joan of Arc, and the Elder Mars Ultor. The novel was nominated for the 2009 Irish Book of the Year Award in the Senior Category, indicating its recognition within Irish children's literature. The book's release in both the UK and US in June 2008 helped establish the series' international readership. Its sequel, The Sorceress, followed in 2009. The novel's use of historical and mythological figures reimagined as immortals contributed to the series' appeal among young adult fantasy readers.
Did You Know?
- The book's title refers to the villain John Dee, who works for the Dark Elders.
- The novel was nominated for the 2009 Irish Book of the Year Award – The Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year – Senior Category.
- The sequel to this book, The Sorceress, was released on 26 May 2009 in the US and in June 2009 in the UK.
- The Magician was re-released in the UK on 5 August 2010 featuring a new style cover.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel?
Michael Scott is the author of this fantasy novel, which serves as the direct sequel to his earlier work The Alchemyst.
Where does The Magician sit within the Nicholas Flamel series?
It is the second book in a six-volume series called The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. The story continues immediately after the events of the first installment, The Alchemyst.
When was The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel published?
The novel was released in the United Kingdom on 5 June 2008, with a US edition following on 24 June 2008.
What award recognition did The Magician receive?
It was nominated for the Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year in the Senior Category, a component of the Irish Book of the Year Award.
Who is the title character in The Magician?
Unlike a typical hero-named book, the title here points to the story's villain, making the antagonist the central figure of the narrative. This shifts the focus from the protagonists of The Alchemyst to the opposing force driving the plot.
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