Mister Magic

I’ve been interested in K White after hearing about Hide and then my best friend saying she wrote about Buffy. Who doesn’t love buffy?! But then Mister Magic came on my radar and the story sounded like exactly something I would enjoy, not to mention the beautiful cover. I have had so much fun with this title. I love the mandala effect, and I love the creepy vibes of the kids show. I cannot wait to read more from her. Everything I read just keeps getting better. She is becoming and auto buy author for me. Thank you NetGalley & Cornerstone for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I absolutely loved it!

Well, that was scary as fuck.

I’ve only read White’s Camelot Rising trilogy prior to this, so this was an insane departure from her YA titles - but in the best way possible. How someone can craft a story as crazy, fucked up, and skin-crawling as this I don’t know. This is a story about faith, friendship, and memory that sucks you in with it’s unreliable narration and ever-present creepy vibes. You have to trust the author on this one as much of it is complex and abstract, often with a seeming lack of direction, but this is all turned on it’s head as White knows exactly what she wants from the story and where it should go. The reveals throughout make you distrusting of everyone, and sometimes even Val (the protagonist), but it concludes in such a disturbing yet perfect way. I would definitely benefit from a reread of this, which is likely to happen before release, as knowing what the story is based on only makes it scarier.

One of the best parts of this were the mixed media interstitials, they worked so well for me. They ranged from AO3 author’s notes to chat-room-style messages to letters, and added an excellent outside perspective that enhanced the ‘are we delusional? what the hell is real?’ aspect of the story. I also loved the podcast element too - this is a story entrenched in media and believing others/what is real - as it was just so creepy with the introductory monologues about each character from the interviewer. I hope these elements land well for other readers as they were the perfect craft choice.

I’d say this is a 4.5 stars rounded up. The only reason I won’t rate it five stars is because I never fully connected to White’s use of third person present tense. I think the story would’ve benefitted from first person present tense for a greater character study, and to entrench Val into the horrors much more. Despite this, Mister Magic is easily an instant favourite. I mean, look at the cover and the premise! Trust me, it’s execution only lives up to it all.

I can’t wait for you to meet Mister Magic.

Another gorgeous little horror tale from Kiersten White, dealing with themes of childhood, memory, nature and nurture.

The strange power of a cancelled children's television series sets the scene as old friends come together, trying to inform their own memories of their time on the show...wherein something dark lurked and they were affected in unimaginable ways

The writing is terrific and the plot itself is darkly atmospheric. It is disturbing and hugely addictive with some memorable characters and a beautifully emotional finale.

I thought this was great.

Everyone remembers watching the kids’ show Mister Magic, but no one can find any evidence that it ever existed. The internet is awash with rumours about the show’s mysterious ending—did something terrible really happen in the final episode thirty years ago, something bad enough that the network had to cancel the series altogether?

I loved the theme of this book. It reads like an extended creepypasta, complete with forum posts and Wikipedia articles, which is so much fun. There’s something uniquely creepy about a twisted childhood memory, and although the horror is fairly mild there were moments in Mister Magic that I found very unsettling, largely due to the sinister unseen presence of the title character.

As with her other novel, Hide, which I also enjoyed, Kiersten White brings a deeper message to her fun concept. In this case, it’s about being a child in an environment that tries to control who you are, and how that affects your future life, especially the way you bring up your own children. The author’s note at the end adds a bit of valuable context on White’s own experiences of this, making this a book that can be enjoyed on multiple levels. A highly entertaining read.

Have you ever had a conversation with a friend about a TV show you watched as a kid, only to find they don’t remember it? And then, when you go to look it up online, you struggle to find it, if you can track it down at all?

This has happened to me and I’m sure it has to you, too. Mine was a 90s sci-fi series that I remember little about, other than that it featured silver mannequins (possibly robots) in a mall that came to life, and it might have been Australian (but wasn’t Round the Twist). No amount of Google searches can find it and it’s maddening.

Anyway, that’s pretty much the basis of Kiersten White’s new novel Mister Magic, which sees our heroine Val living a quiet life on a horse ranch until a visit from some old friends informs her she was once part of a hugely popular children’s TV show that she’s somehow completely blocked from her memory.

The show featured a host of kids who would play games under the supervision of a shadowy figure in a cape (Mister Magic), who would teach them lessons about life through their antics in a bid to inform youngsters watching at home.

However, something terrible happened during the final episode that didn’t just take Mister Magic off the air - it removed it from the record to such an extent that it was as though it never existed.

When Val and her fellow Circlemates are invited to reunite to record a podcast, it’s a chance for Val to recoup her lost memories and find out what really happened 30 years ago - but will the truth be more frightening than forgetting altogether?

This was a strange, mind-bending book that really sparked a lot of nostalgia for me in terms of the TV shows I grew up with. The descriptions of the show brought to mind the likes of Playschool and Playbus, while also evoking the Mandela effect thanks to half-remembered snippets of things I had seen.

Mister Magic reminded me a lot of the film Nope, as well as having similar vibes to Stephen King’s IT, particularly considering the theme of childhood friends regrouping to face up to a collective past.

The house the friends return to was deliciously creepy and sinister, and I also really enjoyed the inclusion of fictional blog posts and forum entries that are scattered throughout the book, as it helped to create the illusion of Mister Magic being real.

I did find the pacing of Mister Magic to be a little slow in the middle - although that did add to the dreamlike effect of the story - but it picked back up again at around 80 per cent and the ending was strong. In fact, I was tearing up in the final few pages and have found myself thinking about Mister Magic since I finished it, which is testament to the effect of the finale.

I do think I enjoyed White’s previous book Hide more, but that’s not to say Mister Magic isn’t worth your time if you like trippy, slightly bonkers horror stories with a heavy dose of nostalgia thrown in.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review, and I’ll definitely be interested to read whatever this author publishes next.

I would give this about a 3.7, but I'm rounding up to 4*.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating:4/5
I've wanted to read Kiersten White's books for a while now, but just couldn't get around to it. But Mister Magic caught my attention with the premise and the cover, and it sounded right up my alley. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint! It HOOKED me with it's extremely creepy vibes and I devoured it. I absolutely loved the podcast element as well as the Instagram posts, Wikipedia and other such stuff scattered in the book. I liked the writing style and the setting too. Although you may skip acknowledgements at the end of a book, please do read them for this one..... it's a deeply personal story and the acknowledgments shed a whole new light on the story. The only reason I have it four stars was the last 80%, which felt quite rushed as compared to the rest of the book, which was slow-paced. Nonetheless, it won't be my last read by Kiersten White, and I'm super excited for Dracula & Lucy coming out in 2024!

*Mister Magic* is Kiersten White’s most recent offering from her adult releases. This cryptic, intriguing and surprising story had me curious from both the eerie cover and the sinister synopsis.

I’m going to be very straight to the point here, this is a book about a cult. I love reading about cults, and although I didn’t know that before I started reading this, it became very apparent to me from around the middle of the story. I suppose its because I have a lot of experience reading (and watching as well) things about cults, it is one of my favorite topics. I found it odd that so many people, on so many reviews actually said that they found this book confusing, that they didn’t even understand what the story was about until they read the author’s note at the end. Honestly, I was shocked to read that. This book had me hooked very quickly and I was so curious to know where it would lead and how it would end. If I had to use only one word to describe it it would be: ominous.

I didn’t enjoy White’s adult debut from last year, Hide. For me, that book was incredibly underwhelming on a series of factors, including both the writing, pacing, and just a sort of general apathy I felt towards the story. Nevertheless, I was curious to read her sophomore adult release, because I have followed the author’s releases for many years now and the premise of *Mister Magic* was interesting enough to make me want to pick it up. I was thoroughly surprised.

In this story the narrator, Val, is a thirty-something woman living in a ranch with her father. She has no memories of her childhood, but upon her father’s passing on the day of his funeral, two men come to meet her. They tell her that she was a part of a children’s show many years ago when she was a kid, and that they are doing a special podcast for the 30 year anniversary. Val has no memory of this, in fact, she has no memory of her childhood or the time before she came to live on the ranch. Desperate for answers, she ends up going with the strangers in an attempt to uncover her own past. I was immediately captivated, curious, and so so intrigued to figure out what the heck was going on, what was this Mister Magic thing, and what do you mean doesn’t remember anything? This seemed to tick all of the boxes for maximum creepiness with a touch of horror, and it did not disappoint.

This book is creepy. It has a very subtle yet effective type of horror. First, the whole Mister Magic construction, the mysterious tv show that ended abruptly and no one seems to know why. There are no records of Mister Magic ANYWHERE. Not on the web, not on old newspapers, or archives. It seems to live only on the memories of people who were kids at the time it was airing and they watched it, and their moms. There are several intersections on the story that feature forum chats, blog posts, comments and general online content of people discussing the show. And also discussing the fact that every post they see online about Mister Magic seem to disappear after a while because there is no information online about it, no episodes to be watched, nothing. It almost feels like something part of the Mandela effect. Did all these people just imagine they watched this show? Or was it actually real? This sections of the book made the MM show appear to be so real, same as other books that feature fake-famous personalities, it makes you want to google it just to see if something will come up.

The writing in this book is very simple. It did remind me a bit of White’s style on Hide, but I do feel like this type of writing worked a lot better for the kind of story she was trying to tell with Mister Magic. There is a certain detachment to the story, which makes sense after you read the author’s note, that worked wonderfully in setting the tone of what she was trying to say. I also feel like stories that feature children, especially in creepy scenarios in any capacity, can escalate to be super super disturbing very quickly. There is some of that here, though not in the way I first thought when I read the synopsis. It relates more to the way parents raise their children, and literally the impact that our childhoods have on our adult selves, and our whole personalities and characters for life, that when you think about it for just a second can actually become something very creepy, just because of how much power a certain period of our lives hold upon ourselves.

Some reviews I saw were more reluctant to discuss what this book is about, however from the sheer number of confused people, people who didn’t understand the book, people who only did understand it after reading the author’s note, I feel like discussing this title as a cult book, without going into deeper details, can actually help future readers to access what this book is about before reading it, and then actually decide if they do want to pick it up or not. This book is not a thriller. It is not super scary full of spine chilling sequences (although there was one particular scene where I did in fact got chills, but only one). Its much more a psychological investigation, with characters that are reckoning and coming to terms with stuff that happened during their childhoods and that has deep impact in who they are currently. Although there are some supernatural elements going on, it is also not a supernatural story per se. It’s a story dealing with heavy religious trauma, and also an analogy.

I feel like the author accomplished so much originality here, in taking a different approach to a subject that has a lot of media about. It was an approach that I very much liked, and that ended up being a five-star read, and also a favorite book. I am so happy about that! I was really upset last year for not having enjoyed Hide, and I feel like if the future books of White follow the route and tone she set here on *Mister Magic*, then I will be enjoying her books for a very long time.

Kiersten White has done it again! Their imagination is something truly captivating and I just love the way their brain works! Now I love watching those creepy conspiracy theory videos and there are so many about kids to shows. Now, Kiersten White has managed to drag that whole atmosphere into book format and make you second guess absolutely everything. The reason however that I rated this book 4 stars was because at the end of the novel it did become very predictable and I want a book to surprise me. However, I honestly could not put this book down and highly recommend it to anyone who loves conspiracy theories, creepy stories and twisted friendships.

Kiersten White’s debut adult novel, Hide, was a masterpiece of millennial rage. I was therefore very excited when Mister Magic was announced. Its premise suggested all kinds of possibilities for adults dealing with weird childhoods, in a way many people my age are working through to a lesser extent, and I really hoped White would go to town on this subject material. I wasn’t disappointed!

Mister Magic follows reclusive Val as she rejoins the cast of a cancelled children’s TV show to record a reunion podcast. Val has spent the years since she left the show hiding away on a ranch, completely off-grid, and can’t even remember her time on the show. As she learns more from her fellow cast, who are also strangely hazy on the details, it becomes apparent that there was something very special about Mister Magic.

I can’t be the only one who remembers some weird stuff in children’s TV — including guinea pigs with tails, what was that about, David the Gnome? Where White really hones her harpoon on this one is in the tendency for adults to utilise children’s entertainment media to impose and pass on their own ideological hang-ups. Mister Magic included delightful songs about how to smile even when you don’t feel like it, and to cover up and be modest if you’re a girl. The show purports to create ‘perfect’ children — that is, children who make an easy life for their parents. But as we get to know the adult cast members, we see that this has a severe knock-on effect and leads to a lot of expensive therapy! White’s book is about breaking the chain of settling adult expectations on children, and making that small shift to letting people of whatever age just be themselves.

At this point, it feels like this wouldn’t be a Kiersten White book if that didn’t come with a flavour of weird, and in that respect Mister Magic doesn’t disappoint either. The reader is treated to various interviews and records relating to the cult TV show, which seems to have something of a Mandela Effect about it, all of which add to the questions about what exactly this show is and how it operates. The final reveal and showdown are very satisfying, but also come with a hard emotional punch to the gut.

Mister Magic is a great, weird, painful book with a laser focus on its message, but without being preachy. It speaks to what we might think is a very particular experience, but when that I suspect will speak to many of us thirty- and forty-somethings. If you enjoyed Hide, you will LOVE Mister Magic.

Mister Magic by Kiersten White is out on the 1st August, 2023, and can be pre-ordered here.

With thanks to the publishers and Netgalley.co.uk for providing an e-advanced review copy.

I ended up really enjoying Mister Magic by Kiersten White.
I really enjoyed Hide so I was really excited to read this one.

I actually enjoyed this one more then Hide!
Mister Magic was a fun and easy read that I finished really quick as I couldn't put it down!

I highly recommend this book!
Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for my ARC!

I really enjoyed this book! It had some serious nostalgia factor - I got giddy at the mention of Bunicula - and was, as promised, spooky. The characters are vibrant and dynamic - Javi broke my heart, they all did really. While I wasn't wild about how it ties up, it's a logical, well done conclusion.

The kids deserve better, and I'm glad they have it now!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kierston White and Penguin for allowing me to read an arc of this book.

Val has lived a secluded life in a ranch with her Dad, always knowing that she has a sinister past, but one which they must never speak of, but having those memories tightly secured behind a locked door that even val can’t reach. Val and her Dad are hiding, but she doesn’t know from what or why.
I found the idea of not being able to trust your own memories absolutely terrifying, and having this overwhelming sense that you have caused an accident and have put people in danger, then having to live your life isolated incredibly tense to read about. The fear and self doubt shines through in this book and creates a very eerie atmosphere.
I loved that Val immediately knew on sight that she knows the people that have found her, and that she chose to trust them.
I enjoyed the supporting characters, they had a nice mix of humour and the relationship they all shared was interesting to follow. I didn’t know who to trust, and was suspicious of more than a few of the circle of friends which kept me engaged in the story and wanting to find out what lengths people would go to to make Val atone for ruining the show.
I like the town that the friends end up in, it felt very much like The Truman Show and The Stepford Wives, which is just sinister in itself, but the fact that the town is home to a cult made it creepy to read.
I liked the style of writing, going back and forth to different points in time, and following message threads online. Talking about an old kids tv show gave it a very nostalgic feel, and reminded me of a lot of the creepy shows I watched when I was young.
It’s very fast paced, and the showdown at the end happens very quickly. It’s wrapped up in the last 10% and we get a brief epilogue, but I felt like it was enough to resolve the story.
It certainly has some horror elements that gave me chills, but it’s very much a mystery thriller book.

After reading and enjoying ‘Hide’ last year, I was eagerly anticipating this release. It did not disappoint. The premise and cover added to the anticipation and the prologue had me hooked from the start!
Dealing with unsettling issues of nostalgia and existential dilemmas, this book will leave you wondering who and what you can trust (even your own memories)
This takes the Mandela effect to an extreme level. The inclusion of mixed media elements really added to the intrigue and the atmosphere was suitably creepy.
I would urge readers to discover as little as possible before starting this book and be aware that you may finish with more questions than when you started. On this note I would strongly recommend reading the author’s acknowledgments which provide a deeper understanding of the subtext.
Thank you to the author, Random House Uk, Cornerstone and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this unique and intriguing book.

What a creepy, unnerving and unsettling read (in the best way). The premise for this book interested me right away, it’s a clever play on the Mandela Effect and confusion of childhood and lost memories. The unreliable narrator(s) only added to the confusion and unsettling aspect of the story. White was able to capture the misplaced innocence of childhood and twisted, repressed memories that surface as we get older. And the horror aspect was so much fun, so creative and a little icky at parts! A brilliant read with an incredibly creative concept.

I'd loved Kiersten's White's "Hide" last year and now after this book, I know I'll be reading a lot more of her books.

This was initially a bit confusing as we take the journey with Val, whose memories of her childhood seem to be missing. Slowly it's revealed that she is one of the stars of a show called "Mister Magic" that ended three decades ago.

What I loved were the meta reddit posts at the end of the chapters where there are fans of the "show" discussing what could have happened on it. It felt like I was actually down a rabbit hole of comments on a forum or a reddit thread. A great addition plus hilarious at times.

The overall vibe of the book is only mildly creepy but I like how the author explored so many themes in the story. `I think this is more thriller than horror and would definitely recommend it to everyone.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Cornerstone for the e-copy.

‘Your favourite childhood television program feels like a fever dream. You don’t remember it until I start humming the theme song and then - oh, I can see it in your eyes.’
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I adored Hide by Kiersten White, so Mister Magic had a lot to live up to! But boy did it deliver! I flew through this one so fast, every chapter creating a picture in my head of what this magical world was like, how it felt, smelled, even tasted!
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This twisted, wonderfully plotted book gave me everything I wanted it to. We fly between present day, to internet chat boards, emails chains and interview transcripts to learn the tale of Mister Magic and what transpired all those years ago. The world in which Kiersten White has created is so wonderfully painted through her words that the whole book felt like a movie in my mind, and it made me think of the shows I used to watch as a kid, and then start to look at them in a more sinister way…. So thanks for that Kiersten White! Hahaha!! I barely came up for air, I just raced through this so fast, and I implore you to grab a copy! Out in the UK Aug 1st!!
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Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!!

eARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review

I've been reading Kiersten White novels for a while now, and I love how she tries her hand at so many different genres. This was the first one of her adult horror books that I've read and I really enjoyed it.

The book follows Val, a 38 year old woman with no memory of her childhood who's lived her whole life with her father forcing her to hide herself from the world. When he passes away, some people she's never met come by and offer her answers but also more questions. This leads them into their shared history, dimensional travel, facing the decisions of your parents and institutions...and also questioning where the real magic behind children's tv comes from.

I read this book soon after reading Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle, which I actually really enjoyed. Both books were horror stories looking at parental decisions and choices, how it affects children into their adulthood, and both clearly informed by an examination of religious trauma. Now the horror aspects differ massively but I loved reading these back to back, as it really showed the differences in tone between authors and how similar themes can read very differently.

I loved the podcast element, and the multimedia aspects looking at the the memories and history of the show Mister Magic, White has clearly spent plenty of time online (haven't we all?). I could envision the adult characters very clearly and loved examining the various motivations and responses to trauma. I would've loved a fully happy ending but the bittersweet end is probably more true to the themes presented in the story. Incredibly addictive and compelling, perfect part of my Summerween reading
(4.5 stars)

This was my second Kiersten White even though I have all of the books I havent read on my tbr but I'm bad at prioritizing but this was so good I'm so glad I picked it up, I liked that it unnerved me in places, I found it fast paced and finished it within 24 hours

Mister Magic is shaping up to be my top read of 2023. To describe this one was as just a horror novel, undersells the absolute masterpiece offered up here. I had this one spoilt for me by a review I read prior and while normally this would annoy me in this case, I am so glad I knew that going in. It took for me what otherwise could have been a confusing and strange book and turned it into something truly extraordinary. My advice is don’t get too stuck into trying to make sense of it and go along for the ride. The whole book left me (much like the characters) feeling unsettled and made me immediately want to read it again. I love books that play with memory, and this one took that to a whole new level. I read Hide by this author earlier and while I enjoyed it, I wasn’t completely sold. After reading this one, I’d buy anything the author writes without even reading a synopsis. Highly recommend.

Ahhh this book was creepy and fun and I enjoyed the ending even though once you realised what was going on, it was basically inevitable,
I thought this book went on a little bit too long - I think some of it could be trimmed down - but ultimately, a fun time with interesting characters and a very creepy backstory.

Mister Magic was a creepy intriguing read. This is my first read from Kiersten White and boy I was not disappointed.
This novel kept me on the edge of my seat.
The build up to events were created with great suspense and the whole creation was richly created with a great intrigue.
The twists and turns were surprising, overall this book was everything needed in a spooky book.