Magicians, taken from their families and apprenticed out at a young age, harness these powers by summoning and binding the Demons to do their bidding. Set in a parallel London, where magicians are in government overruling the non-magical commoners, it is Demons (spirits from the Other Place) that actually possess magic. Stroud manages to put a unique spin on a familiar concept. This series is one of those delightfully rare YA novels that is so well crafted and executed that it would be a crime for adults to ignore it. There is little to no overlap between the two in terms of plot or characters. However, to suggest they are in any way the same would be doing Jonathan Stroud a disservice. Given the elements of the story, a young boy magician and the promise of an epic story spanning several books, it’s unsurprising that this, along with every other book of its genre, has been compared to Harry Potter.

If I had to recommend only one book (or trilogy in this case) for you to only ever read, one of the very top contenders would have to be the Bartimaeus series. Then an overriding danger becomes apparent that threatens the whole fabric of society and they must work together to combat it.’ Bartimaeus, despite being bound to Nathaniel, discovers the boy’s real name–a tool he can use to his own advantage. Previously humiliated by a powerful magician called Simon Lovelace in front of his impotent master, Nathanial has spent every waking hour for years cramming knowledge of the highest magic into his head so that he can exact his own special kind of vengeance.īartimaeus is charged to steal a precious and powerful object–the Amulet of Samarkand–from Lovelace’s residence, which the Djinni achieves but not without angering a few old mates on the same astral plane and having to spend the night annoyingly disguised as a bird. Nathanial is after revenge and that makes him dangerous. Summoned from some otherworldly place to do the bidding of a pipsqueak trainee magician called Nathanial, he sets about his given task reluctantly but with aplomb. ‘Bartimaeus is a wisecracking Djinni (pronounced “Jinnee” we’re reliably informed) unlike no other.

The bartimaeus trilogy book 1