THE GOLEM'S EYE: Bartimaeus Trilogy #2
Jonathan Stroud
Miramax/Hyperion Books for Children
Fantasy
ISBN: 0786836547
576 pages

• Read an Excerpt
• Author Interview -- July 2006

There can be a certain dread when you pick up a sequel. Oh, sure, you're looking forward to revisiting old friends and following them through a new set of adventures. But you've been burned before. Sometimes you get that doubt in your mind: Will this be as good? Will your friends have changed so much they're unrecognizable? Can the author recapture the magic you felt when you read the first book? Well, if you were a fan of Jonathan Stroud's THE AMULET OF SAMARKAND, you have nothing to fear by picking up the second book in the Bartimaeus trilogy, THE GOLEM'S EYE.

Nathaniel and the devious djinn Bartimaeus are back, bickering as always, in a follow-up that rivals the first book in intensity and action. When we meet up with Nathaniel, he's 14 now, apprenticed to Jessica Whitwell, and the government's current "it boy." His growing reputation as someone who can get things done lands him the responsibility of dealing with the resistance movement's incessant raids. But when his progress in the investigation is hampered and with his standing in the government at stake, Nathaniel is forced to seek additional assistance.

Enter Bartimaeus, Nathaniel's reluctant (and often belligerent) servant. They're not far into their joint investigation when a series of horrible attacks --- committed by a Golem controlled by an unknown wizard --- sends them on a new course. They soon find themselves in Prague in a desperate attempt to uncover the true menace behind the attacks.

While you may be rooting for Nathaniel (who still has some growing up to do), the star of these books continues to be Bartimaeus, whose first person narration will have you laughing one minute and chilled the next. Along with Nathaniel, we also get narration from Kitty's (the resistance movement's leader) point of view, which adds a nice balance and certain amount of sympathy for all sides of the ongoing political debate. Stroud is at his best when he's riding several storylines at once, revealing plots and machinations at just the right speed to keep you interested and wanting more.

If the first book in the trilogy didn't do it, THE GOLEM'S EYE certainly asserts Stroud as a literary force to be reckoned with.

   --- Reviewed by Brian Farrey (Emohawk9000@gmail.com)

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