The unnamed protagonist is born into a brutal childhood filled with unspeakable cruelties; the Boy only survives through a powerful magic that intervenes moments of need.

When he escapes, a circus troupe welcomes him into their chosen family and the Boy begins to imagine a life beyond survival. He discovers a new, whimsical potential for his magic and eagerly apprentices under the circus’s conjurer—only to realize his gifts far outstrip his mentor’s illusions. As the Boy’s ambition takes control of his magic, he becomes the Magician, but at a cost. Looming is a primal threat, determined to end the Magician, his magic, and all he holds dear, forever.

With the immersive horror of Gerardo Sámano Córdova and the fairytale cadence of Helen Oyeyemi, Tracy Lynne Oliver’s Magician welcomes readers into a spellbinding world of twisted patriarchal darkness and a powerful survival magic that threatens to consume everyone, including its wielder.