Audiobook Review: The Magic Circle by Barry Ryerson

Forty years ago, nuclear war devastated vast swathes of the world. Since then, the remaining countries strived to rebuild and grow stronger. Continents formed The Peace Accords, an agreement that cut all contact with each other to prevent such a war from ever happening again.

Three strangers—an art student in Paris, a Russian spy, and a South African programmer—find their lives intertwine as magic returns to Earth. Guided by the mysterious Celestials, they must choose how they use this force in a fight that will determine the fate of every single living thing on the planet.

---

Set in a dystopian future where half the world is uninhabitable, different continents develop technology along different paths. Russia depends heavily on its old military technology, though they are the only superpower left that can launch satellites. The Federation of Africa were left untouched in the devastation and use highly-developed electronic devices such as chips in their scalp that lets them communicate with machines through thought, laser rifles and drones, and haptic shields. The remains of Europe have removed all traces of fossil fuels and computer technology, preferring a mixture of basic electronic devices and biological engineering.

GENRE: LGBTQ+ Young Adult Dystopian

PURCHASE LINK: Amazon

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Barry started his career in music technology; using computers to compose music, edit sounds, and mix recordings. After several years of teaching courses from Level 2 diplomas to full degrees, his health took a tumble, and he had to give up teaching. This meant, though, that he had time to write, something he has taken to with passion. He still can't quite believe he's an author.

He has done a wide variety of random things in his life so far (he has a pilot's licence, performed for 1,500 people at Disneyland Paris, and, technically, is also a ninja) and he sincerely hopes this never stops.

---

Review

I love a good genre mashup, and this book is delightful a mix of dystopian, military thriller and espionage, urban fantasy and romance. I've tagged this as YA due to two of the main characters being about that age and dealing with themes of identity and all that, though this is definitely on the older side, perhaps even closer to NA. There's swearing, and enough of it, just in case that's relevant to others' reading tastes. (I liked it, it made the characters' voices feel natural!)

Anyway, this was very enjoyable! The narration was done by L Spooner (who also did Barry's Middle Grade novel, fantasy adventure The Child of Fire and Earth) and I was really impressed by the variety of accents and voices employed. I'm not great at figuring out accuracy of accents though, but I liked being able to differentiate the characters as I listened to the story unfold — even if I had to take some time to get used to them.

The world is rich and unique. I don't think I've read anything quite like it. I enjoyed the blend of fantasy and sci-fi, and it was also very interesting to see a different set of countries dominate the world as well as the differences in their technologies. And there were many, many surprises!

The only bit that bothered me was how fast the main romance developed, though I could understand that it was to give time for the other important development later on. I was a bit bummed by the ending though, because it too felt like it happened a little too fast. But the LGBTQ+ rep is really good, or at least to me it was as I don't remember reading something similar before.

I highly recommend this for those who are looking for YA/NA books that aren't just your formulaic romantasy, and those who'd like a little bit of everything in their stories. (Yeah, we even get a villain POV. How's that?)

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

---

Indie August Reading Challenge

Why not diversify your reading this month and read along with many others using this bingo card? If you're not sure where to start, you can check out these recommendations on Twitter, my list of recommendations during Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week, this Pinterest board of all the entrants to the Book Bloggers' Novel of the Year Award, this Pinterest board of indie releases for the first half of 2024 — or my books, as I'm a BIPOC woman author with a book published in 2021, a completed trilogy, and an anthology 😉

---

Hi! I'm Marie, a Filipino SFFH author and book reviewer currently based in the UK. I’m the co-author of The Prophecies of Ragnarok, a Norse myth new adult urban fantasy trilogy, and I also have several short stories published in anthologies and literary journals.

You can find more info about me and my books, and also subscribe to my newsletter for more content, here. And if you like what I do, please also consider supporting me on Ko-fi! 🩷 https://ko-fi.com/mariesinadjan

If you fancy a short read, I have a cozy reimagining of the Norse myths about Hel, but it's just under 70 pages and can be read in one sitting. ✨ Plus there's a swag kit coming soon! Includes a "membership card," a bookmark, a sticker, an origami dog, and an exclusive 500-word story 🫶🏼

All things end, and all must die.

But death is not always the end.

When Geiravor Lokisdottir was stripped of her name and cast out of Asgard, torn from her family and the life she had known, she thought she’d lost it all. But in the shadows of Niflheim she discovers the path to her destiny, and what it truly means to be queen.

This is a prequel short story to THE PROPHECIES OF RAGNAROK trilogy by Meri Benson and Marie Sinadjan, and a retelling of the myths involving Hel, the Norse goddess of death and the queen of the underworld.