Lisa, what was your inspiration for writing THE LAST MAGICIAN?
I’ve had the idea for writing a thief who could see in bullet time (think: The Matrix) for five or six years now, and I’ve been playing with different plots during all that time… but I could never really figure out where the story was set or when. At first, I thought she was going to be a thief living in DC who rode motorcycles to get past the traffic—I even have a couple of early scenes with her pick-pocketing on the Metro. But it never really felt right. Then, one day, my kids were watching Newsies. I’ve always loved that movie. As a dancer and someone raised on old-school musicals, my 13 year old self was completely swept away when that movie came out. Which gave me the idea of setting THE LAST MAGICIAN at the turn of the century. I love time travel stories, and one of the things I love about them is their ability to immerse you into a different time and sweep you away. I wanted THE LAST MAGICIAN to be as immersive and fun (and filled with cute boys in suspenders) as Newsies had been for me once. Once I had the setting, everything else started coming together. I’m not sure that the book is really that much like Newsies, unless you took away the singing and mixed it with SIX OF CROWS.
What is your favorite thing about THE LAST MAGICIAN?
My favorite part about THE LAST MAGICIAN? Probably that it has ALL of my favorite things in it. It’s a great big, sweeping epic of a book with tons of twists and turns. There’s a larger, diverse ensemble cast, and many of those secondary characters stole my heart—I can’t wait to bring some of them more to the forefront in the sequel. I mean time travel, old New York, magical gangs, dangerous secret societies, boys with suspenders and historically accurate guy liner, real historical figures brushing up against my fictional characters, and enough twists and turns to keep everyone guessing—it’s kind of hard to pick just one thing.
What are you working on now?
I’m busy at work writing the sequel. It has a tentative title and I’ve seen a mock up of the cover art, which is AMAZING. I can’t wait to share it with everyone!
ABOUT THE BOOK
The Last Magician
by Lisa Maxwell
Hardcover
Simon Pulse
Released 7/18/2017
Stop the Magician.
Steal the book.
Save the future.
In modern day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives.
Esta is a talented thief, and she’s been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta’s training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1902 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future.
But Old New York is a dangerous world ruled by ruthless gangs and secret societies, a world where the very air crackles with magic. Nothing is as it seems, including the Magician himself. And for Esta to save her future, she may have to betray everyone in the past.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lisa Maxwell is the author of Sweet Unrest, Gathering Deep, and Unhooked. When she’s not writing books, she’s an English professor at a local college. She lives near DC with her very patient husband and two not-so patient boys.—
Have you had a chance to read THE LAST MAGICIAN yet? How have you decided where/when your book will be set? Do you want to feature your secondary characters in future books? Share your thoughts about the interview in the comments!
Happy reading,
Emily, Jocelyn, Anisaa, Sam, Martina, Erin, Susan, Shelly, Kelly, Laura, and Lori Ann
