The Golem’s Eye is the superlative sequel to JonathanStroud’s terrific The Amulet of Samarkand. Nathaniel, once a meremagician-in-training, now a rising star in the government, is faced with

twovexing problems - first, track down a small and persistent group of undergroundrebels threatening the stability of the magician’s government and, moreimportantly, find out who or what is behind a mysterious and destructive seriesof magical attacks now rocking London. Nathaniel must once again call on theservices of the wily djinni Bartimaeus, in all his devious and humorous forms,to unravel the mystery. The sharp-witted shape-shifting djinni returns inStroud’s second volume of the Bartimaeus Trilogy, this time dealing with amysterious attacker that is terrorizing London. Nathaniel (aka John Mandrake),now 14, is apprenticed to Jessica Whitwell (as established at the close of thefirst book), ’one of the four most potent magicians in the government.’ Whenseveral terrorist attacks take place, the ruling party blames the Resistance,the young commoner idealists introduced in the previous title. Nathaniel,rapidly rising through the ranks and serving as assistant to the InternalAffairs minister, Julius Tallow, suspects something larger at work. He onceagain summons Bartimaeus; the djinni’s charge: ’Pursuit and identification ofan unknown enemy of considerable power.’ When it appears that a golem is behindthe attacks, the duo’s mission takes them to Prague to uncover the magic behindthe creature’s appearance. The unlikely team of the ambitious student magicianand the cynical, wise-cracking 5,000 year old djinni makes for a solid andinvolving page-turner. In this outing a new character is thrown into the mix -Kitty, a young leader of the Resistance, whom Nathaniel must find. Kitty aidsMr. Pennyfeather, leader of the Resistance, in the group’s effort to rob thegrave of the legendary magician Gladstone to gain power.  Toss in a dangerous, secretive mission to theenemy City of Prague, a deadly hidden menace that the resistance accidentlyunleashes, and the cold, devious ambitions of an unseen enemy within Londonitself, and even a djinni with the myrid skills of Bartimaeus could findthemselves taxed.  Although the thrill ofdiscovery of Stroud’s magical realm may have worn off slightly, fans of bookone will enjoy revisiting this delectably uneasy bond between boy and djinni. Onceagain, Bartimaeus steals the spotlight. His pages are the most entertaining. Hispointed humor makes for a story worth savoring. This is a must read for people of all ages.

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