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The Prestige
In 1878, two young stage magicians clash in the dark during the course of a fraudulent séance. From this moment on, their lives become webs of deceit and revelation as they vie to outwit and expose one another.
Their rivalry will take them to the peaks of their careers, but with terrible consequences. In the course of pursuing each other's ruin, they will deploy all the deception their magicians' craft can command--the highest misdirection and the darkest science.
Blood will be spilled, but it will not be enough. In the end, their legacy will pass on for generations...to descendants who must, for their sanity's sake, untangle the puzzle left to them.
Their rivalry will take them to the peaks of their careers, but with terrible consequences. In the course of pursuing each other's ruin, they will deploy all the deception their magicians' craft can command--the highest misdirection and the darkest science.
Blood will be spilled, but it will not be enough. In the end, their legacy will pass on for generations...to descendants who must, for their sanity's sake, untangle the puzzle left to them.
404 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
About the author
Christopher Priest
411 books972 followersChristopher Priest was born in Cheshire, England. He began writing soon after leaving school and has been a full-time freelance writer since 1968.
He has published eleven novels, four short story collections and a number of other books, including critical works, biographies, novelizations and children’s non-fiction.
He has written drama for radio (BBC Radio 4) and television (Thames TV and HTV). In 2006, The Prestige was made into a major production by Newmarket Films. Directed by Christopher Nolan, The Prestige went straight to No.1 US box office. It received two Academy Award nominations. Other novels, including Fugue For a Darkening Island and The Glamour, are currently in preparation for filming.
He is Vice-President of the H. G. Wells Society. In 2007, an exhibition of installation art based on his novel The Affirmation was mounted in London.
As a journalist he has written features and reviews for The Times, the Guardian, the Independent, the New Statesman, the Scotsman, and many different magazines.
He has published eleven novels, four short story collections and a number of other books, including critical works, biographies, novelizations and children’s non-fiction.
He has written drama for radio (BBC Radio 4) and television (Thames TV and HTV). In 2006, The Prestige was made into a major production by Newmarket Films. Directed by Christopher Nolan, The Prestige went straight to No.1 US box office. It received two Academy Award nominations. Other novels, including Fugue For a Darkening Island and The Glamour, are currently in preparation for filming.
He is Vice-President of the H. G. Wells Society. In 2007, an exhibition of installation art based on his novel The Affirmation was mounted in London.
As a journalist he has written features and reviews for The Times, the Guardian, the Independent, the New Statesman, the Scotsman, and many different magazines.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,461 reviews
May 24, 2022
"My error, at first, was to assume that the sheer brilliance of the effect would be enough to dazzle my audiences. What I was neglecting was one of the oldest axioms of magic, that the miracle of the trick must be made clear by the presentation. Audiences are not easily misled, so the magician must provoke their interest, hold it, then confound every expectation by performing the apparently impossible." - Christopher Priest, The Prestige
The Prestige - Christopher Priest’s highly inventive, masterfully crafted tale written in the grand tradition of Victorian novels of mystery and suspense, specifically Wilkie Collins’ The Woman in White (use of multiple narrators) and Moonstone (epistolary novel).
The language is so well tuned and exact, so vividly clear, many the time turning the pages I felt as if I was launched miraculously back into the streets, flats and performance halls of turn-of-the-century London. So compelling and thrilling, my response to the British author repeats esteemed critic Garry Indiana's words regarding the literary output of Georges Simenon, “I know how he does it, but I have no idea how he can do it.” Christopher Priest - what a marvelous weaver of fictional magic. And speaking of magic, please read on.
True, the novel begins and ends at a country estate in modern-day England where journalist Andrew Westley and Lady Kate Angier, both young and single, take turns narrating as they sit together and move about in Kate’s family mansion, however this is but the frame – the bulk of the narrative consists of the respective diaries of two of their long dead ancestors, Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier, illustrious stage magicians who had been engaged in a bitter, vindictive rivalry protracted over many years, beginning in the late nineteenth century.
The plot is simply too good and contains too many surprises for me to divulge any tantalizing secrets, thus I will shift my observations to a number of the novel’s underlying themes and philosophical enigmas.
Illusion: Counterpoint to nimble skill and dexterity performing sleight of hand and misdirection, concealment and manipulation on stage, Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier are also master illusionists as each pens his diary. Claiming the two magicians are less than reliable narrators is understatement as we are never entirely certain where the illusions start and where they stop, where reality begins and where it ends. Now you read it, now you don’t. And in case you might not catch the shift since it is so easy to miss, there is one short chapter of the novel where Christopher Priest deftly slides into telling the tale in objective third person – a crafty authorial variation on now you read it, now you don’t.
Revenge: Ah, retaliation, vengeance, payback, reprisal - the juice of mountains of fiction and generous helpings of history. But, as both Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier discover the hard way, the aftermath of vengeful words and actions are never nearly as clear-cut and confined as we might conceive. In many cases, the person extracting revenge is completely oblivious to the full range of consequences, sometimes affecting men, women and children over a number of generations.
Secrecy: An enormous part of a stage magician’s art is secrecy - how the trick is performed. Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier extend their secrecy to nearly all aspects of their personal and professional lives. Of course, the more secrets one has, more the possibility of being discovered. But while a secret remains a secret, the magician maintains a power, an advantage over his audience if stage magic; over his family and associates if his secret pertains to his personal life. The ultimate disgrace for a stage magician – having the secret of his trick revealed publicly during a performance. Of course, this is exactly the practice of both Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier.
Twins: Just think of the power a magician would possess if he had an identical twin he kept secret. All the jaw dropping feats of stage magic he could perform – I’m over here on this side of the stage, presto, in an instant, I’m over there on that side of the stage. Such secrecy and magic might qualify as the ultimate illusion. One could stake a career on such an astounding trick. However, two people going through life pretending they are one and the same person will undoubtedly alter a sense of one’s individual identity, one of the prime hallmarks of what it means to be human. Or, will it? Can a master of illusion pull it off successfully? Many the author captivated by the idea and possibilities of twins, my personal favorite: Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors featuring not one but two sets of twins.
Identity of the Self: Robert Nozick has a thought experiment where, after an accident, half of one person’s brain (along with memory) is transferred to a second person’s body. Both Tim, the giver, and Tom, the receiver, live after the operation and both Tim and Tom claim to be Tim. Are they both right? The next day Tim dies and Tom is now the only person claiming to be Tim. Does Tom (now Tim) assume the old Tim’s rights and obligations, including the right to live with Tim’s wife and kids? The ancient world knew such a dilemma of identity with the ship of Theseus: the planks and other parts of the ship are all replaced over time. After the last old plank is removed and replaced, is it the same ship or a different ship? What if less than half of the ship is replaced? What if more than half is replaced? The variations are endless. The Prestige hurls a few crazy twists into the mix.
Electricity: The end of the nineteenth century, the heyday as stage performers for the novel’s two magicians, was also the heyday for inventors such as Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla. In 1879 electric lights were first used for public street lighting. The possibilities and power of electricity captured the public’s imagination. And if a performer could include the sizzling, popping currents of this newly found power into their act– what a show!
Jolt of the Weird: Although a Victorian thriller in the tradition of Wilkie Collins, please keep in mind Christopher Priest has been strongly influenced by H. G. Wells. Similar to his science fiction novel Inverted World where events move along at a measured pace until the jolt of the weird, The Prestige has its own weird jolt which leads to a series of even weirder jolts. One of the most fascinating and astonishing last parts of any novel you will ever read. If you are stirred to consider The Prestige, I’m accomplished my own bit of magic as a reviewer.
*Special thanks to Wastrel and Kevin for suggesting I make The Prestige my next Christopher Priest novel.
**There is a absolutely first rate audio book available where Simon Vance reads The Prestige.
“The magician takes the ordinary something and makes it do something extraordinary. Now you're looking for the secret... but you wont find it, because of course you're not really looking. You don't really want to know. You want to be fooled.”
― Christopher Priest, The Prestige
November 16, 2021
First published in 1995, I had heard of this book some years ago, but never managed to read it until now, plus there is a 2006 movie version which I haven’t seen, but which many reviewers seem to prefer.
So what is the basic story?
Two magicians in Victorian London first clash in 1878, during a fraudulent seance, and from that moment on, their lives are directed by their mutual antagonism. One, Rupert Angier, is a master showman, a brilliant stage-worker who can captivate his audiences; the other is far less competent at holding his audience, but he does have some ability. But when he designs a new, thrilling trick, Alfred Borden makes Angier so jealous, that he is prepared to risk all to learn the truth of the trick.
That, in essence, is the storyline. The book is good, the cruelty of jealousy and revenge over the years make it really poignant.
So what is the basic story?
Two magicians in Victorian London first clash in 1878, during a fraudulent seance, and from that moment on, their lives are directed by their mutual antagonism. One, Rupert Angier, is a master showman, a brilliant stage-worker who can captivate his audiences; the other is far less competent at holding his audience, but he does have some ability. But when he designs a new, thrilling trick, Alfred Borden makes Angier so jealous, that he is prepared to risk all to learn the truth of the trick.
That, in essence, is the storyline. The book is good, the cruelty of jealousy and revenge over the years make it really poignant.
April 25, 2024
The Prestige is a novel by Christopher Priest, which was first published in 1995. It is a very imaginative and skilful novel about illusionists: two stage magicians in late 1800s England, who are deadly rivals, involved in a sustained and ongoing feud. They are mutually antagonistic throughout their lives and careers. The title comes from the idea that stage illusions have three parts: the setup, the performance, and the “prestige”, or effect. The novel is suggestive of the supernatural, and has decidedly gothic overtones; ostensibly about the world of 19th-century stage magic, but altogether a stranger tale, exploring a fantastic world of disappearances and doubles.
From near the beginning of the novel:
“I remember someone once saying that the trouble with magic was that the more a magician protects his secrets, the more banal they turn out to be.”
“What will seem new or baffling to an audience is simply a technical challenge for other professionals.”
Christopher Priest, in an interview about The Prestige, said:
“I’ve always been interested in misdirecting my readers in my novels, and magicians use techniques of misdirection that are similar. This isn’t sleight of hand: real misdirection is when the performer allows or encourages his audience to make assumptions about what they are seeing … or in my case, assumptions about what they are reading.”
It is a complex tale, which must have been extremely difficult to tell in exactly the right sequence, while still maintaining momentum. Reading The Prestige, one wonders if in the end everything will turn out to be one big confidence trick, on the part of the author. The plot is full of twists and turns, obsessive secrecy and duplicity. The setting Christopher Priest has chosen is inspired. All theatrical conjuring tricks rely on misdirection: subtly making the audience look in one direction whilst some devious trick is played in another. But the most successful of all, do not fool the audience so much as encourage them to fool themselves.
The novel has five sections, each told from a different viewpoint. These multiple viewpoints means that much is inconsistent, or unreliable, and misunderstandings abound. It is partly epistolary, using diaries which were kept by the main protagonists.
It begins in the present day, with Andrew Westley’s account. He had been adopted at the age of three, his biological family being the Borden family. All his life, he had felt an unfathomable “pyschic contact”; a feeling of rapport with some “other” presence. On the second page we read:
“I am certain, or to be accurate almost certain, that I was born one of a pair of identical twins, and that my brother and I were separated at the time of adoption. I have no idea why this was done, nor where my brother night be now, but I have always assumed he was adopted at the same time as me … All my life, as long as I can remember, I have had the feeling that someone else is sharing my life.”
Yet despite this feeling, all the official records indicated that Andrew Westley was an only child. Now he works as a struggling journalist, writing stories on mysterious happenings such as UFO appearances and witches’ covens. Receiving a book in the post, entitled “The Famous Oath-Protected Book of Secrets”, published in 1905, he was intrigued by the blurb on the back. These were the memoirs of Alfred Borden, whose stage name was “Le Professeur de Magie”. Clearly this had to have been a distant blood relative; possibly even a direct ancestor.
His current assignment was to research a story of the leader of a religious cult, who allegedly bilocated, having been reported as being in two places at the same time. Andrew duly followed this up, but when he arrived at the location of the church, his contact, Kate (actually Lady Katherine) Angier, revealed that the story was mostly fabricated. The true reason she had brought him there, was to try to work out the secrets of their families’ pasts. Both of them were descendants of famous stage magicians in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Andrew was the great-grandson of Alfred Borden and Kate was the great-grand-daughter of Rupert Angier. These two magicians were well-known to be in a lifelong feud, and moreover, had a rivalry that had lasted all the way to the current generation.
The second section is the memoir, or journal, of Alfred Borden. He describes a series of techniques and illusions which are commonly practiced by magicians, and also how his own life and career have progressed up to this point, as well as personal aspects of his life. He relates his feud with Rupert Angier, and we learn how it began.
“An illusion has three stages.
“First there is the setup, in which the nature of what might be attempted at is hinted at, or suggested, or explained. The apparatus is seen. Volunteers from the audience sometimes participate in preparation. As the trick is being setup, the magician will make use of every possible use of misdirection.
“The performance is where the magician’s lifetime of practice, and his innate skill as a performer, co-join to produce the magical display.
“The third stage is sometimes called the effect, or the prestige, and this is the product of magic. If a rabbit is pulled from a hat, the rabbit, which apparently did not exist before the trick was performed, can be said to be the prestige of that trick.”
Alfred Borden eventually married and had children.
In the middle section of the novel Kate Angier takes up the pen, to describe a traumatic experience she had had in her early childhood.
The fourth section is a recreation of Rupert Angier’s diary. We know some of these events already, from Borden’s memoir, but now we see them from a different perspective. Angier expresses a lot of regret that the feud should have got so out of hand. The reader can now see, reading both journals, that and the entire feud may have been fired by misinterpretation on one side or other. It is perhaps at the point, if not before, that the reader wonders just who is being tricked here.
Angier returned to London and began performing his new trick.
In the final, fifth section, called “The Prestiges”, we are back in the present day.
There was an excellent film made of this novel in 2006, which was directed by Christopher Nolan. Often, regular readers will maintain that the original book has far more depth than a film, but this is a rare case which divides opinion.
The film differs in several respects. It is far more streamlined, with a more straightforward and direct plot. Some will say that this means an increase in suspense and mystery. Others, precisely the opposite, because the tension has not been allowed to build up slowly.
The structure is very different. For instance the frame story of Andrew and Kate is missed out completely in the film. I personally was a little sad at this, as I found the device of a sort within a story an authentic style, much favoured by Victorians, and it served to highlight the differences in the way the present day characters spoke, behaved and were motivated. The Borden and Angier of the film were modern in their speech, but the novel’s Borden and Angier, were typical Victorian gentlemen in all aspects. The expressions they use, and the way they write about their lives is quite formal.
The main twist was also made clear to the audience from very early on, whereas in the novel, although the facts are there, the reader’s notice is not drawn to them. Rather, the author behaves much as an illusionist, and deliberately obscures them. If you are the sort of reader who likes to guess “whodunnit” early on in a murder mystery, and watch how it pans out, then you will prefer the film. If you prefer to be baffled and intrigued, then you might prefer the book.
Transferring to another medium means inevitably that some elements are lost. But this cuts both ways. For example, the book cannot incorporate the stunning visuals of the film. Instead, we have a very clever writing style, with multiple viewpoints. We have a modern viewpoint in Andrew, followed by Alfred Borden’s account of his life, which in itself is partly disguised. Then we have Kate’s nightmarish memories, followed by the aristocratic Victorian gentleman Robert Angier’s account of the events. These different voices, times and perspectives are fascinating. We have some of the same events, but with a different “villain” in each. Parts are repeated, yet it seems as if it is a different situation because of the interpretations, and each section serves to move the action on a little. In the film of course, the two characters’ lives are presented together as one story.
The film does jump backwards and forwards in time while moving the narrative forward. Two diaries are included, as Borden reads Angier’s diary, and in it are passages about Angier reading Borden’s. This is quite a clever device, and probably as near a film can get to the original structure as possible.
Even the focus of the story: the mystery of the trick “The Transported Man” has changed. The frame story has its own mystery, which is resolved in a way in the end. What is the psychic element? Is it truly supernatural, or is there a rational explanation? There is much surface trickery, and sleight of hand by the author. The novel is packed with historical detail, and actual magicians from that period are included, such as David Devant, John Henry Anderson, Nevil Maskelyne, and so on. Nikola Tesla too, of course is real, and not only significant but a key character in the novel. There are brief mentions of other people who really existed. A “Robert Noonan”, appears near the beginning, a painter and decorator. This was the real name of Robert Tressell, an Irish writer best known for his novel “The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists”. He also lived in Hastings, where his namesake, the fictional Robert Noonan lived. Such is the detail this book is steeped in.
When asked what made him write The Prestige, Christopher Priest said:
“I was thinking of writing a thematic sequel to my novel “The Glamour” (1984), and thought that “prestige” had a lot of possibilities. However, when I noticed its closeness to the magicians’ word “prestidigitation”, I realised it would make a perfect title for the book I was then planning. This sort of coincidence is always valuable to a novelist.”
It is a dark but mesmerising story; about two men who become consumed and eventually destroyed by obsession. Full of twists, turns and revelations, it is part gothic mystery, supernatural ghost story, and historical novel, with elements of horror, fantasy and science fiction. Christopher Priest never writes mainstream novels and this is no exception. It is an intelligent and thoughtful exploration into the nature of illusion and secrecy, and about the damage done to those who keep such dangerous secrets.
From near the beginning of the novel:
“I remember someone once saying that the trouble with magic was that the more a magician protects his secrets, the more banal they turn out to be.”
“What will seem new or baffling to an audience is simply a technical challenge for other professionals.”
Christopher Priest, in an interview about The Prestige, said:
“I’ve always been interested in misdirecting my readers in my novels, and magicians use techniques of misdirection that are similar. This isn’t sleight of hand: real misdirection is when the performer allows or encourages his audience to make assumptions about what they are seeing … or in my case, assumptions about what they are reading.”
It is a complex tale, which must have been extremely difficult to tell in exactly the right sequence, while still maintaining momentum. Reading The Prestige, one wonders if in the end everything will turn out to be one big confidence trick, on the part of the author. The plot is full of twists and turns, obsessive secrecy and duplicity. The setting Christopher Priest has chosen is inspired. All theatrical conjuring tricks rely on misdirection: subtly making the audience look in one direction whilst some devious trick is played in another. But the most successful of all, do not fool the audience so much as encourage them to fool themselves.
The novel has five sections, each told from a different viewpoint. These multiple viewpoints means that much is inconsistent, or unreliable, and misunderstandings abound. It is partly epistolary, using diaries which were kept by the main protagonists.
It begins in the present day, with Andrew Westley’s account. He had been adopted at the age of three, his biological family being the Borden family. All his life, he had felt an unfathomable “pyschic contact”; a feeling of rapport with some “other” presence. On the second page we read:
“I am certain, or to be accurate almost certain, that I was born one of a pair of identical twins, and that my brother and I were separated at the time of adoption. I have no idea why this was done, nor where my brother night be now, but I have always assumed he was adopted at the same time as me … All my life, as long as I can remember, I have had the feeling that someone else is sharing my life.”
Yet despite this feeling, all the official records indicated that Andrew Westley was an only child. Now he works as a struggling journalist, writing stories on mysterious happenings such as UFO appearances and witches’ covens. Receiving a book in the post, entitled “The Famous Oath-Protected Book of Secrets”, published in 1905, he was intrigued by the blurb on the back. These were the memoirs of Alfred Borden, whose stage name was “Le Professeur de Magie”. Clearly this had to have been a distant blood relative; possibly even a direct ancestor.
His current assignment was to research a story of the leader of a religious cult, who allegedly bilocated, having been reported as being in two places at the same time. Andrew duly followed this up, but when he arrived at the location of the church, his contact, Kate (actually Lady Katherine) Angier, revealed that the story was mostly fabricated. The true reason she had brought him there, was to try to work out the secrets of their families’ pasts. Both of them were descendants of famous stage magicians in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Andrew was the great-grandson of Alfred Borden and Kate was the great-grand-daughter of Rupert Angier. These two magicians were well-known to be in a lifelong feud, and moreover, had a rivalry that had lasted all the way to the current generation.
The second section is the memoir, or journal, of Alfred Borden. He describes a series of techniques and illusions which are commonly practiced by magicians, and also how his own life and career have progressed up to this point, as well as personal aspects of his life. He relates his feud with Rupert Angier, and we learn how it began.
“An illusion has three stages.
“First there is the setup, in which the nature of what might be attempted at is hinted at, or suggested, or explained. The apparatus is seen. Volunteers from the audience sometimes participate in preparation. As the trick is being setup, the magician will make use of every possible use of misdirection.
“The performance is where the magician’s lifetime of practice, and his innate skill as a performer, co-join to produce the magical display.
“The third stage is sometimes called the effect, or the prestige, and this is the product of magic. If a rabbit is pulled from a hat, the rabbit, which apparently did not exist before the trick was performed, can be said to be the prestige of that trick.”
Alfred Borden eventually married and had children.
In the middle section of the novel Kate Angier takes up the pen, to describe a traumatic experience she had had in her early childhood.
The fourth section is a recreation of Rupert Angier’s diary. We know some of these events already, from Borden’s memoir, but now we see them from a different perspective. Angier expresses a lot of regret that the feud should have got so out of hand. The reader can now see, reading both journals, that and the entire feud may have been fired by misinterpretation on one side or other. It is perhaps at the point, if not before, that the reader wonders just who is being tricked here.
Angier returned to London and began performing his new trick.
In the final, fifth section, called “The Prestiges”, we are back in the present day.
There was an excellent film made of this novel in 2006, which was directed by Christopher Nolan. Often, regular readers will maintain that the original book has far more depth than a film, but this is a rare case which divides opinion.
The film differs in several respects. It is far more streamlined, with a more straightforward and direct plot. Some will say that this means an increase in suspense and mystery. Others, precisely the opposite, because the tension has not been allowed to build up slowly.
The structure is very different. For instance the frame story of Andrew and Kate is missed out completely in the film. I personally was a little sad at this, as I found the device of a sort within a story an authentic style, much favoured by Victorians, and it served to highlight the differences in the way the present day characters spoke, behaved and were motivated. The Borden and Angier of the film were modern in their speech, but the novel’s Borden and Angier, were typical Victorian gentlemen in all aspects. The expressions they use, and the way they write about their lives is quite formal.
The main twist was also made clear to the audience from very early on, whereas in the novel, although the facts are there, the reader’s notice is not drawn to them. Rather, the author behaves much as an illusionist, and deliberately obscures them. If you are the sort of reader who likes to guess “whodunnit” early on in a murder mystery, and watch how it pans out, then you will prefer the film. If you prefer to be baffled and intrigued, then you might prefer the book.
Transferring to another medium means inevitably that some elements are lost. But this cuts both ways. For example, the book cannot incorporate the stunning visuals of the film. Instead, we have a very clever writing style, with multiple viewpoints. We have a modern viewpoint in Andrew, followed by Alfred Borden’s account of his life, which in itself is partly disguised. Then we have Kate’s nightmarish memories, followed by the aristocratic Victorian gentleman Robert Angier’s account of the events. These different voices, times and perspectives are fascinating. We have some of the same events, but with a different “villain” in each. Parts are repeated, yet it seems as if it is a different situation because of the interpretations, and each section serves to move the action on a little. In the film of course, the two characters’ lives are presented together as one story.
The film does jump backwards and forwards in time while moving the narrative forward. Two diaries are included, as Borden reads Angier’s diary, and in it are passages about Angier reading Borden’s. This is quite a clever device, and probably as near a film can get to the original structure as possible.
Even the focus of the story: the mystery of the trick “The Transported Man” has changed. The frame story has its own mystery, which is resolved in a way in the end. What is the psychic element? Is it truly supernatural, or is there a rational explanation? There is much surface trickery, and sleight of hand by the author. The novel is packed with historical detail, and actual magicians from that period are included, such as David Devant, John Henry Anderson, Nevil Maskelyne, and so on. Nikola Tesla too, of course is real, and not only significant but a key character in the novel. There are brief mentions of other people who really existed. A “Robert Noonan”, appears near the beginning, a painter and decorator. This was the real name of Robert Tressell, an Irish writer best known for his novel “The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists”. He also lived in Hastings, where his namesake, the fictional Robert Noonan lived. Such is the detail this book is steeped in.
When asked what made him write The Prestige, Christopher Priest said:
“I was thinking of writing a thematic sequel to my novel “The Glamour” (1984), and thought that “prestige” had a lot of possibilities. However, when I noticed its closeness to the magicians’ word “prestidigitation”, I realised it would make a perfect title for the book I was then planning. This sort of coincidence is always valuable to a novelist.”
It is a dark but mesmerising story; about two men who become consumed and eventually destroyed by obsession. Full of twists, turns and revelations, it is part gothic mystery, supernatural ghost story, and historical novel, with elements of horror, fantasy and science fiction. Christopher Priest never writes mainstream novels and this is no exception. It is an intelligent and thoughtful exploration into the nature of illusion and secrecy, and about the damage done to those who keep such dangerous secrets.
February 10, 2017
Really amazing. I thought I knew the real story based on the movie, but I was WRONG.
I love the epistolary nature of the novel and how the story stretches through time, but my favorite bits were all between the two warring illusionists. I can't believe how far the two of them went to prolong their feud of pranks. It was kinda great seeing two professionals unwilling to harm their craft still work around all the little niceties to get at one another.
And then while I still remembered the whole Tesla sequence from the movie, the book takes it so much farther. I loved it. I really loved it. It turned a mystery and a rivalry story into true science fiction of the highest caliber. :)
Surprise! Sheesh. I want to just spoil it. It's so tempting. But no. No hints about things that should only belong in space opera tales or popular episodic federation stuff. No beam-me-up Scotty references or out of time or out of phase memes. I refuse to give away the really good stuff in the novel.
And it's really good. :) Great characters, great mystery, and great Prestige: the final result of the magic trick. :)
I love the epistolary nature of the novel and how the story stretches through time, but my favorite bits were all between the two warring illusionists. I can't believe how far the two of them went to prolong their feud of pranks. It was kinda great seeing two professionals unwilling to harm their craft still work around all the little niceties to get at one another.
And then while I still remembered the whole Tesla sequence from the movie, the book takes it so much farther. I loved it. I really loved it. It turned a mystery and a rivalry story into true science fiction of the highest caliber. :)
Surprise! Sheesh. I want to just spoil it. It's so tempting. But no. No hints about things that should only belong in space opera tales or popular episodic federation stuff. No beam-me-up Scotty references or out of time or out of phase memes. I refuse to give away the really good stuff in the novel.
And it's really good. :) Great characters, great mystery, and great Prestige: the final result of the magic trick. :)
March 21, 2022
"The very act of describing my secrets might indeed be construed as a betrayal of myself, except of course that as I am an illusionist I can make sure you only see what I wish you to see. A puzzle is implicitly involved."
Four magical stars for a book of “acquiescent sorcery” as the reader is plunged into the deviously powerful and enchanting world of magic and illusion, mixed with the dark and profane jealousy that dangerously consumes two of the most prominent magicians of their time. This is the story of Rupert Angier and Alfred Borden. The illusionists, the magicians, and the great pretenders.
The Plot
The story begins and ends in modern day England but for most of the book we are transported back to Victorian England with its gas lit cobbled streets and to an era obsessed with the ‘theatrical’ and magic. A book that is told through two journals; one a memoir and the other a series of journal entries relaying the events, secrets, and lives of two men obsessed with their art as an accretive and perpetuating resentment promises mutually assured destruction.
Many of the magic and secrets are revealed through the book but none better than the extraordinary illusion of the transported man, drawing on the invention and introduction of electricity which was just being introduced at that time.
As bitter rivals, the two magicians are aware that there is only one fear worse than having your secrets revealed during their stage performance and that is someone sabotaging your tricks and performances just at the point the audience is enraptured. And this dear reader became their passion. The other must fail and only one can be remembered for creating the transported man!!!
Review and Comments
When I saw the format of the book and the matter of fact writing style, I was preparing myself for disliking the story until I didn’t and realised as a reader I was also being manipulated by the author.
First of all with the structure of the book. The story is crafted in such a way that it raises many questions a long time before answering leaving us searching and waiting for the answers which also helps create the perception that we as readers are also being deceived and manipulated. After a brief bumpy start I was intrigued.
Secondly, the characters. The book affords itself a lot of time to get into the heads and psyche of the two rivals. Portraying both flawed, devious, and bitter, yet the magic happens again, and we see completely human and likeable protagonists. A magical touch.
Thirdly the tension, The gradual and timely release of new information was perfect in setting the tone of the novel which added to the heightened tension and thrill that started from the first pages.
And finally, the plot. Well the ending reveals one of the best twists I have read and takes the concept of the transported man to whole new level. Then again, I did say this book was magic.
It does not matter whether you have read the book or watched the film first, in my opinion. With each we are treated to a very different experience. The book is deeper, and we get inside the mind and psyche of the characters. However, the film creates the visual of the stage acts that the book cannot capture in the same way although the vivid descriptions in this book are excellent.
High praise for an author who takes the ordinary world of magic and creates an extraordinary tale, with the perfect setting of Victorian England and with deeply drawn and flawed characters involved in one of the most cunning and devious plots. Simply magic.
Four magical stars for a book of “acquiescent sorcery” as the reader is plunged into the deviously powerful and enchanting world of magic and illusion, mixed with the dark and profane jealousy that dangerously consumes two of the most prominent magicians of their time. This is the story of Rupert Angier and Alfred Borden. The illusionists, the magicians, and the great pretenders.
The Plot
The story begins and ends in modern day England but for most of the book we are transported back to Victorian England with its gas lit cobbled streets and to an era obsessed with the ‘theatrical’ and magic. A book that is told through two journals; one a memoir and the other a series of journal entries relaying the events, secrets, and lives of two men obsessed with their art as an accretive and perpetuating resentment promises mutually assured destruction.
Many of the magic and secrets are revealed through the book but none better than the extraordinary illusion of the transported man, drawing on the invention and introduction of electricity which was just being introduced at that time.
As bitter rivals, the two magicians are aware that there is only one fear worse than having your secrets revealed during their stage performance and that is someone sabotaging your tricks and performances just at the point the audience is enraptured. And this dear reader became their passion. The other must fail and only one can be remembered for creating the transported man!!!
Review and Comments
When I saw the format of the book and the matter of fact writing style, I was preparing myself for disliking the story until I didn’t and realised as a reader I was also being manipulated by the author.
First of all with the structure of the book. The story is crafted in such a way that it raises many questions a long time before answering leaving us searching and waiting for the answers which also helps create the perception that we as readers are also being deceived and manipulated. After a brief bumpy start I was intrigued.
Secondly, the characters. The book affords itself a lot of time to get into the heads and psyche of the two rivals. Portraying both flawed, devious, and bitter, yet the magic happens again, and we see completely human and likeable protagonists. A magical touch.
Thirdly the tension, The gradual and timely release of new information was perfect in setting the tone of the novel which added to the heightened tension and thrill that started from the first pages.
And finally, the plot. Well the ending reveals one of the best twists I have read and takes the concept of the transported man to whole new level. Then again, I did say this book was magic.
It does not matter whether you have read the book or watched the film first, in my opinion. With each we are treated to a very different experience. The book is deeper, and we get inside the mind and psyche of the characters. However, the film creates the visual of the stage acts that the book cannot capture in the same way although the vivid descriptions in this book are excellent.
High praise for an author who takes the ordinary world of magic and creates an extraordinary tale, with the perfect setting of Victorian England and with deeply drawn and flawed characters involved in one of the most cunning and devious plots. Simply magic.
August 6, 2012
"An illusion has three stages.
"First there is the setup, in which the nature of what might be attempted at is hinted at, or suggested, or explained. The apparatus is seen. volunteers from the audience sometimes participate in preparation. As the trick is being setup, the magician will make use of every possible use of misdirection.
"The performance is where the magician's lifetime of practice, and his innate skill as a performer, cojoin to produce the magical display.
"The third stage is sometimes called the effect, or the prestige, and this is the product of magic. If a rabbit is pulled from a hat, the rabbit, which apparently did not exist before the trick was performed, can be said to be the prestige of that trick."
The Setup
A four and a half to five star book that began as a five star book, dropped partway to a four star read and then rose again to a five star enjoyable finish. Now before I begin my proper review I have a disclaimer that the review you see here is due in part because I made a vow I would read this before (what is bound to be) an excellent film by Christopher Nolan.
I must now draw your attention ladies and gentleman to the apparatus of my next paragraph in which I will perform wonders most miraculous...
The Performance
I found the writing to be of top quality and in a slightly unusual style reminiscent of Mary Shelley's flowery use of language merged with Bram Stoker's quirky use of different perspectives. It is a book that when I read it I began to say from the start that the writing was exceptional.
There are several thematic elements and multiple subplots which were properly explored to fully explain and sustain the intrigue of the book. That said the book does end on a very mysterious note but I shall leave you to observe that magic for yourselves. I rather enjoyed reading the perspective of Alfred Borden and then switching to his rival Rupert Angier's perspective in order to observe the full picture and understand both mysterious secrets of the illusions they perfect in order to outplay the other at conjuring. In many ways this is a novel about secrets - secrets kept in order to preserve the magic of illusions and how those secrets affect the magician's lives. It is also the tale of an illusionist's war, a war in which both magicians attempt to reveal the secrets of each other's magic to the observing audiences and hence win the battle. I would say that this novel is one which is deeper than it appears and cannot help wondering if perhaps in the distant future it will be named as a classic because I believe it would prove capable of doing so if the popularity of Christopher Nolan's film does not destroy this intriguing version.
The Prestige
And now you see that I have completed a magical trick of such proportions that you cannot grasp its magnitude. Ah but I will not tell you how it works you see because I - like all true magicians - must carry out living the secret of my grand illusion to ensure no one knows how I perform such a trick. The magic is such that I suddenly have before you, where there was nothing, a fully completed review with a magical five star rating at the top. If that is not enough to convince you to give this a read then no other illusion will persuade you.
(exits in a flash of smoke and falling curtains)
End note: You know how there are times when you read a book and you go away and forget about it now matter how good the book was? Well I think a good book grabs you, becomes part of you and refuses to let go. And then when you encounter something with the similar subject matter you remember the book all over again. That is what this work is for me - a book that grabbed me. Now every time I see a magic trick I think of the various stages of performing that trick...
April 7, 2022
پرستیژ فیلمی بود که 16 سال پیش منو شدیداً جذب سینما کرد و چندین و چندبار دیدمش و هنوزم جز فیلمهای مورد علاقمه
ولی از کتاب زیاد راضی نبودم و به نظرم فیلم خیلی تأثیرگذارتر از ایده استفاده کرده بود و روایت، فضاسازی و شخصیتپردازی به مراتب بهتر از کار در امده بودن
شاید تنها برتری کتاب پیش زمینهای هست که برای شخصیتها وجود داره
خلاصه که با توجه به شور و شوقم، یکم ناامیدکننده بود
ولی از کتاب زیاد راضی نبودم و به نظرم فیلم خیلی تأثیرگذارتر از ایده استفاده کرده بود و روایت، فضاسازی و شخصیتپردازی به مراتب بهتر از کار در امده بودن
شاید تنها برتری کتاب پیش زمینهای هست که برای شخصیتها وجود داره
خلاصه که با توجه به شور و شوقم، یکم ناامیدکننده بود
April 12, 2024
A winding, unique epistolary story about a rivalry between magicians. At times I was confused by which narrator was speaking, while the twists rely heavily on a suspension of disbelief
The central rule of magic always holds good: what is seen is not what is actually being done
An engaging and unique read, focussing on the art of performing magic as much as on the dangers of ego and competition
The start of The Prestige is intriguing, if somewhat garbled, with a journalist, assigned to paranormal sightings visiting a sect and pondering a book giving him more clues to his adoption.
Also he believes he get psychic messages from a non-existent brother.
This modern day timeline quickly moves to the back burner when we get to the 19th century rivalry between two magicians.
A puzzle is inherently involved, one of them already notes in his diary, and there are enough teasers on how the book will pull a magic trick on the reader.
The Great Danton (Alfred Borden), great grandfather to the initial narrator, an established, skill based “magician” who scorns claims of supernatural powers, is at one side of the conflict.
All kind of tricks are alluded to be not explained due to professional secrecy, but quite soon the conflict with Rupert Angenier, clairvoyant and up and coming magician, comes into focus.
A whole feud kicks off, focussed on the contrast between the secret/gimmick versus the performance.
Production, disappearance, transformation, transposition, defiance of natural laws, secret motive power, all registers are used to get an advantage over the London crowds craving a new IT trick. Hot and not are only months away in drawing crowds.
Embracing novelty is of paramount importance, with the telephone and electricity making an entry into card and coin tricks. Mr Tesla even makes an appearance.
The main characters meanwhile are far from sympathetic, with one of them boasting I had my wife and I had my mistress. Olive the assistent, pendels between them and gives off double spy vibes. Arrogance and smugness are definitely pitfalls to both men.
I don’t know how the second POV adds that much since they are quite alike. Both of them have overcome societal troubles to become popular magicians, and if not for the mutual hatred and denouncement of each other, with a lot aggrandizement along the way, they would have made a stellar duo. We should have been friends thinks one of them near the end of the book.
There is a bit of a Frankenstein: The 1818 Text theme going on, with a magical machine with clear side effects and reflections on ambition like: Hunger is a monster.
I even was reminded of Indiana Jones and the Holy Grail near the end of the book. I must say the book is a bit uneven, but also exuberant and imaginative. I prefer the movie from Christopher Nolan, but still an entertaining and unique read.
Quotes
The only way out is to face up to it
Magic is illusion
I held my past life in my arms but I no longer knew what was standing behind me
The central rule of magic always holds good: what is seen is not what is actually being done
An engaging and unique read, focussing on the art of performing magic as much as on the dangers of ego and competition
The start of The Prestige is intriguing, if somewhat garbled, with a journalist, assigned to paranormal sightings visiting a sect and pondering a book giving him more clues to his adoption.
Also he believes he get psychic messages from a non-existent brother.
This modern day timeline quickly moves to the back burner when we get to the 19th century rivalry between two magicians.
A puzzle is inherently involved, one of them already notes in his diary, and there are enough teasers on how the book will pull a magic trick on the reader.
The Great Danton (Alfred Borden), great grandfather to the initial narrator, an established, skill based “magician” who scorns claims of supernatural powers, is at one side of the conflict.
All kind of tricks are alluded to be not explained due to professional secrecy, but quite soon the conflict with Rupert Angenier, clairvoyant and up and coming magician, comes into focus.
A whole feud kicks off, focussed on the contrast between the secret/gimmick versus the performance.
Production, disappearance, transformation, transposition, defiance of natural laws, secret motive power, all registers are used to get an advantage over the London crowds craving a new IT trick. Hot and not are only months away in drawing crowds.
Embracing novelty is of paramount importance, with the telephone and electricity making an entry into card and coin tricks. Mr Tesla even makes an appearance.
The main characters meanwhile are far from sympathetic, with one of them boasting I had my wife and I had my mistress. Olive the assistent, pendels between them and gives off double spy vibes. Arrogance and smugness are definitely pitfalls to both men.
I don’t know how the second POV adds that much since they are quite alike. Both of them have overcome societal troubles to become popular magicians, and if not for the mutual hatred and denouncement of each other, with a lot aggrandizement along the way, they would have made a stellar duo. We should have been friends thinks one of them near the end of the book.
There is a bit of a Frankenstein: The 1818 Text theme going on, with a magical machine with clear side effects and reflections on ambition like: Hunger is a monster.
I even was reminded of Indiana Jones and the Holy Grail near the end of the book. I must say the book is a bit uneven, but also exuberant and imaginative. I prefer the movie from Christopher Nolan, but still an entertaining and unique read.
Quotes
The only way out is to face up to it
Magic is illusion
I held my past life in my arms but I no longer knew what was standing behind me
June 12, 2021
(Watch my video review here: https://youtu.be/pYJ-e-OTwn0 )
Let's get one thing out of the way: I preferred the movie. It was a tenser experience with much more compelling motivations to drive the characters forward. More importantly, the movie succeeded in obscuring plotholes where the novel did not.
Nevertheless, much like the magic trick at the centre of Christopher Priest's The Prestige, the original version is more inventive for having been the first and all the more enjoyable for not having technology as an aid to bolster the haunting tale.
It's a damn fine book that is more than able to stand on its own. It would have been nice to experience it without knowing what the hell was going on, but then I'm also glad to have had that experience with Christopher Nolan's version. While some might feel a sense of frustration at the source material being overshadowed, I think that in this case the book and the movie actually act as perfect companions for one another. I'm sure if I scroll down the reviews I'll find plenty of other people who've already made this comparison, but given that it's a story of doppelgangers and neverending feuds, it's fitting to say that they are both as worthy of being called The Prestige as the other.
(Don't forget to check out the video review: https://youtu.be/pYJ-e-OTwn0 )
Let's get one thing out of the way: I preferred the movie. It was a tenser experience with much more compelling motivations to drive the characters forward. More importantly, the movie succeeded in obscuring plotholes where the novel did not.
Nevertheless, much like the magic trick at the centre of Christopher Priest's The Prestige, the original version is more inventive for having been the first and all the more enjoyable for not having technology as an aid to bolster the haunting tale.
It's a damn fine book that is more than able to stand on its own. It would have been nice to experience it without knowing what the hell was going on, but then I'm also glad to have had that experience with Christopher Nolan's version. While some might feel a sense of frustration at the source material being overshadowed, I think that in this case the book and the movie actually act as perfect companions for one another. I'm sure if I scroll down the reviews I'll find plenty of other people who've already made this comparison, but given that it's a story of doppelgangers and neverending feuds, it's fitting to say that they are both as worthy of being called The Prestige as the other.
(Don't forget to check out the video review: https://youtu.be/pYJ-e-OTwn0 )
April 20, 2022
A novel about feuding magicians, beautifully written with some clear H.G. Wells inspiration, in an epistolary format that juggles different perspectives of the same events and an appearance by Mr. Tesla himself: how have I waited so long to finally read this book?
Just a few pages and I was sucked in by the mysterious set up: a man is sent a book, written by a great-grandfather he was never aware of, as he was adopted at the age of 3 – a book about illusions and prestidigitation. This book was sent to him by someone he met once, as a small child, a woman who’s ancestor was a famous stage magician who had a bitter, life-long rivalry with the man’s great-grandfather. Through that book, a found diary and some letters, we get a kaleidoscopic view of a complicated and often cruel feud of one-upmanship, sabotage, secrets, new revolutionary technology… and maybe even a touch of magic!
I am not the kind of reader who tries to figure out the end of a story as I am experiencing it: I want to get lost in the illusion, and while I had an idea of where this story was going because I had seen the 2006 Christopher Nolan movie adaptation ages ago, there is enough difference between the film and the source material to make the story of those two colossal assholes and their never-ending quest to try and beat the other to their game fascinating. An interesting parallel can be made between a magician’s act and reading a book really: a balance needs to be struck between showmanship and technical capacity, and this book did a very nice job of striking that balance.
After finishing the book, I wanted to watch the movie adaptation again, which I only had a dim memory of. Well, darn it, as much as I enjoyed the book, Christopher Nolan made such brilliant decisions when it came to changing some elements of the story to make them more cinematographic that I can’t help but bow down to his genius. It’s dark, gritty, beautifully shot, perfectly cast (the range shown by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale in this movie is astonishing), and even if I knew how it would end, the final few minutes are so perfectly timed that I had a pleasant little shiver over the last frame. The base motivation behind the rivalry is so much more human, the little clues scattered like breadcrumbs through the movie are so clever, and the dual narrative lines are perfectly entwined. But there are enough differences to make the book and the movie two entirely separate entities that gain from being looked at independently – though it did cost the book a star…
I do think that Erin Morgenstern is a fan of this book, though her novel of dueling magicians is much more light and whimsical: there are really no other similarities between the two books, but I thought it interesting to see the influence of this book on other works I have enjoyed!
Just a few pages and I was sucked in by the mysterious set up: a man is sent a book, written by a great-grandfather he was never aware of, as he was adopted at the age of 3 – a book about illusions and prestidigitation. This book was sent to him by someone he met once, as a small child, a woman who’s ancestor was a famous stage magician who had a bitter, life-long rivalry with the man’s great-grandfather. Through that book, a found diary and some letters, we get a kaleidoscopic view of a complicated and often cruel feud of one-upmanship, sabotage, secrets, new revolutionary technology… and maybe even a touch of magic!
I am not the kind of reader who tries to figure out the end of a story as I am experiencing it: I want to get lost in the illusion, and while I had an idea of where this story was going because I had seen the 2006 Christopher Nolan movie adaptation ages ago, there is enough difference between the film and the source material to make the story of those two colossal assholes and their never-ending quest to try and beat the other to their game fascinating. An interesting parallel can be made between a magician’s act and reading a book really: a balance needs to be struck between showmanship and technical capacity, and this book did a very nice job of striking that balance.
After finishing the book, I wanted to watch the movie adaptation again, which I only had a dim memory of. Well, darn it, as much as I enjoyed the book, Christopher Nolan made such brilliant decisions when it came to changing some elements of the story to make them more cinematographic that I can’t help but bow down to his genius. It’s dark, gritty, beautifully shot, perfectly cast (the range shown by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale in this movie is astonishing), and even if I knew how it would end, the final few minutes are so perfectly timed that I had a pleasant little shiver over the last frame. The base motivation behind the rivalry is so much more human, the little clues scattered like breadcrumbs through the movie are so clever, and the dual narrative lines are perfectly entwined. But there are enough differences to make the book and the movie two entirely separate entities that gain from being looked at independently – though it did cost the book a star…
I do think that Erin Morgenstern is a fan of this book, though her novel of dueling magicians is much more light and whimsical: there are really no other similarities between the two books, but I thought it interesting to see the influence of this book on other works I have enjoyed!
November 14, 2012
The Prestige by Christopher Priest
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Not even close to what I was expecting, thankfully.
Blurb: Turn of the 20th Century London, two stage magicians embark on a feud of a lifetime propelling both of them to fame and fortune, pain and despair and a couple of shocking discoveries along the way, also framed by the meeting of their great grandchildren still living with the aftermath of the feud.
Thoughts: At its core Christopher Priest's The Prestige (completely different entity to the Christopher Nolan movie adaptation) is an alternative history piece of science fiction but it is rendered in such a way that the reader is misdirected by all the literature that is happening around it.
Told in five and a half parts from five different points of view Priest treats the story as if it too is an illusion or a magic trick, carefully crafting The Setup with three fascinating sections that leave you asking many questions about the content before moving on to the main body of The Performance in which your questions are largely answered, your confusion explained and preparing you for the expected yet still surprising Prestige in the final one and a half parts.
Part of the pleasure in the novel is the way Priest carefully shows you his methods, drawing your attention to the illusion he is creating for you, and then after reaching the conclusion looking back at all of his machinations in wonder.
As a reader I came to this one via two Goodreads friends recently reading it, I remember enjoying Christopher Nolans movie and upon belatedly realising it was a novel first I knew I had to read it. And I really enjoyed reading it, almost compulsively devouring it from the opening chapter, enamoured with the voice and atmosphere created and despite having a fair memory of the plot of the movie still excited by what I was reading.
I've recently been having some serious doubts about Christopher Nolan and his film making abilities and this novel did little to assuage them. Priest, much like Angier in the novel, has created something insurpassable and with his novel he makes Nolan look like a cheap imitator, dumbing down his trick for a wider audience. I'm going to return to the film once Leah has read this book but I can't imagine it will be for much more than to poke holes in the script.
Not that any serious reader will need this warning but I recommend reading the novel first as I felt I lost a little bit of pleasure in having the surprise held in The Prestige ruined for me by the movie. For those that have seen the movie I highly recommend reading this book to add a whole new level of wow to your experience.
Book vs movie, if you've done both what was your preference? Has anyone read any other Christopher Priest books? He seems to have written many books on many different subjects, it's hard to know where to start.
Additional viewing:
The Prestige (2006)
The Illusionist (2010)
The Magician (1958)
Additional reading:
The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers
Carter Beats The Devil by Glen David Gold
The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
Originally posted at Blahblahblahgay
December 16, 2007
Like many readers, I came to this book after seeing the excellent 2006 film based on it. Like many other readers, I ended up preferring the film to the book as the film is a lot more tightly woven and provides better motivations for the characters' actions.
The story, for those of you who don't know, centres on two Victorian magicians who strike up a feud and spend the next twenty years sabotaging each other's shows and trying to outperform each other, each coming up with a spectacular disappearing act to which the other wants to find out the secret. The obsessive nature of the two men's relationship is drawn well, first from the working-class Borden's point of view, then from the aristocratic Angier's. Their feud isn't motivated particularly well, but that might be the point of the story; feuds often arise over trivial matters. At any rate, the resulting obsession and its destructive effects are painted vividly. The magic tricks are also presented well, although the words describing them of necessity lack the powerful quality of the film's images of them. And finally, there's a nice sense of mystery surrounding some of the tricks (although again, less so than in the film), bringing to mind the thrilling sensation fiction of the Victorian era, which I happen to love.
Sadly, though, the book has many shortcomings. For one thing, Borden's and Angier's diaries are unconvincing as Victorian documents; the language used is far too modern. Secondly, both of the protagonists are fairly unlikeable characters. I realise it's hard to write a story about an obsessive feud without making the characters quite unlikeable, but still, I think Priest could have done a better job on these two. Thirdly, Angier's part of the story is a bit of a drag. Some judicious editing would have been welcome here.
What really sets the book apart from the film, however, is the fact that Priest saw fit to include a modern frame in which the reader is introduced to two of the magicians' present-day descendants, whose lives are still being affected by the ancient feud. At first I hated the modern frame (which the filmmakers wisely left out), thinking it detracted from the main story. Towards the end I came to appreciate it. I actually quite liked the ending, which is spectacularly sci-fi-ish and gothic. It rather stands out from the rest of the book (which is fairly realistic), and as such could be said to be out of out of character, but as far as I'm concerned, it works. I wish the rest of the book were equally spectacular.
I'd give the book 3.5 stars if I could, but in the absence of half stars, I'm going to be tough and give it 3.
The story, for those of you who don't know, centres on two Victorian magicians who strike up a feud and spend the next twenty years sabotaging each other's shows and trying to outperform each other, each coming up with a spectacular disappearing act to which the other wants to find out the secret. The obsessive nature of the two men's relationship is drawn well, first from the working-class Borden's point of view, then from the aristocratic Angier's. Their feud isn't motivated particularly well, but that might be the point of the story; feuds often arise over trivial matters. At any rate, the resulting obsession and its destructive effects are painted vividly. The magic tricks are also presented well, although the words describing them of necessity lack the powerful quality of the film's images of them. And finally, there's a nice sense of mystery surrounding some of the tricks (although again, less so than in the film), bringing to mind the thrilling sensation fiction of the Victorian era, which I happen to love.
Sadly, though, the book has many shortcomings. For one thing, Borden's and Angier's diaries are unconvincing as Victorian documents; the language used is far too modern. Secondly, both of the protagonists are fairly unlikeable characters. I realise it's hard to write a story about an obsessive feud without making the characters quite unlikeable, but still, I think Priest could have done a better job on these two. Thirdly, Angier's part of the story is a bit of a drag. Some judicious editing would have been welcome here.
What really sets the book apart from the film, however, is the fact that Priest saw fit to include a modern frame in which the reader is introduced to two of the magicians' present-day descendants, whose lives are still being affected by the ancient feud. At first I hated the modern frame (which the filmmakers wisely left out), thinking it detracted from the main story. Towards the end I came to appreciate it. I actually quite liked the ending, which is spectacularly sci-fi-ish and gothic. It rather stands out from the rest of the book (which is fairly realistic), and as such could be said to be out of out of character, but as far as I'm concerned, it works. I wish the rest of the book were equally spectacular.
I'd give the book 3.5 stars if I could, but in the absence of half stars, I'm going to be tough and give it 3.
February 5, 2009
Oddly enough, not as good as the movie!
August 15, 2016
Dueling illusionists' ongoing battle in the late Victorian era has consequences for future generations. This is a masterpiece of epistolary style writing. The reader is set up, mirroring the art of the illusionist. The Prestige explores issues relating to social class and gender, artistry vs science, one's perspective shaping the truth, and the dangers of limitless ambition. The illusionists' duel and their quest to be true masters provides for a couple of intriguing Faustian bargains in this truly marvelous novel. Yet we, as readers, are also being deceived until it all finally unravels. One of the best novels in a structural sense that I've read. Well worth the time.
May 8, 2016
Saw the movie not so recently, but I have to agree with almost everyone, when I say I prefer actually movie. This rarely happens! Of course, book has such a interesting story, and I liked it. And I like how Priest wrote about Nikola Tesla (who is (Tesla) my favourite historical figure, ever). At times confusing, both movie and the book. But, essentially- what is important is to see how every story has like, three sides, and how revenge blinds us. Makes us so so stupid. So, this book I will rate with 3 stars (I'd probably give it 3,5 if that was possible!).
July 19, 2021
I like this book because eventually I will get to the scene when David Bowie portrays Tesla and my hearts gets happy.
If one has a Reading Challenge with the category "serious grudge or vengeful competition", then this is the book.
I hate to say this, and friends don't beat me, but this is one of those few instances when I enjoyed the movie so much more than the book. I couldn't develop the right amount of interest in the game these men were playing with each other and the hate they felt for each other simply because he each wanted to be the accomplished magician. Each man had questionable habits and put himself and others in danger.
The book mostly consists of journal recitations, but there are also events taking place during a current time period. I think the movie did a better depiction of the rivalry.
If one has a Reading Challenge with the category "serious grudge or vengeful competition", then this is the book.
I hate to say this, and friends don't beat me, but this is one of those few instances when I enjoyed the movie so much more than the book. I couldn't develop the right amount of interest in the game these men were playing with each other and the hate they felt for each other simply because he each wanted to be the accomplished magician. Each man had questionable habits and put himself and others in danger.
The book mostly consists of journal recitations, but there are also events taking place during a current time period. I think the movie did a better depiction of the rivalry.
December 27, 2020
Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars
April 23, 2024
Двама млади и талантливи илюзионисти неусетно започват вражда, която напълно ще промени животите им, както и тези на техните наследници. Заради своето дългогодишно съперничество, те се концентрират върху магьосническата кариера и достигат своите върхове в нея, но това става на твърде висока цена и за двамата... Тези страхотно изградени персонажи са Алфред Бордън (Професора по магия) и Рупърт Анджиър (Великия Дантон), като по-голяма част от книгата е написана във формата да дневници, които са си водили. Всъщност, началото на разказа започва много години по-късно, когато се запознават Андрю Уестли и Кейт Анджиър (далечни наследници на Бордън и Анджиър), като те решават да разплетат тази мистерия, предизвикваща спорове дори между децата на илюзионистите и в следващите поколения. В историята по много интересен начин е замесен и гениалният Никола Тесла...
Романът ме впечатли невероятно силно! По „Престиж“ има и чудесен филм на Кристофър Нолан, който перфектно се допълва с книгата!
Романът ме впечатли невероятно силно! По „Престиж“ има и чудесен филм на Кристофър Нолан, който перфектно се допълва с книгата!
May 25, 2022
دو شعبدهباز جوان و معروف قرن بیستم بعد از وقوع اتفاقی ناگوار کینهی بزرگی از هم بهدل میگیرند و پس رقابت طولانیها آغاز میشود که تا سالیان سال ادامه پیدا میکند. اما اینها همگی گذشتهاند و در حال حاضر ماجرای این دو شعبدهباز توسط دفترچههای خاطراتی که ازشان باقی مانده به وسیلهی دو نفر از نسلهای آیندهی آنها که به طور اتفافی یکدیگر را ملاقات میکنند، بیان میشود و در این بین بعلاوهی خواندن سرگذشت این دو شعبدهباز، ماجراهایی که نوههای آنها به این وسیله با آن درگیر میشوند نیز بازگو میشود و...
فکر کنم اکثرتون فیلم معروف "پرستیژ" ساختهی کریستوفر نولان رو دیده باشید که در نوع خودش فوقالعاده جذابه اما باید بدونید که این فیلم از کتابِ معروفِ "پرستیژ" اقتباس شده و متاسفانه چون کتاب خیلی دیر در ایران ترجمه شده، اونطور که باید نتونستهی خوانندههای خودش رو پیدا بکنه اما به هر حال بعد از سالهای زیاد، چاپ شد و این فرصت برای خوندنش فراهم شد.
داستان فوقالعاده جذاب و گیرا شروع میشه. فکر کن که یک آدم معمولی باشی که داری برای کار به شهر دیگهای میری و همون موقع هم یک بستهی پستی برات ارسال بشه و یک کتاب مربوط به شعبدهبازی در اون انتظارت رو بکشه، ماجرا از جایی پیچیده تر میشه که "اَندرو" به عنوان کاراکتر اصلی میفهمه نویسندهی این کتاب شخصی به نام "آلفرد بوردن" بوده که نام فامیلیش، برابره با اسم خانوادگیای که قبل از به سرپرستی گرفته شدنش، داشته... (چقدر نوشتم)
این رو نوشتم که بدونید چه شروع جذابی داره. خلاصه اینکه هرچقدراز دیدن فیلمش لذت برید باید بگم که کتاب جذابتری در انتظارتونه چون لایههایی از اتفاقات رو نشون میده که اصلا توی فیلم نیست.
نمیدونم چجور باید معرفیش بکنم چون خدایی تا نخوندیدش از جذابیت چیزی متوجه نمیشید. همهی کاراکترها چه از مثبت و چه منفی عالی پرداخته شدند. حتی بعضی جاها نمیدونستم حق با کیه، کدومشون واقعا گناهکاره، کدوم یکی داره کار درست رو میکنه و کدوم غلط... این از جذابیتهاشه که نویسنده جوری کاراکترها رو خلق کرده که خیلی جاها منِ خواننده رو درگیر خودش میکرد.
به جز این موارد خود داستان هم جذابیت بیبدیلی داره، رازهایی که در مورد شعبدهبازیها برملا میشه، نقشههایی که برای پیشرفت کار کشیده میشه و تمام ماجراهایی که به شعبده ربط داره بیش از حد جذاب بودند.
خلاصه اینکه این کتاب، یک داستان کاملا رئال و در عین حال جادویی داره. اگر از طرفداران اینجور سبک کتابها هستید قطعا پرستیژ رو بخونید، حتی اگر فیلمش رو دیدید لذت خوندن کتابش رو از دست ندید.
و اما عجب پایانی، بینظیر بود. خیلی مورد پسندم قرار گرفت.
(نمیگم کتاب کاستیهایی نداشت، چرا داشت، ولی اینقدر ماهیت کلی ماجرا جذاب بود و روایتش درگیر کننده بود که همون نقطه ضعفهای کوچیک اصلا به چشم نمیاومد)
حتما دوباره میخونمش...!!!!
فکر کنم اکثرتون فیلم معروف "پرستیژ" ساختهی کریستوفر نولان رو دیده باشید که در نوع خودش فوقالعاده جذابه اما باید بدونید که این فیلم از کتابِ معروفِ "پرستیژ" اقتباس شده و متاسفانه چون کتاب خیلی دیر در ایران ترجمه شده، اونطور که باید نتونستهی خوانندههای خودش رو پیدا بکنه اما به هر حال بعد از سالهای زیاد، چاپ شد و این فرصت برای خوندنش فراهم شد.
داستان فوقالعاده جذاب و گیرا شروع میشه. فکر کن که یک آدم معمولی باشی که داری برای کار به شهر دیگهای میری و همون موقع هم یک بستهی پستی برات ارسال بشه و یک کتاب مربوط به شعبدهبازی در اون انتظارت رو بکشه، ماجرا از جایی پیچیده تر میشه که "اَندرو" به عنوان کاراکتر اصلی میفهمه نویسندهی این کتاب شخصی به نام "آلفرد بوردن" بوده که نام فامیلیش، برابره با اسم خانوادگیای که قبل از به سرپرستی گرفته شدنش، داشته... (چقدر نوشتم)
این رو نوشتم که بدونید چه شروع جذابی داره. خلاصه اینکه هرچقدراز دیدن فیلمش لذت برید باید بگم که کتاب جذابتری در انتظارتونه چون لایههایی از اتفاقات رو نشون میده که اصلا توی فیلم نیست.
نمیدونم چجور باید معرفیش بکنم چون خدایی تا نخوندیدش از جذابیت چیزی متوجه نمیشید. همهی کاراکترها چه از مثبت و چه منفی عالی پرداخته شدند. حتی بعضی جاها نمیدونستم حق با کیه، کدومشون واقعا گناهکاره، کدوم یکی داره کار درست رو میکنه و کدوم غلط... این از جذابیتهاشه که نویسنده جوری کاراکترها رو خلق کرده که خیلی جاها منِ خواننده رو درگیر خودش میکرد.
به جز این موارد خود داستان هم جذابیت بیبدیلی داره، رازهایی که در مورد شعبدهبازیها برملا میشه، نقشههایی که برای پیشرفت کار کشیده میشه و تمام ماجراهایی که به شعبده ربط داره بیش از حد جذاب بودند.
خلاصه اینکه این کتاب، یک داستان کاملا رئال و در عین حال جادویی داره. اگر از طرفداران اینجور سبک کتابها هستید قطعا پرستیژ رو بخونید، حتی اگر فیلمش رو دیدید لذت خوندن کتابش رو از دست ندید.
و اما عجب پایانی، بینظیر بود. خیلی مورد پسندم قرار گرفت.
(نمیگم کتاب کاستیهایی نداشت، چرا داشت، ولی اینقدر ماهیت کلی ماجرا جذاب بود و روایتش درگیر کننده بود که همون نقطه ضعفهای کوچیک اصلا به چشم نمیاومد)
حتما دوباره میخونمش...!!!!
August 16, 2019
Rupert Angier and Alfred Borden are the dueling magicians playing a rather nasty game of one-upmanship. Borden creates a 'transporting man' trick, which sees him disappear and reappear at opposite ends of the stage and Angier becomes obsessed with discovering his method. They also do their very best to sabotage each others performances.
Even though i've seen the film and knew the outcome it still kept me intrigued. The first part concentrates on Borden and his version of events surrounding Angier and the famous trick. Angier's part of the book is much lengthier than Borden's and is superior due to his more eccentric personality as opposed to Boring Borden! I was definitely on Team Angier!
The film is superior as it takes every facet of the book and embellishes it. Still a good read though.
Even though i've seen the film and knew the outcome it still kept me intrigued. The first part concentrates on Borden and his version of events surrounding Angier and the famous trick. Angier's part of the book is much lengthier than Borden's and is superior due to his more eccentric personality as opposed to Boring Borden! I was definitely on Team Angier!
The film is superior as it takes every facet of the book and embellishes it. Still a good read though.
July 29, 2021
The novel tells the story of two feuding magicians at the turn of the century from the age of steam to the age of electricity. Their feud going from pranks to sabotage and all the way into horror. The story is told through these magicians journals. Kudos to the author in the way he presented these journals by making them distinct enough to show us the story from both sides while exposing the characters personalities. The fact that one of journal was written more as a memoir years after the fact while the other as a series of diary entries as the events unfolded was a masterstroke.
Christopher Priest wears his H. G. Wells influence on his sleeve and it really shows. He obviously studied the time period, the technology, the culture, the kind of magic tricks that would have been preformed at the time, the turns of phrase, everything. And finally the way he presented the horror and gave us that wonderfully ominous ending really brought Wells s style into the modern era.
If I wasn't on a SF Masterworks binge I would never have known that this book existed and would have kept thinking that there was only an OK movie by Christopher Nolan. Luckily his adaptation wasn't too faithful so I could still enjoy the book but I am quite sorry that a lot of the books excellent foreshadowing was spoiled for me. Again, kudos to Christopher Priest for making this book so great that the spoilers didn't matter. But, I still wish that I have only read this book and never watched the movie.
Christopher Priest wears his H. G. Wells influence on his sleeve and it really shows. He obviously studied the time period, the technology, the culture, the kind of magic tricks that would have been preformed at the time, the turns of phrase, everything. And finally the way he presented the horror and gave us that wonderfully ominous ending really brought Wells s style into the modern era.
If I wasn't on a SF Masterworks binge I would never have known that this book existed and would have kept thinking that there was only an OK movie by Christopher Nolan. Luckily his adaptation wasn't too faithful so I could still enjoy the book but I am quite sorry that a lot of the books excellent foreshadowing was spoiled for me. Again, kudos to Christopher Priest for making this book so great that the spoilers didn't matter. But, I still wish that I have only read this book and never watched the movie.
February 10, 2024
The Prestige is a very interesting read. I love the format of the writing, written in mostly journals and news press clippings, and that it also tells the beginning of the story from one side and then tells the story from the complete other side up to the present time. I found myself enjoying the tone of the Angier side more than the Borden side.
It was a bit long-winded in points and had a lot of details about information that really didn't matter to the book at all and could have easily been edited out for better flow. The movie does a good job of covering the gist of the book while condensing the content. I love the end of this one, it has been some years since I saw the movie, but I don't remember the movie covering the present time events.
Favorite Quote:
"10th October 1877
I am in love! her name is Drusilla MacAvoy.
15th October 1877
Too hasty by far! The MacAvoy woman was not for me. I am planning to kill myself"
Ultimately it is a bit long and slow at some points, but incredibly interesting once you get all of the fluff out of the way. Christopher Priest did a great job of covering the madness and obsession of both of these men and I also loved the added Tesla element. Worth a read!
4 stars for me.
It was a bit long-winded in points and had a lot of details about information that really didn't matter to the book at all and could have easily been edited out for better flow. The movie does a good job of covering the gist of the book while condensing the content. I love the end of this one, it has been some years since I saw the movie, but I don't remember the movie covering the present time events.
Favorite Quote:
"10th October 1877
I am in love! her name is Drusilla MacAvoy.
15th October 1877
Too hasty by far! The MacAvoy woman was not for me. I am planning to kill myself"
Ultimately it is a bit long and slow at some points, but incredibly interesting once you get all of the fluff out of the way. Christopher Priest did a great job of covering the madness and obsession of both of these men and I also loved the added Tesla element. Worth a read!
4 stars for me.
February 27, 2020
I held him tightly against me. He was neither cold nor warm. One of his outstretched hands, clenched in fear, was touching the side of my face. The relief of finding him at last overwhelmed everything – everything except the fear of this place. I wanted to turn around so that I could head back towards the exit, but to do so involved moving backwards out of the gangway. I held my past life in my arms, but I no longer knew what might be standing behind me.
There was something there, though.
Wow. This is one of the books where not having seen the film and knowing very little about the plot - I only knew there was something about two magicians - really paid off.
And in order to preserve the whole journey of discovery for others, I'm not going to say much about the plot or twists at all other than I loved the way that Priest seemed to have used real biographical notes of some of the great Victorian conjurers and re-assembled them into the lives of the two fictional protagonists.
The Victorian feel to this novel was phenomenal (without so much as a single mention of the blasted London fog!), I kept checking the dates of the diary entries mentioned throughout the book against the publication dates of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Both stories could have merged seamlessly! Not that there was any connection to the Holmes stories. The only tenuous connection I had to pick up on (because I am reading a biography of Arthur Conan Doyle at the moment) was how Priest describes the rise of spiritualism and how conjurers featured in both the promotion of spiritualism and the debunking of frauds.
I loved how Priest also managed to merge several genres - historical fiction, steampunk, horror, Gothic, mystery - and still kept a style that was quite literary and created so many layers.
The plot itself was layered and everything we learn at the start of the book is then taken apart when re-read the events from a different perspective. The plot thickens as the old cliche says. But it isn't only the plot. The more we learn about the relationship of the two magicians, the more we get to see why they do what they do, and just when we think there is a point when Priest forces the crisis to a solution, the moral complexity of the plot unfolds.
Some deeds cast long shadows.
Loved it.
I was thrown into a fit of despair and self-disgust by my attempt on Borden’s life. I knew I had betrayed myself, betrayed my prestige (who was aware of none of my actions), betrayed Julia, my children, my father’s name, every friend I had known. If ever I needed proof that my feud with Borden was an appalling mistake, at last I had it. Nothing we had done to each other in the past could justify such a descent into brutality.
In a state of wretchedness and apathy I returned to the room I had rented, thinking there was no more I could do with my life. I had nothing more for which to live.
There was something there, though.
Wow. This is one of the books where not having seen the film and knowing very little about the plot - I only knew there was something about two magicians - really paid off.
And in order to preserve the whole journey of discovery for others, I'm not going to say much about the plot or twists at all other than I loved the way that Priest seemed to have used real biographical notes of some of the great Victorian conjurers and re-assembled them into the lives of the two fictional protagonists.
The Victorian feel to this novel was phenomenal (without so much as a single mention of the blasted London fog!), I kept checking the dates of the diary entries mentioned throughout the book against the publication dates of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Both stories could have merged seamlessly! Not that there was any connection to the Holmes stories. The only tenuous connection I had to pick up on (because I am reading a biography of Arthur Conan Doyle at the moment) was how Priest describes the rise of spiritualism and how conjurers featured in both the promotion of spiritualism and the debunking of frauds.
I loved how Priest also managed to merge several genres - historical fiction, steampunk, horror, Gothic, mystery - and still kept a style that was quite literary and created so many layers.
The plot itself was layered and everything we learn at the start of the book is then taken apart when re-read the events from a different perspective. The plot thickens as the old cliche says. But it isn't only the plot. The more we learn about the relationship of the two magicians, the more we get to see why they do what they do, and just when we think there is a point when Priest forces the crisis to a solution, the moral complexity of the plot unfolds.
Some deeds cast long shadows.
Loved it.
I was thrown into a fit of despair and self-disgust by my attempt on Borden’s life. I knew I had betrayed myself, betrayed my prestige (who was aware of none of my actions), betrayed Julia, my children, my father’s name, every friend I had known. If ever I needed proof that my feud with Borden was an appalling mistake, at last I had it. Nothing we had done to each other in the past could justify such a descent into brutality.
In a state of wretchedness and apathy I returned to the room I had rented, thinking there was no more I could do with my life. I had nothing more for which to live.
July 21, 2012
I saw the movie on the plane (where else) and was frantic to surf the 'net to find out more about it when we landed. I wanted to understand more about the book, its author, the concepts, and background. Big screen (well, in this case, the small screen on the back of a plane seat) is terrific but ephemeral, whereas with a book I have time for distractions, cogitation, re-reading (and checking things on the net!). You might argue that I can fiddle with 'Pause', 'Rewind', 'Forward' and (several iterations later) 'Play', but this tends to have the undesirable effect of tossing me out of my utterly physiological entrapment within the film. The beauty of a book is that it is really all in my head! And that's what I would like to discuss here.
Chris Nolan's treatment of the book was brilliant, precisely because of the medium; fast-paced, fore-shadowing, and with a judicious and welcome lack of gratuitous violence and special effects. But it doesn't do justice to the subject matter that Chris Priest wanted to, and effectively did, explore.
Priest's book is a marvel no less worthy precisely because it is a book! The book is written in three parts, each part representing one of the three elements of a magic act, and each part cleverly reflects the nature of the element it represents (bear that in mind when reading nay-sayers who think the opening setting is irrelevant). Nolan did condense parts of the book and the condensation works perfectly in a movie. Priest's original material is able to play with the nature of a magic act in a way Nolan could not, because of the shortening required for a screenplay.
Nolan made an emotional grab for the guts with the motivation he set up for the characters - and that is also a function of the medium. A film doesn't have the luxury of time that a book does. Priest's book, on the other hand, delves much more in the psychology of its protagonists without a quickly discernible (and emotionally acceptable) cause-and-effect providing the basis for the competition between the two magicians.
The book's haunting ending achieves a level of ambiguity the movie fails to translate (and Nolan is known for his lack of black-and-white, cut-and-dried endings). Images from the film still sit with me, but scenes from the book that I have imagined myself resonate far longer, and with far many more questions.
I think it is probably better at this point to recommend reading the book (keeping in mind that it is a book and the film is a successful adaptation) than saying anything else, because even if you have seen the movie, the book is sufficiently different that I would have to start on the path to spoilerdom. And this is a novel which deserves the innocence of an audience waiting in anticipation for the curtain to rise.
Chris Nolan's treatment of the book was brilliant, precisely because of the medium; fast-paced, fore-shadowing, and with a judicious and welcome lack of gratuitous violence and special effects. But it doesn't do justice to the subject matter that Chris Priest wanted to, and effectively did, explore.
Priest's book is a marvel no less worthy precisely because it is a book! The book is written in three parts, each part representing one of the three elements of a magic act, and each part cleverly reflects the nature of the element it represents (bear that in mind when reading nay-sayers who think the opening setting is irrelevant). Nolan did condense parts of the book and the condensation works perfectly in a movie. Priest's original material is able to play with the nature of a magic act in a way Nolan could not, because of the shortening required for a screenplay.
Nolan made an emotional grab for the guts with the motivation he set up for the characters - and that is also a function of the medium. A film doesn't have the luxury of time that a book does. Priest's book, on the other hand, delves much more in the psychology of its protagonists without a quickly discernible (and emotionally acceptable) cause-and-effect providing the basis for the competition between the two magicians.
The book's haunting ending achieves a level of ambiguity the movie fails to translate (and Nolan is known for his lack of black-and-white, cut-and-dried endings). Images from the film still sit with me, but scenes from the book that I have imagined myself resonate far longer, and with far many more questions.
I think it is probably better at this point to recommend reading the book (keeping in mind that it is a book and the film is a successful adaptation) than saying anything else, because even if you have seen the movie, the book is sufficiently different that I would have to start on the path to spoilerdom. And this is a novel which deserves the innocence of an audience waiting in anticipation for the curtain to rise.
April 23, 2017
Loved it. Certain subjects, in this case stage magic, hold a lot of appeal for me and a good book about those subjects is going to be well received by me. I loved the movie also, but this book is quite different in a lot of ways. It’s a great example of how a good screen writer can adopt and change the author’s ideas and emphasis and still come up with a good movie. BTW – I recall reading somewhere around the time that the movie came out that the term prestige , in the sense that it is used here, was coined by Christopher Priest in this novel. Magicians hadn’t been using the term. Since the movie magicians have adopted the term and it’s use is now common.
November 29, 2017
I saw this movie years ago. Loved it. Still love it. Top ten all-time favorites list. And I didn't know it was based on a book until a few years ago, but it automatically went on my TBR. Because it was going to be just as amazing.
Needless to say, it's difficult for me to extricate one from the other here. It's also difficult for me to explain the book to anyone who hasn't read it, because I'm next-to-positive most of us have seen the movie (if not, you may want to pick up the book first in this instance). I can say the book is mostly written in epistolary format and, comparatively, the twists aren't necessarily the same. In both cases, each version of this story is such an incredible mindfuck that I'm sitting here an hour after reading the final ten pages still going WTF WAS THATTTTTT.
PS the audio is wonderful if you're an audiobook person. I'm off to rewatch the glorious ambiguity that is the Christopher Nolan movie and see if I can't pick up more connections now that I've read this lovely beast.
Needless to say, it's difficult for me to extricate one from the other here. It's also difficult for me to explain the book to anyone who hasn't read it, because I'm next-to-positive most of us have seen the movie (if not, you may want to pick up the book first in this instance). I can say the book is mostly written in epistolary format and, comparatively, the twists aren't necessarily the same. In both cases, each version of this story is such an incredible mindfuck that I'm sitting here an hour after reading the final ten pages still going WTF WAS THATTTTTT.
PS the audio is wonderful if you're an audiobook person. I'm off to rewatch the glorious ambiguity that is the Christopher Nolan movie and see if I can't pick up more connections now that I've read this lovely beast.
December 19, 2016
page 290: "It is difficult to deal with massy, inorganic compounds. Living tissue is not of the same order of problem."
page 291: "...it would be a simple matter with life organisms. The structure is so much simpler than that of the elements."
...WHAT.
I threw the book (at a couch, and when it bounced and landed open I rescued it immediately). What the hell. And at the same time blithely saying that "energy and matter are but two manifestations of the same force" in 1900 (mass-energy equivalence was first proposed in a 1905 paper by Einstein) - NO. You do not get to anachronistically rock E=MC^2 while simultaneously saying that metals are more complicated than people.
End: ...Oh, what the hell was that.
12/19/2016
Someone requested that I cut the book slack on the scientific failure central to the narrative - in, from what I remember having read seven years ago, a story where the protagonist insisted upon scientifically accurate underpinnings for all of his performance bits - because it is fiction. Sure, it's fiction, but the characters themselves voiced valuation of scientific accuracy above all. By 1900, the existence of atomic ratios in metals, alloys, and metallic oxides had been in play for nearly a century. Avogadro's main discoveries of ratios were reported in 1811, based on tin oxide. Bravais' work on crystalline lattices, observed only in metals, oxides, and minerals, was performed in 1850. JJ Thomson discovered electrons in 1897, three years before the setting of the book.
This was in the age of scientific showmanship - see Tesla, the importance of AC lighting at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, Edison's flashy (literally) exhibits, the ongoing obsession with telegraphy and radio - and Thomson's focus on metals in the "third Maxwell volume" would not have been unnoticed, even by lay readers. It's inconceivable to think that science-obsessed performers - let alone scientists themselves - would still hold this animistic view of materials, where the living principle is seen as a simplifying characteristic rather than an emergent effect of compounding complexities, in 1900. Any modern author who wishes to write otherwise is either terribly confused or wilfully messing around, and the failure on Priest's part to reconcile his fictional characters with their historical setting broke the book for me.
In addition, it was poorly written and relied too much on would-be atmospheric tension, while the protagonist was a hateful small-minded ball of failure.
So, no, no slack will be cut. Forsaking the actual understanding of the history of scientific discovery for the sake of the excitement of writing about an experiment on living cats is flat laziness. Look, I can fix it in a paragraph: Kill the sentence on page 290 and modify that around 291 to "The elements and their alloys and oxides proved too simplistic for satisfaction, a child's trick of magnetic repulsion at a distance. Experimentation progressed rapidly to life organisms, in all their emergent complexity and seeming simplicity of form."
(That still leaves the problem of how execrably the novel was written. I can't fix that in a paragraph.)
page 291: "...it would be a simple matter with life organisms. The structure is so much simpler than that of the elements."
...WHAT.
I threw the book (at a couch, and when it bounced and landed open I rescued it immediately). What the hell. And at the same time blithely saying that "energy and matter are but two manifestations of the same force" in 1900 (mass-energy equivalence was first proposed in a 1905 paper by Einstein) - NO. You do not get to anachronistically rock E=MC^2 while simultaneously saying that metals are more complicated than people.
End: ...Oh, what the hell was that.
12/19/2016
Someone requested that I cut the book slack on the scientific failure central to the narrative - in, from what I remember having read seven years ago, a story where the protagonist insisted upon scientifically accurate underpinnings for all of his performance bits - because it is fiction. Sure, it's fiction, but the characters themselves voiced valuation of scientific accuracy above all. By 1900, the existence of atomic ratios in metals, alloys, and metallic oxides had been in play for nearly a century. Avogadro's main discoveries of ratios were reported in 1811, based on tin oxide. Bravais' work on crystalline lattices, observed only in metals, oxides, and minerals, was performed in 1850. JJ Thomson discovered electrons in 1897, three years before the setting of the book.
This was in the age of scientific showmanship - see Tesla, the importance of AC lighting at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, Edison's flashy (literally) exhibits, the ongoing obsession with telegraphy and radio - and Thomson's focus on metals in the "third Maxwell volume" would not have been unnoticed, even by lay readers. It's inconceivable to think that science-obsessed performers - let alone scientists themselves - would still hold this animistic view of materials, where the living principle is seen as a simplifying characteristic rather than an emergent effect of compounding complexities, in 1900. Any modern author who wishes to write otherwise is either terribly confused or wilfully messing around, and the failure on Priest's part to reconcile his fictional characters with their historical setting broke the book for me.
In addition, it was poorly written and relied too much on would-be atmospheric tension, while the protagonist was a hateful small-minded ball of failure.
So, no, no slack will be cut. Forsaking the actual understanding of the history of scientific discovery for the sake of the excitement of writing about an experiment on living cats is flat laziness. Look, I can fix it in a paragraph: Kill the sentence on page 290 and modify that around 291 to "The elements and their alloys and oxides proved too simplistic for satisfaction, a child's trick of magnetic repulsion at a distance. Experimentation progressed rapidly to life organisms, in all their emergent complexity and seeming simplicity of form."
(That still leaves the problem of how execrably the novel was written. I can't fix that in a paragraph.)
December 5, 2011
I prefer the movie, but I'm not sure if that's because I saw it first or because it condensed the confusion down to a lean story of obsession and one-upmanship. My reading was heavily influenced by knowing the major spoilers. Should've read the book first.
Dammit, what is with the Monday morning over-the-shoulder snoopers? Gotta make this fast. Unreliable narrators, stupid feuds with real consequences that made them impossible to let go, destroying your own life through choices. Each man had a chance at normal family life and ended up following their lust at some point. Each man wrote of wanting to give up the feud, of trying to reach out to the other and being rebuffed. Each man clearly tailored their record of incidents. What really happened? Probably something in between. And at the end...huh? I don't understand the purpose of the cult that started out the story, except it maybe implied, well, spoiler.
Dammit, what is with the Monday morning over-the-shoulder snoopers? Gotta make this fast. Unreliable narrators, stupid feuds with real consequences that made them impossible to let go, destroying your own life through choices. Each man had a chance at normal family life and ended up following their lust at some point. Each man wrote of wanting to give up the feud, of trying to reach out to the other and being rebuffed. Each man clearly tailored their record of incidents. What really happened? Probably something in between. And at the end...huh? I don't understand the purpose of the cult that started out the story, except it maybe implied, well, spoiler.
January 8, 2022
4.0 Stars
I normally dislike Gothic historical fiction, especially told in an epistolary format so I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this novel. Admittedly, some parts were a little slow paced, but the suspense kept me reading through these sections.
I have previously watched the movie adaptation, which I absolutely loved. Despite knowing the general story, I was still gripped by the original narrative. I did think the movie ending was stronger because it was darker, but I still very much enjoyed the book.
I would recommend this book to readers looking for a foreboding Gothic suspense with a unique speculative element.
I normally dislike Gothic historical fiction, especially told in an epistolary format so I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this novel. Admittedly, some parts were a little slow paced, but the suspense kept me reading through these sections.
I have previously watched the movie adaptation, which I absolutely loved. Despite knowing the general story, I was still gripped by the original narrative. I did think the movie ending was stronger because it was darker, but I still very much enjoyed the book.
I would recommend this book to readers looking for a foreboding Gothic suspense with a unique speculative element.
January 10, 2015
Not recommended for: anyone allergic to SF-elements or who demands a simple story told from beginning to end, or who can't cope with old-fashioned prose or a slow pace.
This book is quite simply a masterwork. From a slow beginning, it ratchets up the tension like an old-fashioned horror film, until it's truly thrilling. With relatively little in the way of overt psychological insight - particularly into Borden, one of the two main characters - it nonetheless constructs clear, sympathetic, understandable, totally human protagonists. While clearly enthralled by its own concepts and conceits and determined to play around in the areas marked 'post-modern' and 'literary', it is at the same time able to stand proudly as a totally readable, even old-fashioned, almost Victorian, mystery-thriller. Not that much really happens by blockbuster standards, and huge sections of prose are descriptions of entirely visual things - but these set-piece descriptions are spectacular and vivid, and frankly more visually compelling than any cinematic interpretation could be.
Underpinning all this success is Priest's prose, which may not scream for attention every paragraph but which is nonetheless quietly brilliant - I'm tempted to say virtually perfect. Most of the novel is in the form of two diary extracts by different men, each giving their experiences of the same events - both of them are middle-aged, English, Victorian stage magicians, and yet Priest manages to convey two totally characters simply through fine distinctions in narrative voice, the personality of the two writers dripping from every word and every idiosyncracy of syntax. This is a novel that should be taught in schools - not just because of the many, many themes and notions it introduces, but simply as an example of how to write.
It's also got one of the biggest narrative twist-kicks I've ever seen - as in I read one particular line and suddenly needed to re-read the last thirty pages while saying 'woah.....' a lot. You really won't be expecting it. And no, it's not one of the twists that makes it to the film. It's twistier than that.
That said, it's not perfect. I felt a little emotionally detached throughout, never quite completely involved, though I couldn't help myself turning the pages. The framing story isn't given enough attention, and feels weak compared to the two central narratives; the ending is by itself superb, but feels a bit unconnected to the rest of the story. Sometimes it feels that he should let himself go down a fascinating diversion, rather than force himself to hurry along with the plot. There are some other minor quibbles I could make as well. But they really would be minor.
It is, by the way, better than the (still quite good) film - it's deeper, it's cleverer, it's less simplistic, it's more exciting, less predictable, and it's more suffused with class and quality. However, don't come to this from the film assuming you'll love it - it's very different in tone, and with it's old-fashioned (though more readable than genuine Victorian literature!) style, it's slower, and may be less immediately accessible (but stick with it). On the other hand, don't assume there's no point reading this if you've seen the film, as there's a lot more to this than there is to the film, and the film doesn't really spoil the book very much.
[I read the book first]
you can read a more substantial review of the novel here.
This book is quite simply a masterwork. From a slow beginning, it ratchets up the tension like an old-fashioned horror film, until it's truly thrilling. With relatively little in the way of overt psychological insight - particularly into Borden, one of the two main characters - it nonetheless constructs clear, sympathetic, understandable, totally human protagonists. While clearly enthralled by its own concepts and conceits and determined to play around in the areas marked 'post-modern' and 'literary', it is at the same time able to stand proudly as a totally readable, even old-fashioned, almost Victorian, mystery-thriller. Not that much really happens by blockbuster standards, and huge sections of prose are descriptions of entirely visual things - but these set-piece descriptions are spectacular and vivid, and frankly more visually compelling than any cinematic interpretation could be.
Underpinning all this success is Priest's prose, which may not scream for attention every paragraph but which is nonetheless quietly brilliant - I'm tempted to say virtually perfect. Most of the novel is in the form of two diary extracts by different men, each giving their experiences of the same events - both of them are middle-aged, English, Victorian stage magicians, and yet Priest manages to convey two totally characters simply through fine distinctions in narrative voice, the personality of the two writers dripping from every word and every idiosyncracy of syntax. This is a novel that should be taught in schools - not just because of the many, many themes and notions it introduces, but simply as an example of how to write.
It's also got one of the biggest narrative twist-kicks I've ever seen - as in I read one particular line and suddenly needed to re-read the last thirty pages while saying 'woah.....' a lot. You really won't be expecting it. And no, it's not one of the twists that makes it to the film. It's twistier than that.
That said, it's not perfect. I felt a little emotionally detached throughout, never quite completely involved, though I couldn't help myself turning the pages. The framing story isn't given enough attention, and feels weak compared to the two central narratives; the ending is by itself superb, but feels a bit unconnected to the rest of the story. Sometimes it feels that he should let himself go down a fascinating diversion, rather than force himself to hurry along with the plot. There are some other minor quibbles I could make as well. But they really would be minor.
It is, by the way, better than the (still quite good) film - it's deeper, it's cleverer, it's less simplistic, it's more exciting, less predictable, and it's more suffused with class and quality. However, don't come to this from the film assuming you'll love it - it's very different in tone, and with it's old-fashioned (though more readable than genuine Victorian literature!) style, it's slower, and may be less immediately accessible (but stick with it). On the other hand, don't assume there's no point reading this if you've seen the film, as there's a lot more to this than there is to the film, and the film doesn't really spoil the book very much.
[I read the book first]
you can read a more substantial review of the novel here.
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