The Magician's Wife

Interesting enough novel that seems to have been constrained by the true story upon which it has been based. There is no stylistic attempt to exaggerate here.
The greatest magician in Europe is cajoled by Napoleon III to impress the marabouts and tribal leaders of Algeria in a cynical attempt to prove the superiority of Christian Europe, in this case, in the realm of divine influence through magical powers.
The most perceptive of the characters is Emmeline, the magician's wife, a woman who is relegated at home taking second place to her husband's work on improving his repertoire of deceptive skills and his inventions.
It is she who is not deceived by the French calculation in improving their prospects at an outright subjugation of all show more Algeria, nor by the naked ambition of the political and military personnel involved in the ruse.
It is not a spectacular novel, but it is well written, it is unflagging in pace and historically interesting as a footnote to Algeria's troubled relationship with her former colonial overlord. show less

We begin Magician's Wife in 1856 France. Emmaline Lambert stands in the shadow of her famous magician husband, Henri Lambert. Her personality dims next to the brilliance of her husband's growing notoriety as an illusionist and inventor. The crowds are agog over his inexplicable trickery. Emmaline almost becomes a cliche being described as uneasy, nervous, foolish, and unsure; acting with trepidation and panic. But in reality, she is just a lonely woman without intimacy in her marriage. It is all about the choices you make in life. Emmeline admits she married a man she did not love. Upon being summoned to the opulent estate of Napoleon III the Lamberts meet dashing Colonel Charles Deniau. Like tendrils of relentlessly advancing vines of show more kudzu, the Colonel ensnares Emmeline Lambert's confidences little by little. France has a mission for Henri: in an effort to increase France's empire and conquer Algeria, astound the Bedouins of North Africa. Frighten them into submission. Is Emmaline falling in love with Deniau? Will she convince her husband to perform the ultimate illusion for the sake of domination? show less

The story at the heart of Brian Moore’s novel The Magician’s Wife is based on true historical events. That proves to be both the main source of its interest and, ultimately, the primary reason it fails to satisfy.

The story opens in France, 1856, and is told through the eyes of Emmeline Lambert, who is the wife of France’s most famous magician, Henri Lambert. Henri is being courted by the Emperor himself, Napoleon III, to lead a secret effort deemed critical to France’s national interest. I won’t tell you what that effort is – Moore builds suspense in the novel by keeping both Emmeline and readers in the dark about the Emperor’s goals. But I will tell you that what Napoleon is planning involves Henri Lambert’s powers of show more prestidigitation and it really happened in France and Algeria between 1856 and 1857 (though Moore has changed the names of those involved in order to craft his fictionalized version of events).

I can also say the Emperor’s plan involves a head-to-head competition between Christian and Muslim theologies and worldviews, which is particularly interesting in light of the turmoil that same clash of worldviews is causing to this day.

Read the book to see just how far some went in their efforts to subjugate another sovereign people; read it to be amazed and provoked by the thought they would do such a thing and the thought that we’re still fighting many of the same battles today.

But don’t read this novel expecting a satisfying journey of fully-developed characters, full of surprise and who, ultimately, experience real growth. Emmeline starts the story as an insecure, vaguely dissatisfied woman unable to connect with her husband or his work; by the end of the story she is perhaps slightly less insecure, but is just as dissatisfied; Henri begins as an ambitious and oblivious husband and he’s largely unchanged by the end of the story; Emmeline’s is a “fish-out-of-water” experience as she moves from her quiet country existence to the world of the French Royal Court and then to the exoticism of Algeria, but she doesn’t truly ever develop a sense of comfort in these new environments and, in the end, she retreats back to her comfort zone. These characters follow closely the course traced by the real people they’re based on and Moore seems constrained, limited, by his awareness of the historical basis of his story. Ironically, as a result, The Magician’s Wife is mildly interesting, but it doesn’t transport—frankly, it lacks magic. show less

Emmeline Lambert is the young wife of the most famous magician in France, Henri Lambert. When he wooed her, he performed daily in his own Paris theatre, he flattered her and his life was exciting. Emmeline married Henri despite her father's protests. Eight years later, Henri retired from the stage young and moved his household to the country, where he works on his inventions. Emmeline has had two miscarriages, and though she doesn't believe she is still in love with her husband, she resents that he neglects her.
In their quiet life comes an enormous honor, and invitation to join a week long party at the Emperor's. While Emmeline realizes that she isn't a part of the aristocratic world, Henri leaps at the chance to gain more prestige, and show more so they go. Why Napoleon III would want both the magician and his wife to attend is revealed in time, but Emmeline sees a benefit to herself, as she decides that a dashing Colonel will be her way of getting back at Henri for his neglect.

I've read several of Moore's novels, yet this is the only one that fell flat for me towards the end. Emmeline began as a rather sympathetic character, unhappy, bored and lonely, though so introverted that she was afraid to go to the country estate. She became so angry at the why she was being manipulated by the men around her that she actually commits a selfish, traitorous act, one that puts thousands of lives at immediate risk, in the name of relieving her guilt. show less

This is the first Brian Moore novel I have read and, it appears, it was the last novel he wrote.

I picked it up in a bargain bookstore and bought it as a first sampling of Brian Moore’s writing. The picture on the cover and the title led me to believe it was a medieval murder mystery but I was wrong. I discovered I was wrong in quite a pleasant way.

As I started reading the book I realised it was set in 1850s France and written, as the title might suggest, from the viewpoint of a woman married to a magician. As the story unfolded I learnt that the magician and his wife lived near Tours, the magician had a workshop where he had people make items to his design, and that he was marvellous at making automata. This was enough information show more to raise my suspicions. The details of the magician’s life struck me as familiar. Although the character of the magician in the book is called Harry Lambert his life reminded me of the details I had learnt during my visits to “La Maison de la Magie” (The house of the magician) in Blois, France, less than an hour’s drive East of Tours.

La Maison de la Magie is a museum containing the magic and automata of the great French magician Robert-Houdin, the man who so impressed another young magician that he used the name Houdini for his stage name, in honour of the French master.

It took very little effort in this Internet day to discover that Brian Moore had based his character on Robert-Houdin and that the main action of the story was based on Robert-Houdin’s journey to Algeria at the request of Napoleon III to impress the local population with his magic tricks and to undermine the local religious leaders who were drumming up resistance to France and claiming to work miracles.

Moore has played around with some of the facts of the journey to France, but the basic story is relatively intact. At the end of the day the novel is fiction, but with the aid of readily available material on the Internet I was able to see where the fact ended and the fantasy began.

This was an enjoyable read and I feel anyone wanting to get a sense of life in the court of Napoleon III could do worse than read this book. Reading this prompted me to delve into the history of Algeria a little more and a book that does that cannot be regarded as bad. show less

Honestly a disappointment. I was expecting so much more from this.

First of all, I hated that the switches between first and third person were so sudden and unannounced. Not even a change in typeset like italics to denote it.

Secondly, while the plot itself is very intriguing, I honestly just felt let down by the ending. I felt like there was much more that could be done.

That being said I did like the fact that Emmeline falls in love with a culture outside of her own and how she views the people of Algeria. And Moore doesn't fall trap to describing female characters in strange ways as some male authors tend to do.

Henri Lambert is a stage magician who is recruited by Napoleon III to go to North Africa on a mission that is vital to France's colonial aspirations.

Emmeline, his wife, is sent with him. She ultimately makes a decision that could ruin the mission and destroy her husband and their marriage.

This book was not great, but it was interesting and enjoyable.