The Magician's Study

Passing itself off as the spiel of an articulate tour guide, Seamon's ingenious first novel takes the reader on a guided perambulation through the study of fictional Jazz Age magician Robert "The Great" Rouncival. With the presentation of each piece of memorabilia, another episode from the late magician's life is revealed, from his youth in upstate New York to running away to join a ragtag carnival to his rise as an eccentric, often devilishly macabre illusionist in Manhattan's licentious Bowery during the Roaring Twenties. Sharing in Rouncival's fortunes and frequent setbacks is Sherpa, a reformed Cuban pirate and, like his master, an inveterate ladies' man. Together the two craft stunning illusions, romance a famous heiress, achieve worldwide fame, and rub elbows with the likes of Dutch Schultz, Frida Kahlo, and the most notorious magician of all, Houdini. Seamon's stylistic inventiveness and skill with memorable characterizations are nothing short of breathtaking. Rouncival and his colorful entourage herald the arrival of a major new talent. Carl Hays
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