Amulet Of Samarkand
Jonathan Stroud

Narrated By: Steven Pacey

Duration: 9 hours and 32 minutes

What to expect

The first volume in the brilliant, bestselling Bartimaeus sequence.

When the 5,000-year-old djinni Bartimaeus is summoned by Nathaniel, a young magician's apprentice, he expects to have to do nothing more taxing than a little levitation or a few simple illusions. But Nathaniel is a precocious talent and has something rather more dangerous in mind: revenge. Against his will, Bartimaeus is packed off to steal the powerful Amulet of Samarkand from Simon Lovelace, a master magician of unrivalled ruthlessness and ambition. Before long, both djinni and apprentice are caught up in a terrifying flood of magical intrigue, murder and rebellion.

Set in a modern-day London controlled by magicians, this hilarious, electrifying thriller will enthral readers of all ages.

Genre

Children's / Teenage fiction: Fantasy, Children's / Teenage fiction: Humorous stories

Listen to a sample

The narrative slips skilfully from first person to third and back and Bartimaeus's voice is laugh-out-loud sassy, while Nathaniel's story has an engaging poignancy as he tries to prove himself in a world in which he has always been despised

Not since Gulliver's Travels has a children's writer managed to combine a thrilling tale of magic and adventure with such deliciously pointed comedy

Drama, humour and hypnotically engaging storytelling

Terrific stuff

The truly original touch is the way Stroud alternates Nathaniel's story with the djinni's own knowing and irascible first-person narrative