The Golem's Eye

The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 2

By: Jonathan Stroud

Narrated by: Simon Jones

Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

Two years have passed since young apprentice magician Nathaniel became famous by foiling the ruthless Simon Lovelace. Now 14, Nathaniel is ambitiously climbing the ranks of the magicians' government. The Prime Minister himself has placed Nathaniel in charge of capturing the Resistance, a group of unruly commoners working to undermine the magicians' empire. But after several failed attempts, Nathaniel is forced to admit he can't do it alone. With his career on the line, he reluctantly summons his only hope for success, the 5,000-year-old wise-cracking djinni Bartimaeus.

The duo is reunited just in time: the Resistance is growing more audacious than ever. And to make matters worse, a seemingly invulnerable clay golem is wreaking destruction throughout London, sending the entire city into pandemonium. With time running out, the young magician and his uncontrollable djinni must find the source of the golem's power, a task they quickly learn will involve much more than they ever anticipated.

In the ensuing chaos, Nathaniel and Bartimaeus will be chased through the streets of Prague, hunt a dancing skeleton across London's skyline, encounter the horror of the dreaded Night Police, and meet a surprising new ally. Together, these three will have to go head-to-head with the fearsome golem before the mysterious identity of its master is finally revealed.

©2004 Jonathan Stroud (P)2004 Random House, Inc. Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

Great Book!

Great story, engaging and funny. Fictional version of history where magicians and djinni have shaped events over time. Multiple perspectives let you see the ambitious, young magician Nathaniel, the dedicated rebel Kitty, and the witty djinni Bartimaeus try to navigate the dangers of a magical London.

amazing!

excellent! this book is so entertaining and a delight to listen to! I can't recommend this series enough!

You can’t help but like Bartimaeus

All in all great second book. I’m hoping the third one gets deeper into how the magicians figured out magic. But great book. Love the authors wit.

I fucking love this series

I’ve read this series and listened to this series tens of times. Please make more. I love Bartimaeus and this series so much. Please write more, Mr. Stroud.

Keeping up the excellent work.

Two years have passed since the events of Amulet of Samarkand. Nathaniel, now called John Mandrake to his colleagues, is a member of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the same department formerly headed by his late former master, the cowardly Arthur Underwood. Now apprenticed to a new master, Jessica Whitwell, Nathaniel is currently involved in a mostly fruitless hunt for a group of rogue commoners known as the Resistance, who wage small attacks on Magicians' dwellings and businesses to steal magical objects which they hope to use to eventually overthrow the cruel government. That operation is sidelined by a series of attacks on London by an unknown and seemingly invulnerable creature. Finding himself in peril of his life, Nathaniel summons the Djinni Bartimaeus, who discovers that the creature responsible for the destruction of many London businesses is a Golem,, sending Nathaniel to the ancient city of Praague, where such magic originated.
As with Amulet, narrator Simon Jones does an excellent job of narrating, bringing life to old and new characters alike, from Kitty Jones to the Afrit Honorius. If you haven't read this series yet, you definitely should. It may take a bit of getting used to since the magic isn't as pure as in, say, Harry Potter, but it's definitely innovative and interesting.

FANTASTIC!!!!

This is probably the BEST audiobook I have ever listened to. The story is fantastic and the NARRATION by Simon Jones sets the standard for all others to be judged against. I probably have 100 audiobooks in my collection and you quickly learn to follow the NARRATOR almost as much if not more than the author. Simon Jones is the best I have heard so far. In this trilogy Jonathan Stroud gives Simon Jones a fantastic story to bring to life....I just can't say enough about the story or the narrator....

chatper breakdown bad

Chapter breakdown was bad, they got lazy and added more chapters in one, was expecting better. However overall really great narration and story!

Beautifully written, brilliantly read

Would you consider the audio edition of The Golem's Eye to be better than the print version?

In the print version, the addition of the footnotes is obvious--and they are too funny to skip. However, I found that including the footnotes in the spoken narrative was handled well by the narrator and they enhanced the story differently.

What did you like best about this story?

One of the best things that occurs throughout this series is the development of the characters. I am often frustrated by young characters that never learn from experience or change as they mature. These characters are moved by their lives; their experiences make them different.

Great magician series

As the middle book of the series, there are many story lines to follow. I was excited when the author developed Kitty's character in this book, she ended up as my favorite character. You also see how the pressures of their world change both Kitty and Nathanial in very different ways.

The author wraps up part of the mystery again, but not quite all of it, to leave you wanting more!

Spectacular use of language

We loved the reader! Book sometimes confusing to follow but overall great story for family eu h 8 year old.