I have absolutely no compunction in saying that Lev Grossman is one of the best new voices in fantasy today. I thought The Magicians was fantastic. It was a book that I stayed up until 4am on school nights, dragged myself through the day and went home and just read this book until it was over. I bawled at its climax, hardcore. Even if I found the denouement and ending a little dull, I absolutely loved The Magicians and I loved the little hints that openly reminded me of both Harry Potter and Narnia, among others.
The Magician King is no different. It was a fantastic read, and I love that it tells Julia's story. I love that Grossman is openly critical of Quentin (the sole protagonist in The Magicians), and I love that he shows that even if Quentin went to a fancy magic school, there are things that he simply does not know that Julia does. In The Magicians, Julia was the character who failed to get into Brakebills and simply doesn't occupy Quentin's attention much, even when she asks him for help because her world is falling apart. In The Magician King, Julia takes on a ferocious life of her own and I love it. I love how she shows that you didn't have to get accepted to a fancy magic school, I love how gritty her route to magic is, and I love how much she sacrificed to get where she is. She's not a perfect character - her flaws actually remind me a lot of Lisbeth Salander from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. She's anti-social, angry with Quentin because he could have helped her at one time and did not, angry because he got what she feels she deserved too, angry because she worked much harder for her magic that he did for his, angry because Quentin doesn't understand what she did to get magic and held himself above the lowly people who wrested it for themselves. I love the characters that Grossman develops.
The actual plot was interesting, but it was not a major strength of the book. The main plot reminded me a lot of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (as I am sure it was meant to). It was entirely the execution that impressed me. I did find switching continually between Julia's past and Quentin's story to be disconcerting, but only because I found Julia's story to be so much more compelling than the main plot.
Overall, I would definitely recommend The Magician King. Buy it. Borrow it. Don't steal it, but do read it.
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