The Last Days of Magic introduces us to unforgettable characters who grapple with quests for power, human frailty, and the longing for knowledge that has been made taboo. Mark Tompkins has crafted a remarkable tale-a feat of world-building that poses astonishing and resonant answers to epic questions.
Mark Tompkins is the founder of the Aspen Writers' Network and serves on the board of Aspen Words, a program of the Aspen Institute. Born in Texas of Irish ancestry, Tompkins lives in Boston, Houston, and Aspen. The Last Days of Magic is his first novel.
Praise for The Last Days of Magic
"A fantastical treat."
—People
“Reading The Last Days of Magic is like playing a well-constructed
video game. There’s a fantastic world . . . and an exciting
storyline. Set as a battle between wild-and-free ancient Magic and
aggressive Religion bent on absolute control, the action focuses on
Ireland, designated as the last place on Earth where real magic
(known as Ardor) still flourishes in its natural form. . . . An
honest, beautifully detailed book and an entertaining read.”
—Diana Gabaldon, The Washington Post
“The Last Days of Magic is intricate, bold and memorable long after
you put it down. It succeeds in bringing magic and mythology to
life and . . . delivers a shimmer of optimism and the possibility
that magic is not quite dead.”
—New York Daily News
“A heady brew of Celtic and Biblical mythology with late medieval
political intrigue and warfare. . . . Tompkins combines deft
characterization with treachery, battle, magic, and hints of Dan
Brown.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Simultaneously sweeping and intricate, reaching all the way back
to the Dead Sea Scrolls and all the way forward to now, Tompkins’s
amazing debut novel conjures an epic battle for the soul of
Ireland. Filled with papal machination and royal intrigue, magic
and mayhem, faeries, Vikings, legates, kings and queens, angels and
goddesses, this is one wild and breathless ride.”
—Karen Joy Fowler
“Plundering the treasure chest of human myths, from mysterious
biblical giants to ferocious Celtic faeries, Tompkins has created a
fantasy adventure with the shifting perspectives of dreamscape. A
novel rich and strange.”
—Geraldine Brooks
“A wild grab bag of myth, history, folklore, and the fantastical,
The Last Days of Magic is the perfect read for a frozen evening by
the fire or a summer night in firefly country. It fills Ireland
with blood, monsters, and witchcraft, and fans of Deborah Harkness
and Erin Morgenstern will delight in it.”
—Maria Dahvana Headley
“A tightly wound adult fantasy epic, an engrossing thriller that
doesn’t skimp on historical detail. . . . While there’s enough
worldbuilding here to support a whole series, Tompkins demonstrates
you don’t need a multivolume saga to achieve lifelike detail and
epic scope.”
—Shelf Awareness
“Tompkins has woven together a beautiful tapestry, the warp and
weft a tumultuous crossing of pagan faith and Christian fervor. . .
. I highly recommend this book to any fan of epic
fantasy.”
—San Francisco Book Review
“An epic adventure . . . If you are a fan of Game of Thrones, then
this will certainly delight you. One of the best aspects of
this book is that there are wonderful female
characters. . . . All of the different stories are woven
together to create a rich tapestry of Ireland and a time gone
by.”
—Pondering the Prose
“The Last Days of Magic reminds me why I started to read fantasy.
Read it and get lost in the green woods of Eire and in the
mist of legends that still permeate Irish hills.”
—Libretto Reviews
“A half-goddess, a Vatican mercenary, kings, queens, warriors, and
faery creatures battle for control of Ireland in this historical
fantasy adventure. . . . Tompkins creates an intriguing world
stocked with colorful characters and rich with biblical and
mythological allusions.”
—Kirkus Reviews
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