Bartimaeus: The Ring of Solomon [Paperback]

The first Bartimaeus trilogy was one of the best reading experiences of the last ten years for me. Not only did I devour Amulet of Samarkand without a break after finding it in my local library, I went out searching for the next two as soon as I had finished, and when my library didn't have Ptolemey's Gate I bought it. Read all of them straight through, got bleary-eyed, paid for it the next morning, and loved every minute.

When I learned about the Ring of Solomon, the return of Bartimaeus, I worried about whether Stroud might have lost his touch. Maybe you have too.

Don't.

This book has just the same feel as the previous ones. Although the events happen about 3,000 years before the time of the luckless Nathaniel, the tone and pace and characterization are just as driving, vivid, and entrancing as before. None of the human characters carries over, of course, but Faqarl is there, as well as a few of the stunts about which Bartimaeus will later brag, and some about which he was already bragging, 3,000 years ago. The human characters continue to be three-dimensional, which means they are mixed bags: no one is entirely noble or good, but only a few are truly evil, and then only in very believable (read: power-mad) ways. Most of them are people who act out of good motives but with limited foresight, or with great wisdom but imperfect morality, or wisely and with good motives but insufficient trust in their friends. In other words, they are a little too human for comfort.

And the plot and pacing just swallowed me up and pulled me along, page after page. Stroud's writing style is just wonderful. I wish he were more prolific - but only if this meant NO lowering of his quality. Among other things, I think he's just great at writing scenes of tension between major characters. He is equally good at writing scenes in which major characters are talking, but are misunderstanding each other, or coming at their interaction from totally different points of view (which the reader grasps, but they do not). Just outstanding writing.

Upshot: Glad I ordered it from a foreign distributor, to get it early. It was worth the premium I paid. Hearty endorsement, and dare I hope there will be even more? Bartimaeus and John Dee, or Bartimaeus and Nicolas Flamel - or Bartimaeus and Bodhidarma? Please? Mr. Stroud, are you listening?

I've been a fan of Stroud's other books for years, including his Bartimaeus Trilogy and his standalone novel Heroes of the Valley. So naturally I was a little worried that this new novel might not be as good or engaging as some of his past since it's been so long since Stroud's last release. But I have to say I wasn't disappointed in the slightest with The Ring of Solomon.

The Ring of Solomon takes place in the time of King Solomon, back from the stories of the old testament. Of course Stroud doesn't just give us a bland retelling of the stories of King Solomon instead he puts his own twist on the stories using everyone's favorite djinni, Bartimaeus, to still up trouble, make insulting yet humorous wisecracks, and cause overall general mayhem.

Personally, I found Asmira a much easier and more interesting lead human character to read than Nathaniel. But the true star in all of these books continues to be Bartimaeus. He is still the mischievous, wise cracking, character that we came to love in the previous books. Stroud does a fantastic job of reestablishing Bartimaeus's character though, so new readers of the series wont be lost by any of Bartimaeus's remarks or style.

As for the other human characters they are all 3-D and interesting. My personal favorite was King Solomon, I was genuinely surprised with some of the twists Stroud had in there for the king, and I really enjoyed them. There are some "evil" characters, but to be honest, Stroud does a fantastic job making sure his characters are complex enough that they are able to surprise even loyal fans of Stroud's other books.

As for plot twists The Ring of Solomon has plenty to entertain and keep readers on their toes. Nothing new for fans of the previous series.

But the real important aspect to take away from this is that fans of the previous Bartimaeus books will love this book. Side remarks detailing Bartimaeus`s exploits from the previous books are described in much fuller detail, characters such as Faqarl make a fun guest appearance, and the footnotes are so hilarious that anyone with a pulse should love them. These aspects and other positive points really tie the books together, making the overall experience that much richer.

All in all while I was originally scared the book wasn't going to live up to its predecessors, this fear was wholly disproved. The Ring of Solomon is a fun exciting book with likable characters, a good pace, and enough twists and turns to keep fans interested. Not only that but this prequel to the series does a fantastic job making it possible for new and old fans of the series to enjoy and understand many of the jokes and plot lines. All in all a great book.

[...]

Fans of Jonathan Stroud's fantastic Bartimeus Trilogy, that began with The Amulet of Samarkand and ended with Ptolemy's Gate, will be happy to know that the title character--the wise-cracking fourth-level djinn who has long-standing issues with authority--is back and funny as ever in the Ring of Solomon.

Rather than continue the story of the first trilogy, though, or give us a typical "here's what happened just before" prequel, Stroud has chosen to set this new story thousands of years earlier during the time of, well, Solomon (the title's a bit of a giveaway). Luckily, when your main character is basically immortal, that isn't a problem. Bartimeus' favorite bete noir Faquarl, a fellow djinn with whom he's matched insults and blows with for millennia, is back as well. Otherwise, we've an entirely new setting and a whole new cast of characters. Since Bartimeus was the absolute strength of the trilogy, though, the loss of the others makes little difference.

The book opens in Jerusalem, where Bartimeus and Faquarl have been summoned into the service of a cruel Egyptian magician, Khaba, who is in service himself to King Solomon. Years ago Solomon discovered a magic ring of immense power that allows him to summon untold numbers of minor and major spirits, as well as the Spirit of the Ring itself--a forbiddingly powerful demon. Solomon uses the threat of the ring to gather around himself a cadre of magicians whose summoned demons he employs to build his temple, help his people, and cow neighboring realms. One such realm is Sheba, whose queen has several times now rejected Solomon's marriage proposal.

The Ring of Solomon follows several plotlines. One is Bartimeus' trouble in behaving while under the whip (literally) of Khaba, who has his own powerful and mysterious demon protector. Bartimeus' troubles with Khaba open up another storyline as the two, along with Faquarl, get sent into the hinterlands to deal with the bandits that have been ambushing caravans. There, Bartimeus meets Asmira, a Queen's Guard from Sheba who has been sent on a suicide mission to assassinate Solomon and steal his ring. Her attempt to do so, and Bartimeus' involvement, makes up much of the latter half of the book.

As with the earlier trilogy, Bartimeus' voice--he narrates the entire book--is the reason to read this book. Oh, the story itself is more than adequate. There are some twists and turns, a few surprising developments. Asmira develops as a character in realistic and by the end moving fashion. But it's that singular sarcastic boasting footnoting narcissistic voice that carries you along. Whether he's namedropping ("When I was spear-bearer to Gilgamesh"), regaling the reader with his exploits ("your truly forgetfully popping out to buy some figs in the guise of a rotting corpse, thus causing the Great Fruit Market Terror"), or even offering up cooking advice ("one roc's egg, scrambled, feeds roughly 700 wives") it's a voice you can help but get sucked in by.

I laughed out loud on several occasions, read lines and passages to my wife on others, and simply reveled in the voice the rest of the time. Stroud tempers the sarcasm with a true warmth in the tone, as Bartimeus plays the gruff demon who hates all humans (he does, in fact, eat one in the novel), but even Faquarl calls him out on his act: "This has always been your trouble! Getting all softheaded over a human just because she's got a long neck and a steely eye."

In the trilogy, Bartimeus was a major character, but one of several and he had to share the narrative spotlight. With The Ring of Solomon, Stroud has stripped down the characters and streamlined the plot--making this by the way more YA than the trilogy--, letting Bartimeus' voice shine on every page. It doesn't have the depth or complexity of the earlier books, but it is no less enjoyable for that. Highly recommended and hoping for more. After all, there's a gap of a few thousand years to fill in between this book and the first of the trilogy--lots of time and opportunity for Bartimeus to get in more trouble.

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