I’m quickly becoming a fan of Kiersten White’s adult horror novels. I really enjoyed Hide when it came out and Mr. Magic continued to delight in the same vein. This book scratches a very particular itch, filled as it is with 90’s children’s programming nostalgia, lost media, and unreliable memories.

The basic plot (spoiler free!) is this, the main character Val, discovers she was a child star on an educational show Mr. Magic, back in the 90’s, however she has no memory of this and any concrete info about the show, like the director, filming locations, old re-runs are completely nonexistent. When old friends that she also doesn’t remember, her former costars, come back into her life, Val sets out to find out what really happened. Kiersten White has a gift for solid and memorable characterization. Everyone feels genuine and fleshed out and they interact and clash with each other in a way that feels believable and human. The author is also skilled at setting up interesting plots and then moving the action along at a steady clip, once this book gets going it does not let up. The one area I feel this book didn’t fully rise to my expectations is in the horror element. The initial premise is pretty creepy and suggests lots of unsettling possibilities, especially if you’re a fan of pop culture rabbit holes and lost media. However, for me it never really got beyond that in terms of horror. The story ended up being excellent, with a lot to say about childhood, parenting, and how even though some things will haunt us for the rest of our lives, we can overcome them and do better, but it wasn’t scary per se.

Overall this book was a great read, when I wasn’t reading it I was thinking about reading it and I wanted to get through the whole thing as soon as possible, the story was that good. In the end I wish it had leaned more into the unsettling horror elements that were present, but the ending was satisfying enough that I can’t really hold that against this book.