Book links: Amazon, Goodreads

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Christopher Priest was born in Cheshire, England. He began writing soon after leaving school and has been a full-time freelance writer since 1968.

He has published eleven novels, four short story collections and a number of other books, including critical works, biographies, novelizations and children’s non-fiction.

Publisher: St. Martin's (Oct. 11, 1996) Length: 368 pages Formats: audiobook, ebook, hardcover, paperback 

Awards: Arthur C. Clarke Award Nominee (1996), James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction (1995), World Fantasy Award for Best Novel (1996)

The Prestige is full of twists and surprises. The story opens with Andrew Westley, manoeuvred into meeting a young woman who claims to have watched him die at her father’s hand when they were children. Say what? Anyway, the two dive into their respective families’ history and dig deeper into the written records of their ancestors, Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier.

The records reveal two stage magicians engaged in obsessive rivalry started in 1878 when Borden tried to expose Angier as a fraud during a seance. Angier’s pregnant wife got hurt in the process and lost their baby. Things got out of control for the two, and got crazy when each of them perfected an inexplicable feat of “bilocation” - the ability to appear in two places at the same time. The inability to comprehend how the other achieves the ‘prestige’—the moment the trick happens- fueled their mutual obsession.

Their relentless pursuit of greatness has disastrous consequences, and Priest takes his time to build the suspense. I loved watching their obsession with outdoing each other spiral out of control, and the story’s unique structure allows readers to experience certain events twice.

How?

Most of the story is told through journal entries of two prestidigitators engaged in a bitter and deadly feud. The novel works almost as an act of illusion - it tells the truth (or, rather, a version of the truth) while simultaneously misdirecting readers :)

Now, I’ve seen The Prestige adaptation and loved it. I wasn’t sure if the novel could still surprise me. The outline of the two versions is similar, but the book has better characterization and sheds more light on Augier’s point of view. It also adds a present-day struggle of Borden and Augier’s descendants. Andrew, for example, feels he has a twin brother, but his birth certificate contradicts it. Is he wrong?

Anyway, if you’ve seen the movie first, you’ll know most big twists. Will it decrease your enjoyment? I can’t promise anything, but it didn’t spoil the fun for me.

Some readers might say The Prestige is a slow burn, and they wouldn’t be entirely wrong. But trust me, every moment of buildup is worth it for the payoff you get in the end. Priest takes his time setting the stage, slowly ratcheting up the tension until it reaches a brilliant climax.

The characterization is simply extraordinary. The strength of the voice is unforgettable.

The Prestige is excellent. It tells an unputdownable story of obsession, deception, and blurred boundaries between reality and illusion.

Audiobook narration: Simon Vance has done a stellar job here. If you’re into audiobooks, I highly recommend this version of the story.