The Darkness That Comes Before vs The Magician's Nephew: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Fantasy fiction, Science Fiction, Fiction
The Darkness That Comes Before
Strikingly original in its conception, ambitious in scope, with characters engrossingly and vividly drawn, the first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a remarkable world from whole cloth—it's…
vs
The Magician's Nephew
Digory let out a scream. “What's happened to Polly?” “Congratulate me, my dear boy,” said Uncle Andrew, rubbing his hands. “My experiment has succeeded. The little girl's gone – vanished – right out of this world.” When…
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- The Magician's Nephew is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 10 for The Darkness That Comes Before.
- The Magician's Nephew has the widest readership — 626885 ratings behind its score.
- The Magician's Nephew runs the darker storyline; The Darkness That Comes Before stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Want a one-evening read?
The Magician's Nephew
≈ 3h vs 10h for The Darkness That Comes Before
New to the genre?
The Magician's Nephew
Light vs Moderate for The Darkness That Comes Before
In the mood for something dark?
The Magician's Nephew
a darker storyline than The Darkness That Comes Before
Want something lighter?
The Darkness That Comes Before
an easier tone than The Magician's Nephew
Scores by source
| The Darkness That Comes Before | The Magician's Nephew | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 4.1 (626885) |
| Hardcover | 3.9 (138) | 3.8 (1060) |
| Google Books | — | 5.0 (1) |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (44) | 4.5 (1255) |
Reception
| The Darkness That Comes Before | The Magician's Nephew | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 138 | 626885 |
| Editions | 3 | 163 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 178681 |
| Pages | 589 | 171 |