The second part of The Bartimaeus Trilogy, “The Golem’s Eye” continues the story began in “The Amulet of Samarkand”. Like the first instalment, the majority of the action is set in a mostly recognisable London – admittedly, with a few noticeable changes. The Empire (which still exists), having already defeated the Czech Republic, is now considering war with the North American colonies. All the same, some Czech spies are still operating in England, and the Czech immigrant community is viewed with suspicion. Magicians have been the ruling class since Gladstone’s time, holding all positions of power. Rather than wands and potions, these magicians derive their power from their ability to summon and control a variety of demons – for example, afrits, djinn and imps. Meanwhile the non-magical human masses are referred to as commoners – some of whom have formed a very troublesome resistance.

Nearly three years have passed since the events of “The Amulet of Samarkand”. Nathaniel (more widely known as John Mandrake) is now apprenticed to Jessica Whitwell, the Security Minister, and works at the Department of Internal Affairs. His boss, Julius Tallow, is a typical magician : cruel, arrogant and self-serving, he would happily throw another (such as Nathaniel) to the wolves if it meant saving his own hide. (These same qualities, with extra ambition, have also become more pronounced in Nathaniel). However, since Tallow has more problems than he’s aware of, Nathaniel’s main rivals are the Chief of Police (Henry Duvall) and his assistant (Jane Farrar).

Nathaniel has been put in charge of pursuing the Resistance, a group of commoners who oppose the Magicians’ Rule. Generally, their attacks have been limited to small-scale thefts, nothing that would’ve left Nathaniel under any great pressure. However, the night before Founder’s Day (Gladstone’s Birthday), a number of shops are attacked and practically destroyed. Policemen were killed, while a number of demons and search spheres used in investigate are missing. However, there are no indications the attack involved the use of magic – although Nathaniel is far from convinced, the Resistance are the most obvious culprits. Under no illusion that results are required, he realises he has to summon Bartimaeus again.

Bartimaeus (the fourth-level djinn summoned by Nathaniel) is caustic, irreverent and hopelessly vain – he boasts about the walls he built at Uruk and Karnak, but never mentions his work at Jericho. While he wasn’t too fond of Nathaniel when they first met, he is even less impressed with his master in this book : in fact, he is determined to let Nathaniel down whenever and wherever possible. The last time the duo worked together, they briefly stumbled across three of the Resistance’s members – a small group, led by a girl called Kitty. In this instalment, they share the spotlight with Kitty – a commoner with a limited natural resistance to magic.

While Kitty’s introduction reduces the amount of time Bartimaeus features, it gives some indication of how the commoners are treated and why there is a Resistance. It means fewer wisecracks (Bartimaeus is the book’s funniest character), but it adds to the story and action significantly. The focus from one chapter to another switches between the characters, though the story never stalls. Stroud writes Nathaniel’s and Kitty’s stories (“Kitty and her parents watched him in silence”), while the djinni tells his own (“I could tell it was Prague as soon as I materialised”). “The Golem’s Eye” is very easily read and very enjoyable – but I would recommend starting with “The Amulet of Samarkand”.