The Magician of Lhasa

I really enjoyed this book. Michie writes with authority on Tibetan Buddism and the life of the monks there with the tragic background of the Chinese takeover of Tibet. An engrossing story line with unexpected links.

This was a fascinating story that was well written and held my attention. The storyline alone was worth the read, but the content also opened my mind and heart. I love growing while being told a tale. Thank you David.

This exquisite story of two lives converging is skillfully woven from the first to last page. Incorporating Buddhist principles into the story, the reader is not only entertained but also enlightened. There are many phrases I underlined and will re read again and again,,

The story bridges two time periods and does so elegantly. It switches between Tibet at the time of the cultural revolution and the modern western world and in doing so it manages to capture the nuances of Tibetan Buddhism in both times. I could see through the plot early on but the book still kept me engrossed. It's a fairly decent thriller and a nice, quick read...

I am a fan of nonfiction, occasionally a change of pace courtesy of John Grisham, Tom Clancy...enjoy getting involved with the characters & plot. This book offered me something new. While it is a novel, it delivers mysterious gifts that when unwrapped, reveal a "truth". Woven through the book is an invitation to pause and consider the character or situation from a place that offers much more than entertainment, though there is plenty of that! It flows for as long as I like, then provides a rest stop..a quiet place for contemplation. I would love to see more books like this. I am entertained AND taught. Thank you David Michie.

Very insightful and beautiful wordings worth highlighting and applying in one's life. Recommended to all who are spiritually inclined. End of the day it is all about performing good actions in this life to be transformed in later lives & eventually leave this cycle of birth & rebirth.

So glad I read this book---and walked past the pedestrian voices in my head that said "Just another book about western greed vs eastern enlightenment." What a delightful journey, full of suspense and surprises. Read with an open heart.

An excellent book. The author has skillfully weaved very profound Buddhist teachings into the story. One will come to the end of the book feeling uplifted and a sense of spiritual experience. Highly recommend it!

I learned a lot about Buddhist philosophy and belief from reading this book. The storyline was very entertaining and thought provoking and I was sad when it came to an end.

I've now read a few of David Michie's books and I plan to read everything that he has written.

While I enjoyed several parts of the book especially the portions set in Tibet I couldn't help feeling cheated and let down at the end of it! Firstly, I am not really a fan of dual plot lines in faster paced narratives. They slow the mind down. In this particular book I felt that a large part of the modern-day narrative was irrelevant to the storyline. Secondly, several loose ends could have been tied up by the author to make for a complete, well packaged storyline. Did Matt deliver the texts? What happens when he meets his old teacher? Where does Alice get to? Clearly these tidbits are being reserved for a sequel! Not fair Mr Michie!

There are two story lines, and I found myself wanting to learn more about both of them. Although I knew all along that the two stories would connect, I was totally surprised at how the two came together. Surprised and impressed. This is a wonderful novel, but also a good motivational read for anyone interested in greater happiness and peace.

Once I opened this book and started reading it, I couldn't put it down. I thoroughly enjoyed every single page. I'm in hopes that a sequel is in the works. Move over Dan Brown, David Michie is on the scene.

This was an excellent book and I hope the author writes many more like this. The story is a good story in itself but gently pulls the reader into Dharma knowledge along the way. A great intro to Buddhism. I really loved this book!

Disappointing. Cardboard, stereotypical characters including the idea-stealing, greedy, corporate, billionaire CEO who gets his in the end. Completely predicatble with no surprises and a couple dangling storylines at the end. Do not look here to learn about Buddhism; read books by Red Pine instead. You won't find out anything about quantum physics either for that matter.

I am interested in everything about Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism so the premise of this book sounded perfect for my taste. However I was disappointed at the stereotypical characters and the presentation of the Tibetan Buddhist philosophy in simplistic new agey soundbites (and avoiding the less palatable aspects of vajrayana).

This book has double story lines, one set in Tibet in 1959 (during the Chinese invasion) and another in 2007 in London and LA. The Tibet story concerns the efforts of a lama and his two young students to smuggle some precious ancient Buddhist texts out of Tibet to save them from destruction by the Chinese soldiers. The modern story follows a young couple as they relocate in LA from London when the man accepts a fabulous job offer from a tech company. Inevitably and preposterously the two story lines of course intersect. Multiple story lines seem to have become a fad of our times and many writers employ it as if it were the 11th commandment. In the context of the overall story in this book however, the structure seemed appropriate.

Between the two, I didn't find the modern (Matt and Isabella) story line all that interesting. On top of that (or maybe because) the characters came across as both banal and insincere. I also felt there was a lot of extra padding stuffed in there for no apparent reason other than to add more pages to the manuscript (so that it approached the magical 300). For the record, the quantum physics related passages are very few and uninformative and if the writer really wanted to make a claim about parallels between the explanations of quantum physics and the Dharma, I'm not sure why his protagonist had to work in nanotechnology instead.. A quantum physicist getting a cool job offer from the UCLA could have possibly worked just as well, if not better.. And by the way, which wine enthusiast (especially after a deep search on the internet about the subject) would decide to move to LA to get a job in the wine industry but would be surprised to find out after the move that the heart of the Californian wine industry instead beats in the Napa Valley near SF..?! And also, in the story the name of Isabella's supposedly typical Sicillian father is Julio.. Unfortunately for him, this is a classic Spanish name, not Italian. The Italian counterpart is Giulio. Sloppy research? It is things like these that prevented me from immersing myself in their story.

The Tibet story line, on the other hand, was much more absorbing and believable within its world and context. I enjoyed this story and would have preferred it to be expanded and honestly, to be the whole book. It is, in fact, the heart and soul of the book and makes the other time line look worse than it is. All the philosophical points could have been made within the Tibet story anyway.

On that note, I see that some have found this book deeply philosophical but I found it superficial on that level and somewhat evangelically patronizing as the writer drills in his points without any pretensions of decorum.

Overall, despite the cool Tibet story line and some thought provoking nuggets of wisdom from the wise monks, I see the book as a missed opportunity. It feels like Mr. Michie thought the readers would be bored if he just stuck to a story set in Tibet with monks so he slapped in a modern couple living in LA faced with not uncommon relationship issues and a greedy venture capitalist. I would like to see Mr. Michie write more fantastic stories set in Tibet (which he seems to have a keen interest in and respect for) rather than in modern day LA and the world of corporate intrigue. There are many other writers already squeezing that lemon. Ditto for self-help books for pseudo Buddhists with cheesy titles:
- Hurry Up And Meditate: Your Starter Kit For Inner Peace And Better Health
- Buddhism For Busy People: Finding Happiness In An Uncertain World

Maybe he should decide if he wants to be a serious fiction writer or a self-help book peddler..

'nuff said..

An avid fan of stories that include spirituality in one form or another, I really savored this book.

The Magician of Llasa includes two story lines - one about three monks fleeing Tibet during the 1959 Chinese invasion, and the second a modern-day scientist whose life and relationship begins to fall apart when he moves from London to California. Eventually the two stories converge in interesting and unexpected ways.

Following the stories of the monks and the scientist, the reader also learns about basic Buddhist premises and practice, a way to live in the world in a more balanced, peaceful state.

The relationship of the scientist with his hot Italian girlfriend was a bit overdone for me, making those parts seem more like a romance novel than an understanding of Buddhist practice and it is only for this reason that I give it 4 stars.

David Michie creates two very different place/times -- Tibet in 1959 and Los Angeles in 2007.

The story of each begins with a serious disruption of the main characters' lives, both exciting adventures and loss of the familiar and precious.

As the stories continue, they seem to have very little to do with each other. How are two brothers who are novice Buddhist monks and their teacher escaping from the Red Chinese Army in 1959 related to a quantum physicist and his marketing executive fiancee moving from London to LA in 2007?

The two stories are suspenseful enough that the question never seems to arise. As the seemingly ideal life in LA unravels and the adventure in Tibet becomes more terrifying than exciting the only question in the reader's mind is "What will happen next?", "How will these people whose lives have become so real to us escape disaster?"

The twists and turns finally resolve in ways that are totally unexpected but entirely right and satisfying.

I think this tidbit, from the publishers website, can give you a bit of insight to what this book has in store... "Trapdoor Books believes that by giving a new voice to authors without imposing overtly commercial constraints on their work, the stranglehold of formulaic writing can be broken and the world of fiction, along with the real world, can provide a better and more rewarding experience for all of us." Wow!

I believe wholeheartedly they, Trapdoor Books being the "they", have truly broken the mold with this book. Not only is the idea fresh, but it's fiction, not a manual on Buddhism or meditation. Maybe I am just not as aware, but I believe there aren't many "Buddhist" themed fictional works out there, and if I'm wrong point me in the right direction.

That being said, I haven't sat down and read a book this quickly in a while. The story is laid out in two separate tales, each running concurrently, it seems at first, throughout the book. The first story introduces us to a young and upcoming nano-technology scientist named Matt Lester. Matt's claim to fame is a project titled Nanobot, which sparks interest from an overseas investor who is willing to move Matt, and his girlfriend, to the US to broaden the horizon of the project. After much chagrin he is able to convince said girlfriend to move away from her family and trust in his and her own career. The future is bright, or so it seems...

The second storyline transports us to 1959 during the Red Army invasion of Tibet. We are acquainted to Tenzin Dorje, a young and novice Tibetan monk. After news reaches his monastery, his Lama sets in motion a plan that the monks in the monastery had been fearing, yet planning for, many years ahead of the invasion. Tenzin, his brother Palden as well as his teacher are given the task of "smuggling" ancient Dharma scrolls out of Tibet so that they not fall in the hands of the Chinese, but also to fulfill a prophecy left behind by Padmasambhava himself.

As we follow the struggles that the three have in escaping Tibet, Matt has a chance encounter, albeit it at 3am, with a Tibetan monk who resides across the street from the new place he and his girlfriend move into. This sets up our path to the conclusion of the book, little by little hints are given as to how both stories intersect.

The only negative about this book is the fact it ended. I really enjoyed this story and hope that there will be a second installment? Maybe a series? Anyone at Trapdoor, is this gonna happen? Please?!?

This novel combines a great adventure of escape from Tibet with a love story, corporate greed and a mind blowing revelation. Perhaps the most unusual book I have read in a long time. I could not put it down.

So, how do you communicate an esoteric philosophy to a Western audience - and in an entertaining way?

You do it with 'The Magician of Lhasa'.

Now most of the information in this book is not foreign to me. I was part of the 'Be Here Now' generation of the 60s. But books on Buddhism like those of Alan Watts and others, though entertaining, did not get across the concept of Buddhism in such a pleasurable and meaningful way as this one.

Michie weaves a tale both ancient and modern and speaks to us today. So curl up with the Magician and go on an adventure in Buddhist philosophy that is as true now as it was hundreds of years ago.

The book is enjoyable to the extent that it keeps you absorbed in a fast moving story. However, the plot and characters are loose and the details about Buddhism very ordinary. The plot on more than one occasion sounds abrupt e.g. the protagonist getting convinced of his Buddhist life and the ending is vague e.g. what finally happened to scrolls? It is not much of an introduction to Buddhism as well.

It does score in fast narrative and getting some key values of humanity communicated to end user. The frailty of everyday life and presence of larger consciousness is put across, an important message in today's life.
Worth a read but it would be good not to expect much.

If you like Dan Brown books then you'll love this excellent book. I found the first 50 pages to be a little sluggish but the rest was thrilling, suspenseful and enthralling. It's not often that you find Buddhist fiction, let alone one that actually provides some meaningful Buddhist teachings within the story-line. It's a page turner and you'll burn through it quickly. I read most of it during an airplane from Atlanta to Denver. It explores mystical teachings and has a driving plot that will keep your full attention. I highly recommend it for those who like their fiction a little more educational and not just "empty, literary calories." A must read for any Buddhist and those who just like a smart work of fiction and a good story. If you like a good page turner then this is a book you'll not want to miss. A must read!!

One of the best books I have read. You know that feeling when you cannot put it down but then you realize that you have only few pages left?? So you have no idea what to do because you do not want it to end...

I have never been one to meditate. I even used to laugh at meditating people... but now it all makes perfect sense!

I loved every moment of reading this book! As a Westerner who has studied Buddhism for many years, I admired the author's ability to deftly touch on the subjects that can seem to create a schism between scientific thought and ancient Eastern wisdom. Developing characters and situations that most of us can relate to, as well as creating suspense and mystery that keeps us enthralled, the author has delivered a book that will appeal to Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. Nanotechnology and Buddhism may seem to be worlds apart, but this book opens the door for readers to peek into the ways that each re-inforce the truth of reality. I'm hoping for a sequel!

David Michie writes in a style of a suspense novel - but this is so much more. This book actually imparts knowledge and connects dots without getting "cheesy" - whithout sounding false and with a humbleness that is astounding.
Commercial yes - but fake, NO!
A book to make you feel the magic of life as you live through the pages of the intervowen stories of 3 monks and two western careerists.
I am very very impressed with this work - and I am one person who does not even like reading fiction.
David's research for this book is selfexperienced, of that I have no doubt. Which means he has a good distance to himself and the world.
I really wish from the bottom of my heart for this book to become a smash-hit!
BUY it - its worth it!

I really enjoyed reading The Magician of Llasa -- it moves quickly and easily and shuttles nicely between two very different worlds -- Tibet and high technology/ California. I didn't guess the ending and enjoyed almost all of the characters. The dialog overall flows a lot better than the narrated exchanges in most best sellers. The story is upbeat and in its own charming way, thought provoking. The book doesn't try to be "War and Peace," and it's not, but it's likely to bring you a few happy evenings -- and put your work day squarely behind you.

David Michie seamlessly weaves 1950's Tibet with high tech LA today to make for addictive page turning reading. The story of two parallel lives, a Buddhist monk and a scientist are so entertaining and the pace so thrilling that I was up until the early hours of the morning. The characters seep into your bones and you feel the adrenaline of the escape through the mountains just as much as the treachery of the corporate bully. The sleep deprivation was certainly worth it! Highly recommended.

I didn't want to put this book down. I had to go to sleep but even then I dreamt about it. Like the modern day character in Michie's novel I found myself gently but very persuasively drawn into a parallel universe of corporate intrigue and ancient wisdom - a well-tried combination but in Michie's hands it was given a unique twist. It's rare to find an action novel that delivers on the level of plot, characterisation and themes and this book does that. I usually read the more literary crime novelists and 'Magician' is up there. I also read literary relationship writers (Richard Powers anyone?) and again Michie is up there in terms of believable characters. I recommend this to readers of either genre and others! Ted Biringer's review is spot on and I'm glad other readers are enjoying it.

The Magician of Lhasa is a very quick read and kept my attention. I loved learning more about Tibetan Buddhism and the political situation around China's invasion of Tibet through this fictional story. The lessons learned by the 1950s monk are transferred to a 2000's scientist. The parallels are intriguing. I have recommended this book to several friends.

I just finished reading David Michie's The Magician of Lhasa. I write this review, bleary-eyed from reading through the night. This thriller is a unique combination of hard science and deep spirituality wrapped in a well-written thriller that seems to turn the page for you, refusing to let you put it down. Bravo, Mr. Michie! I need to sleep now.

I didn't want to put this book down. I had to go to sleep but even then I dreamt about it. Like the modern day character in Michie's novel I found myself gently but very persuasively drawn into a parallel universe of corporate intrigue and ancient wisdom - a well-tried combination but in Michie's hands it was given a unique twist. It's rare to find an action novel that delivers on the level of plot, characterisation and themes and this book does that. I usually read the more literary crime novelists and 'Magician' is up there. I also read literary relationship writers (Richard Powers anyone?) and again Michie is up there in terms of believable characters. I recommend this to readers of either genre and others! Ted Biringer's review is spot on and I'm glad other readers are enjoying it.

The Magician of Lhasa is a very quick read and kept my attention. I loved learning more about Tibetan Buddhism and the political situation around China's invasion of Tibet through this fictional story. The lessons learned by the 1950s monk are transferred to a 2000's scientist. The parallels are intriguing. I have recommended this book to several friends.

I just finished reading David Michie's The Magician of Lhasa. I write this review, bleary-eyed from reading through the night. This thriller is a unique combination of hard science and deep spirituality wrapped in a well-written thriller that seems to turn the page for you, refusing to let you put it down. Bravo, Mr. Michie! I need to sleep now.