(2/9/2019 ETA: I saw Melissa Keil speaking at the Melbourne Writers Festival yesterday and she said that Sophia is Sri Lankan so she's definitely a diverse character and also that makes this Own Voices okay cool bye)

Oof. This was...yeah. I really REALLY wanted to love this book, because I adored The Incredible Adventures of Cinnamon Girl last year.

HOWEVER.

There was just something about this that didn't work for me.

The gist of the story is that Joshua has had a massive crush on Sophia since the start of year 7 but she doesn't even know he exists. Mostly because she's too busy being obsessed with maths and Doctor Who to notice. Also, she has extreme anxiety.

Which, great! Except that the entire book reads she's actually on the autism spectrum. , REALLY on the autism spectrum. And yet not a single character ever mentions this as even remotely being a possibility???

Anyway. Maybe she's not supposed to read as autistic. It just bugged me that it seemed SO OBVIOUS and characters kept being all "Nah, just anxiety" about it. You know?? (There's no "just" about anxiety, I know this. There's also not really an easy way to describe it otherwise, so go with it?? Please and thank you?)

I also had mixed feelings about how...romantically pushy Joshua was at times? , he wasn't making Sophia do anything she didn't want to do. But there were aaaaaaall these grand sweeping displays of love, and she was all "Sorry, who the fuck is Joshua?" It was liiiittle awkward and cringe-worthy.

I think I d every single supporting character more than I d the protagonists, which is less than ideal.

I had a LOT of very angry thoughts about Melbourne Uni being repeatedly referred to as "MU", because WHO THE HELL DOES THAT LITERALLY NO ONE THAT'S WHO.

There are......no parents in this book? , they're mentioned repeatedly. But I don't think Joshua's parents, Sophia's parents, or Elsie's parents ever actually show up on the page. Which is kind of weird?

There are repeated mentions of both Sophia and her brother, Toby, having brown skin, but that's really as far as it goes? So, , I don't know if they're meant to be diverse characters or they're just meant to be really tan white people???

So yeah. I was super excited about this one. But I just...didn't love it. Which makes me sad.2017 audience-young-adult australian ...more15 s Jananee (headinherbooks)202 321

I featured this book in a discussion on my blog “On Rating Diverse Books Higher: The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil” —> you can read it here

I was provided a ARC of this book by Hardie Grant Egmont in exchange for an honest review. However, this is no way affects my thoughts!

When I first picked up The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil, it was because it had an interesting premise and a beautiful cover (no shame). But then I started reading and I was hit with the fact that Sophia, our main character, was of Sri Lankan descent. For the first time in almost 21 years, I was quite literally seeing myself in a book and it almost brought me to tears. It is so rare to see PoC characters in contemporary YA fiction - and close to impossible for them to be South Asian - so to say that I was shocked (and low key jumping with joy) is an understatement.

Despite the fact that Australia is actually a very multicultural country, it is never reflected as such in the media, in films or in books and I applaud Melissa Keil for deciding to portray a very realistic Melbourne in her writing. Not only were Sophia and her best friend, Elsie, South Asian but many of their classmates were from also from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds, and I felt that it reflected a high school environment true to the one of my teenage years.

Saying this, The Secret Science of Magic was a great book in its own right. It had wonderful writing, witty dialogue and a unique plot to back it up. Joshua was a strong character to stand opposite Sophia and I particularly enjoyed that he wasn't typical in the "YA boyfriend" sense. He was true to himself, had the hugest crush on Sophia and was unapologetically obsessed with magic - he was basically just an adorable geek. The discussion of anxiety on Sophia's part was also handled really well and realistically and the romance between the two was really organic.2017-reads11 s Karen ??1,501

Told in alternating POVs between Sophia and Joshua, this is a story of two misfits who find each other in their last year of high school. Sound familiar? Sure, this story has been done before in many different ways and what makes this one slightly different is that Sophia is mega smart with no people skills and a long suffering best friend ; and Joshua is cool outside of school in his world of magic and other misfits, and doesn’t really care what people think.
I first read Keil a few years ago with Life in Outer Space and LOVED IT. This fell much flatter in my opinion. I found Sophia unrelatable and hard to and Joshua almost stalkerish in his quest to get to know her. I will still seek out more of this author’s work, but this one wasn’t quite for me.
uno_20197 s Kelly (Diva Booknerd)1,106 298

Australian with Sri Lankan heritage, Sophia is an intelligent young woman, a prodigy mathematician enduring debilitating social anxiety and becoming increasingly infatuated with Grigori Perelman, a recluse Russian mathematician. Sophia is a wonderful character, ingenious and accomplished which often leads to a lack of perception. Un Elsie who is leaving for the United States, Sophia isn't optimistic about university and consistently devalues her own intuition. The depiction of Sophia's social anxiety was wonderfully portrayed. As her narrative progressed, she begun to recognise how her anxiety manifested but also sought professional guidance. The tension between Sophia and her brother Toby furthered Sophia's anxiety, especially spending time with Elise and the effortless relationship with her siblings.

Joshua is enchanting. As an illusionist he believes in the impossible. Joshua doesn't place importance on his education and is ostracised by his peers. He's a modest young man who has been captivated by Sophia since the tender age of thirteen but as an introvert, feels intimidated by Sophia's presence. I loved the relationship Joshua shared with thirteen year old sibling Gillian, who has perfected teenage angst. Often a formidable presence, Joshua continues to persist to rebuild his relationship with Gillian despite her defiance.

The romance was captivating and a wonderful progression from a gentle, tentative friendship. Discounting the student body, Joshua has a wonderful company of friends who are accepting, supportive and encouraging. I appreciated how Joshua allowed Sophia to set the boundaries of their friendship, understanding that it was important for Sophia to remain in control of her societal environment due to her anxiety.

The Secret Science of Magic is magnificent. A charming coming of age narrative of existing within the moment. Phenomenally sublime. Magical.
http://www.divabooknerd.com/2017/03/b...bookgasm loveozya panmacmillan7 s Rebecca631 510

REVIEW TO COMEcharacters-of-colour genre-contemporary loveozya ...more6 s Jeann (Happy Indulgence) 1,020 5,352

This review has been posted on Happy Indulgence Books. Check it out for more !

What does a teenage genius and a guy who loves magic tricks have in common? In The Secret Science of Magic, both Sophia and Joshua don't have a clue what they want to do once they finish high school.

I haven't read a book featuring a genius with an eidetic memory before, particularly in a contemporary high school setting. While she's clearly intelligent, reading research papers and obviously miles ahead of her peers, she just has one problem: she has no idea what she wants to do with her intellect. Her fear of failure, of talent wasting away is projected through crippling anxiety which results in inaction.

While I'm certainly not a genius, I found her fear of failure to be quite relatable and human, particularly her anxieties when it comes to fitting in, or being what people expect of you. I also thought her social anxiety and lack of social skills to be characteristic of someone on the autism spectrum, and it was surprising that this wasn't really brought up or addressed by the people around her at all.

Joshua on the other hand, has had a massive crush on Sophia for many years and he constantly plans how to get to know her. His ambitions lie in playing video games and doing magic tricks, which he doesn't think will amount to anything in the future. The thought of moving into university and figuring out what to do in the future is also terrifying for Josh, so he preoccupies himself with his crush on Sophia. It kind of borders on obsession and placing her on a pedestal but despite that, I found the progession of their relationship to be quite natural.

With Sophia's struggling with anxiety and disconnect from the people around her, with Josh and his fixation on Sophia, there's definitely enough in The Secret Science of Magic to keep it moving. I d the diversity, from selective mutism to social anxiety and autism being explored. Sophia is also Sri Lankan Australian, which I thought was fantastic. Her and Josh's parents were surprisingly absent though.

The only thing I was disappointed in is that there isn't that much science or magic in the book, despite being the key driver as mentioned in the blurb. Aside from plenty of name dropping and repetitive gripes about David Copperfield, I wish there was more of the magic that Joshua was interested in and the science and facts beyond names of theories and prominent people.

There's also this heavy "not other girls" vibe which I found kind of annoying at some parts, particularly when illustrating Sophia as a character against others. She definitely had enough differentiators of her own without resorting to this path.

I received a review copy in exchange for an honest review.love-oz-ya ya-contemporary young-adult4 s Emily WrayburnAuthor 5 books41

Review originally posted on A Keyboard and an Open Mind April 21, 2017:

Melissa Keil would honestly have to try pretty hard to disappoint me. I may not read much contemporary YA, but I will pick up anything she writes. This is her most recent book, released at the beginning of April, and it does not disappoint.

Sophia is a certifiable genius, but she can’t always read other people correctly and the mysteries of what the future may hold are giving her panic attacks. Joshua is obsessed with magic, and has harboured a crush on Sophia since Year 7. But how do you romance a genius when you’re barely scraping by?

Melissa Keil writes authentically geeky characters that I’ve always felt were “my people”. I think, though, that this was the book where I felt this the strongest. On top of that was the racial diversity that was never presented as a “thing”: Sophia is from a Sri Lankan family and her best friend is Indian-Australian. Sophia also suffers from anxiety, and while it is never stated explicitly, it’s fairly clear she is somewhere on the autism spectrum.

The romance was a cute slow-burn, exactly how I d it. I got invested in these characters and their relationships, as well as in their other issues. While both POVs were in first person, it was never confusing. The side characters were also well-constructed; no one felt two dimensional. I read my of Melissa Keil’s other two books when I started writing this one, and I mentioned in one that it did feel a little bit she had reused some ideas from her first book in her second. That was never a concern with this book.

(This review is part of the Australian Women Writers Challenge 2017. Click here for more information.)aussie-books fiction loveozya ...more4 s Alison593 140

THIS. BOOK.

I have so much to say, but I'll save it for a review closer to release date. Just. Ugh, loved it. ozya4 s Trisha2,030 112

Lots of really great elements here.

Loved it.

contemporary diversity-in-ya family ...more4 s Raina1,637 150

Sophia is a math genius. Joshua is magician.
Can he show her how magical he is before they graduate?

Told alternately from Sophia and Joshua's perspectives. Sophia's chapters begin with the illustration of her from the front cover, and a chapter title that references math in some way. Joshua's chapters begin with the illustration of him from the front cover, and a quotation from a famous, real life, magician.
Really appreciate the representation here. Both Sophia and her best friend Elsie are distinctly, culturally, indisputably POC, and Elsie's cultural heritage, in particular, is a big part of her family/character.
Speaking of Elsie, the story of Sophia and Elsie's friendship almost overwhelms the romance in emotional impact. In a really good way. Everything ends at the end of high school, and sometimes the best of friends have different long-term plans and dreams. Woof, it's so real.

The writing is occasionally really lovely. I wrote down some quotes that should be linked here.
There are definitely some notable moments of Australian-ness, where readers (especially non-Australians) will be reminded of the setting. But there is a level of global approachability.

The magic elements are well-researched, as far as I can tell. The quotes at the beginning of Joshua's chapters lead me to search a few names I didn't recognize and watch at least one video of a card trick. There are no fantasy elements here - all of the magical elements are portrayed as well within the realm of real-life magicians.
I also really appreciated the portrayal of Sophia as a non-neurotypical person. She's never specifically diagnosed (there's a reference to eidetic memory, which lead me down another internet rabbithole), but it's clear that she thinks differently than many and has trouble with the human connection parts of life. My son is on the autism spectrum, and she seems to share some of his traits. Joshua embraces this about her and treats her in a really respectful way.

Thumbs up.high-school not-amerika realistic ...more3 s Schokigirl353 35

German Review: 3,5 Stars

Anmerkung: Ich habe das Buch als Rezensionsexemplar vom Verlag bekommen. Danke dafür. Die volle Videorezension findet ihr auf meinem YouTube Kanal namens schokigirl oder weiter unten.

Meinung:
An sich mochte ich den Ansatz der Autorin, wie in anderen Büchern, die ich bereits von ihr gelesen habe. Die Liebesgeschichte war niedlich aufgezogen und nicht zu übertrieben. Dazu hat sie noch wichtige Themen, wie das Erwachsen werden & herausfinden was man eigentlich will, angesprochen. Manche Charaktere, wie der von Josh, waren auch wirklich sympathisch und interessant dargestellt. Nur leider hatte ich auch einige Kritikpunkte.

Mein größtes Problem war, dass ich Sophia nicht richtig greifen konnte. Sie war mir zu wenig charakterisiert worden, obwohl sie unsere Protagonistin war und wir so gut wie alles aus ihrer Sicht erlebten. Vielleicht wurde ihr Verhalten für mich auch einfach nicht klar genug benannt. Ja, ich weiß, dass sie ein Genie ist, aber das kann ja nicht der einzige Grund sein, weshalb sie in vielen Situationen so komisch reagiert. Ich, als Laie, hätte ja gedacht, dass sie eine Autistin ist. Aber das wurde eben nie gesagt und deswegen habe ich immer offene Fragen zurück behalten.
Dementsprechend hätte ich mir auch eher gewünscht, dass die gesamte Geschichte aus Josh Sicht spielt. Ihn fand ich viel greifbarer, aber auch einfach interessanter und witziger. Und dann wäre es auch kein Problem gewesen, dass ich Sophia nicht ganz verstanden hätte, denn das wäre einfach Josh Sicht auf sie gewesen.
Außerdem waren alle Themen, abgesehen von der Liebesgeschichte, relativ kurz gehalten. Das zweitgrößte Thema war der mögliche Abschied von Sophia und ihrer besten Freundin und selbst das war viel zu kurz abgehandelt worden. Es wurde zu Beginn angesprochen, dann eine lange Zeit ignoriert und am Ende dann relativ schnell zu Ende gebracht worden. Da hätte man definitiv mehr machen können. Das wurde mir etwas zu oberflächlich behandelt. Und von mehr Themen war da eigentlich nicht wirklich die Rede.
Es gab so einige Szenen, die von einem tiefgehenden Problem hätten berichten können, aber letztendlich einfach fallen gelassen wurden und deshalb frage ich mich im Nachhinein, wieso sie eigentlich da waren. Beispielsweise gab es eine Szene mit Josh und seinem Vater, wo man gemerkt hat, dass er ihn ziemlich unter Druck setzt wegen seiner Zukunft und der Uniwahl. Aber darauf wird einfach überhaupt nicht mehr eingegangen. Es war die erste und einzige Szene in der wir Josh Dad zu Gesicht bekommen.
Auch die Dialoge waren mir manchmal zu wenig auf den Punkt gebracht. Es gab Dialoge die um den heißen Brei herum geredet haben oder ständig abgeschweift sind. Oder sie haben einfach schlicht an einander vorbei geredet. An sich kann das auch unterhaltsam sein, aber hier wirkte es einfach unfokussiert.

Fazit:
Ich habe diese Geschichte gern gelesen. Aber da ich nie so richtig drin war im Buch, aus den erläuterten Gründen, habe ich es leider nicht ganz so gut gefunden, wie andere Bücher der Autorin. Daher habe ich 3,5 Sterne vergeben.9 s Lesebegeistert_435 11

Hab das Buch sehr, sehr gern gelesen. Es ist zwar ein Jugendbuch für eher jüngere LeserInnen (am besten wohl so 14-17 Jährige), aber ich fand’s trotzdem einfach süß. Die zwei Charaktere machen ihren Schulabschluss, müssten also ca. 17 sein, wirken aber die meiste Zeit über wesentlich jünger. Ansonsten fand ich sie super authentisch gezeichnet, sehr interessant mit ihren Ecken & Kanten. Dazu waren sie liebenswert & sehr greifbar, jedoch hatte das Buch durch die kindliche Art der Figuren einen etwas kindlicheren Vibe. Zudem werden zwar sehr interessante Themen angedeutet, nichts wird aber ganz ausgeführt. Besonders Sophias Persönlichkeit betreffend hätte ich mir noch mehr Tiefe gewünscht. Ich glaube allerdings, dass das Buch in erster Linie zeigen will, dass kein Mensch „komisch“ ist, nur weil er/sie etwas anders ist als andere - wir sind alle gut, wie wir sind. Ich fand, das kam hier sehr schön rüber. Es war ein super leichtes Buch, welches sich durch den tollen Schreibstil der Autorin sehr gut hat lesen lassen.
Insgesamt gefiel es mir gut, allerdings fehlte mir etwas, das ich nicht eindeutig benennen kann. Vielleicht liegt das aber auch einfach am Genre oder daran, dass ich nicht mehr der Zielgruppe entspreche.
Das Buch hatte großes Potenzial & viele tolle Ansätze, konnte mich aber gefühlstechnisch nicht ganz an sich „binden“. Werde das Buch in guter Erinnerung halten, befürchte aber, dass es eines der Sorte ist, die relativ schnell aus ihnen verblassen, obwohl ich es gern mochte ?3 s Aimee?602 44

I received a copy of The Secret Science of Magic from Hardie Grant Australia to review.

I don't read a lot of contemporaries but when I picked this up I was glad to take a break from the books I normally read.

I really d both Sophia, Joshua and their friends. I didn't understand why some people got so annoyed with Sophia for not picking up on how others were feeling sometimes. It was obvious her brain worked differently to the people around her and she can't pick up on a lot of facial cues. I don't know if the people in her life didn't know or they just forgot. But I didn't think it was something Sophia should be blamed for. Or blamed for not picking up how people were feeling when they were so good at hiding it.

I d that Joshua seemed to understand Sophia, he d her the way she was and didn't try to change her, to make her socialise if she didn't want to. I also the magic tricks he did, especially the last one. Not that I can see them when I'm reading but that last illusion was pretty epic.

This book is not only funny but also diverse and intelligent. The love story between Sophia and Joshua went from a tentative friendship and acceptance to something that took Sophia completely by surprise. I enjoyed this book. It was definitely magical. books-i-own read-in-2017 sent-from-publishers3 s Nara939 132

I know a lot of bloggers that quite actively promote #LoveOzYA. For those who don't know what this is, this is a movement trying to gain more popularity for Australian YA novels. I personally don't do a lot of promotion for the movement, but I do have to admit, there is a lot to love about Aussie YA. Often, the novels are set in Australia and we're able to see familiar scenes and themes. There's something strangely gratifying about seeing novels set in Sydney or Melbourne although I don't live there and don't know them well enough to necessarily recognise places.

Joshua and Sophia are great characters who are excellently developed by Keil. Sophia was actually pretty frustrating at times, as she had difficulty interpreting social cues from her friends and she was unable to talk to anyone about her many concerns. In part this was because of her social anxiety, so it was understandable, but was nonetheless frustrating to observe as the reader. Joshua was much easier to , with his nerdy charm. The way he interacts with his friends and family (and Sophia) were wonderful to see.

I found the progression of the romance quite realistic, and was definitely shipping the two from chapter one. The romance was quite a dominant part of the story, but it didn't feel it was overshadowing the other threads of the plot, which were mostly focused around Sophia and her struggle to overcome the label of "child genius". Josh didn't really have as much of a plot independent of Sophia, but I felt that this was okay.

The only thing I can criticise about how realistic the novel was that there were some odd choices of language for year 12 students. I honestly don't know anyone past the age of 10 who would say the word "willy", for example. Certainly by year 12, students wouldn't be saying it.

Overall, The Secret Science of Magic was a delightful Aussie contemporary YA which I would definitely recommend to those looking for a light read that is still able to focus on some important issues.

Ratings
Overall: 8/10
Plot: 4/5
Romance: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Cover: 4/5coming-of-age contemporary for-review ...more5 s Madison1,084 67

I have come to really love Melissa Keil's writing and I was eagerly awaiting the release of this, her latest title. The Secret Science of Magic was one part wonderful, one part heartwarming, and totally teenagery (yes, that's a word).

Sophia is a genius. She excels at maths and calculations, but struggles with social situations. Without her friend Elsie, she would be isolated. Joshua sees Sophia. For years he has longed to connect with her, really get to know her rather than observing from afar. But he knows she deserves more than a guy who is only good at magic tricks and doesn't have a plan for his life. But as Joshua will tell you, timing is everything, and, maybe, it is the right time for Sophia and Joshua to finally connect.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I especially loved the characters. Sophia is awesome. She is incredibly smart when it comes to maths, but she is also terribly unsure about everything else, from reading facial expressions to understand others' emotions. She knows she is different from the people around her, she longs to understand how to fit in better, and she really struggles with the feeling that different equals bad. Also, her favourite Doctor Who is Matt Smith, so clearly we are soul mates. Joshua is also an excellent character. A magician, he is constantly fidgeting or shuffling cards. He cares about Sophia but has a lot to learn about his role in her life and the role he should play in his own life. I loved his journey of discovery, I loved his friends, and I loved the way he loved Sophia.

I think the messages conveyed in this book are so important. Sophia has a range of challenges to face, particularly regarding social interactions and her own thoughts about them. She is never diagnosed, and while it might seem simple to throw a label on her, I think it is brilliant that this never happens. Sophia is dealing with her feelings and day-to-day interactions. A label might have made it easier for her to understand what was going on or maybe it would have created a whole range of new problems, either way, that would have been an entirely different story.

There were a few things about this book that didn't appeal to me, particularly the endless crude humour and use of scatalogical and anatomical terms. The male anatomy was named 36 times (both anatomical and slang terms). I'd just to point out that any female equivalents were only referenced 5 times. Although, I have to say this is probably realistic given how many particular drawings I have removed from textbooks, walls and tables. Teenagers. Sigh. Sorry, moving on.

Overall, The Secret Science of Magic is a charming book. Wonderfully Australian, yet relevant for readers around the world, as two teenagers connect, confront the realities of their lives, and maybe even take a chance on falling in love.

Find more , reading age guides, content advisory, and recommendations on my blog Madison's Library.australian contemporary mental-health ...more3 s Bec (booktineus)738 155

This review first appeared on Readers in Wonderland

I’m apologising in advance that this review is going to be vague and probably poorly written. I finished this book a month or two ago but have been too busy studying for exams (which I passed btw) to actually finish this review until now.

5 THINGS ABOUT THE SECRET SCIENCE OF MAGIC
Loveozya
Our fantastic Australian talent is so underrated in the overseas market. A few big hits that to make it are super successful, but there are so many true blue masterpieces that are missed by most people. I think THE SECRET SCIENCE OF MAGIC deserves to be one of the hits.

A contemporary that hits close to home
While THE SECRET SCIENCE OF MAGIC has dual narration with chapters being shared by Josh and Sophia. Much of the focus is on Sophia though, and oh boy did I relate to a lot of the stuff she’s going through. I’m not a math nerd, but you bet I’m an overachiever about to graduate with no idea of where my future is going. A lot of high school and uni students will relate to these coming of age experiences.



Anxiety is a strong focus
Another thing I haven’t seen all that much in YA in the past is a look at anxiety and other mental health issues. It’s a subject that is changing and getting more light shed on it thank goodness. Sophia experiences anxiety over her academic life, future, and social interactions, which are all incredibly relatable for me. She often has panic attacks which are written incredibly accurately. The spiralling thoughts and struggle to pull your brain out of the negative pattern can be so hard to articulate and describe to people who haven’t experienced it personally. I hope that it helps people who don’t have anxiety start to understand the struggles.

SMART GIRLS HELL YEAH
SOPHIA’s BRAIN IS AMAZING! She might not have the best social skills, but academically her talents are phenomenal. I wish I had even half her math brain (it was my weakest subject haha). While a lot of girls in contemporary are the quiet, shy, smart type, Sophia’s genius is another level we don’t often see!



They’re so adorable together
JOSH AND SOPHIA ARE SO ADORABLE AND HJKALHDSJKLFHSFJKLSD. So many cute courtships and moments. It’s beautiful. Everyone deserves a precious Josh. My memory is incredibly vague on all the things I enjoyed about this couple, but it was essentially everything about them.

In Summary
As a studious individual with social anxiety, THE SECRET SCIENCE OF MAGIC had many elements that were very relatable for me. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend this contemporary.
own read-2017 review-publisher3 s Theresa441 20

2.5/5

This one just fell a bit flat to me. I had no care for the general story or characters, in fact, I didn't really feel there was a strong story at all and what was there of a story felt a bit rushed. I will say the characters felt three dimensional, each harboring different personalities, but I still just didn't really care for their story in general.

Also not sure if the kindle version or the book in general, but there was a couple editing issues with not separating different people speaking in different paragraphs 20173 s misswortverliebt142 12

Ich schwanke zwischen 3 und 4 Sternen.
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