Simon Prebble, reader.

The year is 1806. England is beleagurered by the long war with Napoleon, and it is hundreds of years since practical magic faded into the nation's past. The reclusive Mr. Norrell of Hurtfew Abbey is the one practicing magician still remaining. Challenged to demonstrate his powers, Norrell causes statues to speak and sing, and sends a thrill through the country. He proceeds to London, where he raises a beautiful young woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Norell is challenged by the emergence of another magician, the brillant novice Jonathan Strange. Norrell agrees to take Strange as a pupil and the young magician joins England's cause to lend the army his supernatural skill on the battlefield. Strange becomes obsessed with the found of English magic, the Raven Kin and risks sacrificing his partnership with Norrell and everything else.