Max Frei Returns with The Stranger's Magic

This week Russian literary sensation Max Frei returns to the United States with the third installment in the internationally bestselling Labyrinths of Echo fantasy series, The Stranger's Magic. 

First published in Russia more than fifteen years ago, Frei's Labyrinths of Echo series has since become a bestselling international phenomena, infusing highly philosophical comic fantasy with extraordinary wit. Plunging back into the enchanted parallel world of Echo originally portrayed in The Stranger and The Stranger's Woes, twenty-something eponymous anti-hero and self-described loser "Sir Max" returns in The Stranger's Magic, the smash hit series that has sold more than two million copies across the globe.


An unlikely protagonist, Max Frei is a social outcast,a  gluttonous loafer, and a hardened smoker who sleeps away his days until he finds himself transplanted to a magical world where he possesses powerful supernatural abilities. As a "Nocturnal Representative of the Most Venerable Head of the Minor Secret Investigative Force of the City of Echo," Sir Max investigates cases more complicated, extravagant, and dangerous than ever in The Stranger's Magicas he battles illegal magic and combats trespassing monsters from alternate realities. Joined by a returning cast of crime fighting companions including the omniscient Sir Juffin Hully, the uproarious Sir Manga Melifaro, and the beautiful Lady Melamori Blimm, Sir Max and his friends tackle extraordinary capers including palace coups, attempted murders, and bungled burglaries.


Appropriate for first time visitors to Echo and diehard fans alike, The Stranger's Magic blends a complex web of clues with a cast of unforgettable characters, offering an unequaled fantasy epic for a new century.

Advance Praise for THE STRANGER’S MAGIC:

“Unpredictable, mysterious, and full of surprises … readers will be entranced by the complex world.” – Publishers Weekly

“There are moments that might have come from the pages of Douglas Adams, others that wouldn’t be out of place in Alice in Wonderland … literate, silly fun.” – Kirkus Reviews

“Quirky humor, hair-raising adventures.” – Booklist (Starred Review)

Praise for Max Frei and THE LABYRINTHS OF ECHO series:

“Fans of Jasper Fforde and Susanna Clarke will happily jump into Frei’s world.” – USA Today

“Impossible to put down … wildly imaginative and entertaining.” – Fantasy Book Critic

“[Frei] is smart, savvy, and funny; an everyman hero we can all believe in.”

– Bookslut