Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
What happens when an enlightened society built on intelligence, healing, magic, and pacifism suddenly faces a threat it is not prepared to confront?
Author Peter Gribble returns to Books That Make You to discuss The City of the Magicians, his three-book fantasy series exploring what happens when stability begins to crack, ideals are tested, and a culture must decide whether it can survive without losing itself.
In this conversation, Peter looks at the difference between transition and rupture, and why he believes rupture marks the beginning of a deeper breakdown in the systems and assumptions people once trusted. Through the world of The City of the Magicians, he examines nonviolence, integrity, compromise, resistance, and the dangers of becoming too comfortable in the belief that freedom and stability are permanent.
Peter also shares how history, court memoirs, ancient Rome, and real-world social upheaval shaped his worldbuilding. He discusses how speculative fiction and fantasy can create space to explore difficult questions with honesty, depth, and urgency.
Writers will also appreciate Peter’s insights into craft, including how he writes toward powerful endings, how characters sometimes interrupt the story, and why some scenes need time to “marinate” before they find their final shape.
#PeterGribble #TheCityOfTheMagicians #FantasyBooks #SpeculativeFiction #AuthorInterview #BooksThatMakeYou #BTMY
The City of the Magicians
Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B08R7LF4WY
Peter Gribble
Web: petergribble.com
Join us on Books That Make You, for exclusive giveaways book reviews and more:
Web: booksthatmakeyou.com
Facebook: facebook.com/BooksThatMakeYou
Instagram: instagram.com/books_that_make_you
TikTok: tiktok.com/@books_that_make_you
We are also the home of The BookFest. For more information, please visit our website: TheBookFest.com
What happens when an enlightened society built on intelligence, healing, magic, and pacifism suddenly faces a threat it is not prepared to confront?
Author Peter Gribble returns to Books That Make You to discuss The City of the Magicians, his three-book fantasy series exploring what happens when stability begins to crack, ideals are tested, and a culture must decide whether it can survive without losing itself.
In this conversation, Peter looks at the difference between transition and rupture, and why he believes rupture marks the beginning of a deeper breakdown in the systems and assumptions people once trusted. Through the world of The City of the Magicians, he examines nonviolence, integrity, compromise, resistance, and the dangers of becoming too comfortable in the belief that freedom and stability are permanent.
Peter also shares how history, court memoirs, ancient Rome, and real-world social upheaval shaped his worldbuilding. He discusses how speculative fiction and fantasy can create space to explore difficult questions with honesty, depth, and urgency.
Writers will also appreciate Peter’s insights into craft, including how he writes toward powerful endings, how characters sometimes interrupt the story, and why some scenes need time to “marinate” before they find their final shape.
#PeterGribble #TheCityOfTheMagicians #FantasyBooks #SpeculativeFiction #AuthorInterview #BooksThatMakeYou #BTMY
The City of the Magicians
Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B08R7LF4WY
Peter Gribble
Web: petergribble.com
Join us on Books That Make You, for exclusive giveaways book reviews and more:
Web: booksthatmakeyou.com
Facebook: facebook.com/BooksThatMakeYou
Instagram: instagram.com/books_that_make_you
TikTok: tiktok.com/@books_that_make_you
We are also the home of The BookFest. For more information, please visit our website: TheBookFest.com
