The Magician's Wife, published in 1997, was the last novel[1] by the Northern Irish-Canadian writer Brian Moore.

Set in 1856,[2] it tells the story of a famous French magician (based on the real-life Jean-Eugene Robert-Houdin)[3] who is despatched by Emperor Napoleon III to help France subdue the Arab population in war-torn Algeria.

Reviewing the book for The New York Times, Thomas Mallon said: "Combining actual and invented figures requires a particular sleight of hand, and in The Magician's Wife Moore accomplishes this mingling without giving any glimpse of a false bottom or secret compartment...

The Magician's Wife, combining so many of Moore's longtime preoccupations and themes, proves to be one of his neatest tricks yet.

[2] John Muncie, reviewing the novel for the Baltimore Sun, said that The Magician's Wife "plays with French history and the power of illusion... Moore writes with propulsive clarity.