Trapped for years on earth, Bartimaeus's energies are fast running out. His master, Nathaniel, is increasingly arrogant and unapproachable and will not listen to his pleas. But as war and unrest rock the magicians' government, Kitty uncovers secrets from Bartimaeus's past that might help change the world forever.

UK Hardback Edition Doubleday 2005 ISBN: 0 385 60616 8 BUY BOOK UK Paperback Edition Corgi 2006 ISBN: 0 552 550 280 BUY BOOK	US Hardback Edition Hyperion/Miramax 2006 ISBN: 0 7868 1861 1 BUY BOOK   BUY AUDIO CD US Paperback Edition Hyperion/Miramax 2006 ISBN: 0 7868 3868 X BUY BOOK

Winner of the CORINE Youth Book Award 2006 (Germany).

Shortlisted for the Quill Award, Children's Chapter Book category, 2006 (USA).

Reviews  

"For readers who loved the earlier volumes for the sheer adventure, this, with its battles, magic and great crashing conclusion, will not disappoint. A worthy ending to an exceptional saga."
Booklist (starred review)

"The trilogy wraps up with excitement, adventure and an unexpected wallop of heart and soul. . . Stroud masterfully weaves together four characters and an unearthly realm of existence in an explosive culmination that reaches back to the first two volumes and infuses them with layers of psychological and moral complexity."
Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"This closing installment is the best yet, as the fates of the djinni Bartimaeus, the magician John Mandrake (true name: Nathaniel), and the commoner Kitty Jones grow ever more tightly entwined… Stroud is a masterful storyteller, balancing touching sentiment with humor, explosive action scenes with philosophical musings on human nature. He ties up the loose ends from previous instalments… early on, freeing the book from the usual duties of a wrap-up volume and allowing it considerable momentum and power. Skilfully intertwining the various plot strands, Stroud builds to a thrilling, inventive climax. The final scene manages to take the reader completely by surprise and yet seem, in retrospect, inevitable: a stunning end to a justly acclaimed trilogy."
Horn Book Magazine (starred review)

"With the publication of the final volume in the Bartimaeus trilogy, we can at last fully appreciate the complexity of Jonathan Stroud's epic design. (…) There are many delights to savour in this series. First and foremost, the wonderful, sardonic voice of the all-knowing and all-weary Bartimaeus, whose wit is often deployed in footnotes… Among all the horror and comedy, there's satire which verges on the uncomfortable. The magical government looks like New Labour, full of smiling, smarmy spin. Colleagues are backstabbers. An “enemy within” is bringing terror to London with a series of explosions. Only Bartimaeus, from the perspective of centuries of existence, comes up with the right response. He laughs."
Suzi Feay, Independent

"Ptolemy's Gate… is the triumphant conclusion to a fantastic trilogy. Bartimaeus the sardonic djinn, his master Nathaniel and the feisty commoner called Kitty are caught up in a cataclysmic war and have to work together to save their worlds."
Daily Mail

"Stroud demonstrates here that what and how he writes should never be taken for granted, least of all when he is bringing to a close a trilogy that is his finest achievement yet."
Nicholas Tucker, TES