While this is the first book in the trilogy, I am, perhaps cheekily, talking about the entire trilogy because I devoured this story so quickly I can barely separate the books in my head.
The characters were so rich and the world was so vibrant I was instantly hooked. Also, this is the coolest magic system I have ever read. It just… it spoke to me on so many levels. As an artist, that concept of magic where you have to work and struggle for authentic power and resist the urge to cheat for success really hit home.
The final ending lacked a little something for me, but was still very solid, and I would absolutely recommend making sure you have access to all three books if you don’t like waiting on cliffhangers.
Enter a school of magic unlike any you have ever encountered.
There are no teachers, no holidays, friendships are purely strategic, and the odds of survival are never equal. Once you're inside, there are only two ways out: you graduate or you die.
El Higgins is uniquely prepared for the school's many dangers. She may be without allies, but she possesses a dark power strong enough to level mountains and wipe out untold millions - never mind easily destroy the countless monsters that prowl the school.
Except, she might accidentally kill all the other students, too. So El is trying…
I
picked this one up because I became friends with the author, but I finished it
because it was really good solid fantasy with a decent mystery – and I say that
as someone who struggles to find books I enjoy.
The characters were familiar
archetypes without being too tropey, and the world building had some very cool substance
to it. I enjoyed it enough that I will be reading the sequels and prodding the
author to produce more.
Like my saga, the Agents of
Kalanon books switch protagonist focus each book while staying with the
same crew of characters – which is something I love. I’m big into character-driven story and enjoy when enticing side characters end up becoming main
characters.
Solve the Murders. Save the World. The war is over. There’s supposed to be peace. So why is a member of the royal family murdered? Why is an ambassador no one trusts somehow connected? Why does Kalanon’s mage have a new body? Brannon’s attempt at peace is over. If he doesn’t solve the murder – and fast – war will return to Kalanon. But that’s not the worst of it. Dark magics are afoot and schemes no one could expect. The darkness is a threat not just to Kalanon but to the whole world. Brannon’s life is about to change...That’s…
This book came out before I was born so I am very
late to this party, but I got told I had to read this (despite not being a huge
fan of Phillip Pullman), and I was told right. I was surprised by how much I
enjoyed this book and it got me!!
There were genuine twists I didn’t see
coming, but they made perfect sense to the story and didn’t feel silly or out
of left field. I don’t know if I was foolish not to see it, but it happens to
me so rarely at the moment that it was very exciting and refreshing. Some of
the exposition felt a bit clunky, but the mystery was good and, truly, the book
gets points for those twists. I applaud you, book.
The first book in Philip Pullman's classic SALLY LOCKHART quartet in a beautiful new edition to celebrate the 30 year anniversary.
Soon after Sally Lockhart's father drowns at sea, she receives an anonymous letter. The dire warning it contains makes a man die of fear at her feet. Determined to discover the truth about her father's death, Sally is plunged into a terrifying mystery in the dark heart of Victorian London, at the centre of which lies a deadly blood-soaked jewel. Philip Pullman's ever-popular, action-packed Victorian melodramas are rejacketed for the bicentenary of Charles Dickens in 2012.
The
amnesia was supposed to be a good thing. Other soldiers bask in its freedom.
Except for Elvac it doesn’t feel right. When he returns from his first year at
war he can’t shake the niggling sensation that something is missing. His life
has been turned upside down, yet he can’t remember being gone. The only proof
of his time away are the scars, and the haunting dreams of fire. With
the help of his friends, Elvac begins to regain his lost memories, and with
them uncover the truth of his missing year, and what the Church of Sunne is
really doing with their War of the North.
