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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
You know I think it's going to take me a little while to reconcile my thoughts on this book, but I did enjoy it. . . I'm just not sure how to describe it just yet.
I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.There's a lot of middle-grade books by authors I like, lately. Honestly, I didn't even care what this was about. I saw that it was Cassandra Clare and Holly Black and immediately requested it on Netgalley.
The premise is definitely interesting and the story has a lot of potential. Honestly, I kept thinking of Harry Potter during this book. There are a lot of places that the story is kind of slow. A little past the middle of the book is when things start to move a little faster. A lot of things start happening and I found myself having to finish.
Call is pretty much your loner type and never really had any friends. He has a limp from an injury during infancy that never healed correctly. His father is completely paranoid about this Trials for the Magisterium school and tells him to blow his tests. Call believes what his father tells him and does what he can to fail his trials. Although, he tries too hard and ends up impressing the school anyway. He ends up with one of the best Masters, in a group with two others. Throughout the book they are learning basics and trying to get through their first year at the school. Although, Cal finds a letter met for his Master, from his father. It warns him about Cal and that he needs to bind his magic before the first year is up. Cal takes the letter and is wondering what his father meant.
I was pretty sure I figured it out and it was obvious that Call would be the "One". He would go from the weakest to the strongest. I was not expecting that twist ending at all! I'm so intrigued now and will definitely be reading the next book. What will he do? Will he choose good vs. evil? I guess we will have to wait and see!
The premise is definitely interesting and the story has a lot of potential. Honestly, I kept thinking of Harry Potter during this book. There are a lot of places that the story is kind of slow. A little past the middle of the book is when things start to move a little faster. A lot of things start happening and I found myself having to finish.
Call is pretty much your loner type and never really had any friends. He has a limp from an injury during infancy that never healed correctly. His father is completely paranoid about this Trials for the Magisterium school and tells him to blow his tests. Call believes what his father tells him and does what he can to fail his trials. Although, he tries too hard and ends up impressing the school anyway. He ends up with one of the best Masters, in a group with two others. Throughout the book they are learning basics and trying to get through their first year at the school. Although, Cal finds a letter met for his Master, from his father. It warns him about Cal and that he needs to bind his magic before the first year is up. Cal takes the letter and is wondering what his father meant.
I was pretty sure I figured it out and it was obvious that Call would be the "One". He would go from the weakest to the strongest. I was not expecting that twist ending at all! I'm so intrigued now and will definitely be reading the next book. What will he do? Will he choose good vs. evil? I guess we will have to wait and see!
I really wanted to like this novel, but the writing just felt disjointed. The sentences seemed choppy and thus really hard for me to focus on much else. A little ocd but it really drove me insane. This book also wasn't written for a 25 year old either, though. I would definitely recommend it to an elementary/intermediate grade reader.
11/19/14: At 35% in, I'm calling it quits, at least for now. It's hardly the worst book I ever read, but I think that might be because the writing is tempered by Holly Black's style. I'm starting to see a whole lotta Clare seeping into this book, most notable in the "humor" and douchebag MCs. I can see myself continuing at some point, but it's not a priority for the forseeable future.
Rating is for the 35% of the book I've read so far.
Rating is for the 35% of the book I've read so far.
Am Anfang, fand ich die Geschichte nicht wirklich ansprechend, vllt. sogar ein wenig kindisch und Harry Potter zu ähnlich in mancher Hinsicht (3 Freunde, ein Junge mit verletztem Bein- Harrys Narbe, dem Kind ist etwas im Babyalter wiederfahren usw.). Doch dann fing sich die Geschicht an zu entwickeln und zwar in eine Richtung die mir sehr gut gefallen hat und die mit Harry Potter immer mehr an Ähnlichkeit verlor. Über die Hälfte des Buches war ich bei 3 Sternen, doch das Ende hat mich echt überzeugt, deshalb auch die 4 Sterne. Freue mich auf den zweiten Teil.
2.75? Sigh. Ratings are tricky.
I don't particularly care for either of these authors, but I like middle grade and magic and adventures! I think I like them together better than apart, though I still have trilogies by both I want to read. Anyway...
This was really fun!! I love reading about kids at magic school, no matter what age. I love that feeling like anything could happen and who knows what they'll study and learn?! It's just a really good time. Most of the main kids are 12, so it wasn't so heavy on the character growth and development. It was just good fun and a few scary creatures and what have you. A bit of death. You know, normal magic school business.
I'd heard about the Harry Potter parallels, and at first it didn't bother me so much. Is it a huge deal that Call has wild black hair and has magic? Eh. But I'd say the last few chapters were straight up plagiarized, with Master Rufus as Dumbledore. He even said a version of the Riddle thing, like "is there anything you wish to tell me?" Meh. So yeah, the end got a bit Voldemort-esque, then there was a bit of a Sky High thing too?! I was content following these kids around until all the big reveals at the end. Then it was suddenly like, okay, here's the ending! And. Idk. I don't care for drawn out bits leading up to a battle, villain monologuing, and super quick rush to the end when everyone's all healed and ready to move on to the next book.
Aside from the Harry Potter bits... I really liked Warren 😂 and if his story doesn't end with someone saying his name isn't (fucking) Warren!! I'll be pissed. Don't lead me on with movie references. (I thought his name was Warren...? 😂)
Nitpicky Jess things: when Call and his dad go to the iron trial, Call's wearing a gray shirt...then a chapter or two later, he gets ink all over his white shirt. Grrr. I also don't understand why dumpster was capitalized, and it really bothered me more than it should've.
What else...I definitely like the dynamic of two boys in a trio that is NOT a love triangle. Oh, since the kiddos are 12, there isn't really romance. Which I love, obv. I mean, Call notices pretty girls and the other two give him some shit about this other girl who def likes him, but it's fine. I'm trying not to let the very end skew my rating, but damn I really want to drop it to 2.5. Sigh.
I have the next book, so I'll continue!! I'm also the proud owner of a shiny new library card, so maybe I'll even check out the whole series! Although the ending annoyed me, there were a lot of big reveals, so I'm hopeful the rest of the series will Branch out further away from Harry Potter territory. AND it's always exciting to jump into a series right after the last book is published 😊 I do hate waiting.
I don't particularly care for either of these authors, but I like middle grade and magic and adventures! I think I like them together better than apart, though I still have trilogies by both I want to read. Anyway...
This was really fun!! I love reading about kids at magic school, no matter what age. I love that feeling like anything could happen and who knows what they'll study and learn?! It's just a really good time. Most of the main kids are 12, so it wasn't so heavy on the character growth and development. It was just good fun and a few scary creatures and what have you. A bit of death. You know, normal magic school business.
I'd heard about the Harry Potter parallels, and at first it didn't bother me so much. Is it a huge deal that Call has wild black hair and has magic? Eh. But I'd say the last few chapters were straight up plagiarized, with Master Rufus as Dumbledore. He even said a version of the Riddle thing, like "is there anything you wish to tell me?" Meh. So yeah, the end got a bit Voldemort-esque, then there was a bit of a Sky High thing too?! I was content following these kids around until all the big reveals at the end. Then it was suddenly like, okay, here's the ending! And. Idk. I don't care for drawn out bits leading up to a battle, villain monologuing, and super quick rush to the end when everyone's all healed and ready to move on to the next book.
Aside from the Harry Potter bits... I really liked Warren 😂 and if his story doesn't end with someone saying his name isn't (fucking) Warren!! I'll be pissed. Don't lead me on with movie references. (I thought his name was Warren...? 😂)
Nitpicky Jess things: when Call and his dad go to the iron trial, Call's wearing a gray shirt...then a chapter or two later, he gets ink all over his white shirt. Grrr. I also don't understand why dumpster was capitalized, and it really bothered me more than it should've.
What else...I definitely like the dynamic of two boys in a trio that is NOT a love triangle. Oh, since the kiddos are 12, there isn't really romance. Which I love, obv. I mean, Call notices pretty girls and the other two give him some shit about this other girl who def likes him, but it's fine. I'm trying not to let the very end skew my rating, but damn I really want to drop it to 2.5. Sigh.
I have the next book, so I'll continue!! I'm also the proud owner of a shiny new library card, so maybe I'll even check out the whole series! Although the ending annoyed me, there were a lot of big reveals, so I'm hopeful the rest of the series will Branch out further away from Harry Potter territory. AND it's always exciting to jump into a series right after the last book is published 😊 I do hate waiting.
I was really excited to read this book since it's by Cassandra Clare AND Holly Black but it wasn't what I hoped it would be. The book was kind of plotless. I didn't even finish it. I read half of it and nothing happened. I was very disappointed.
Eh, it was okay. Just another HP-inspired novel.
I still think me and Holly Black aren't going to get along, so this pretty much knocked it on the head for me. It did entertain me a bit more than her solo novels, so maybe I get on better with Cassandra Clare (an author I've yet to read excluding this novel)
Overall, it was fine. I do think I was comparing it too much to Harry Potter and Percy Jackson, mostly because it was basically a mixture of both. It certainly didn't help that I ended up re-reading the HP series for university in October as I'm studying Children's Literature. Reading them at the same time probably wasn't the best idea, but it did make me realise how much I loooove Harry Potter. I'm sure there are people who think that this series isn't like it at all, yet others will agree with me, but this is just my personal opinion. I mean, I think Warren is Dobby, one of the other students (the name I cannot remember) is Malfoy and then you got the trio....eh. I've read this before dude.
It had the formula for a middle grade novel with the magic, excitement, wonderment of what will happen to the MC, mixed with friendship and mysteriousness of the school. Sadly, it lacked comedy. I would have enjoyed this more if it was funny because it felt a little flat from my perspective. One thing I adore about books like this is the sass, sarcasm and the silly little lines put in there that make you smile. This one just felt a little dreary, it needed some lines to lift it up a bit (but again, that's my own taste).
There was also the mystery flying around about Callum and his dad, and whether there's a reason for him being accepted at the Magisterium. I kind of didn't care?
I didn't really get the friendships either, they didn't seem to bond as much as Harry, Ron and Hermione. When you read them, you get why they're friends. Callum, Aaron and Tamara, not so much. (Although I do sense a romance between Callum and Aaron, I would be interested to see if this progresses!). There just wasn't a pivotal moment for me that made me think 'that's when they became friends' because they just...started hanging out and going on rebellious missions together? Maybe there was that 'mountain troll' moment but I missed it.
Wasn't really fond of any of the characters either, not even Callum. The only one I kind of liked was Aaron, and mostly because he was the least serious and annoying.
The students had some odd classes and trials, and while I get that they helped the characters evolve, they were incredibly boring to read about. There's probably about 3 chapters on them separating sand with their minds and that's not interesting in the slightest. Authors could have just written 'three months later we were still doing this until one day...' just get on with it bro
It just lacked something, maybe it wasn't magical enough and didn't include enough humour or authentic characters. To me, it seemed like Clare and Black may have been trying too hard to do a "new Harry Potter" but failing to distinguish their own voices for the charcters. I liked the diversity in the books though, and I think the start of this book was rather gripping (especially the opening chapter), but it started to get a bit boring after a while. I found myself forgetting to pick this book up, it was just missing something for me.
I may continue the series as I do have the second book but we'll see.
I still think me and Holly Black aren't going to get along, so this pretty much knocked it on the head for me. It did entertain me a bit more than her solo novels, so maybe I get on better with Cassandra Clare (an author I've yet to read excluding this novel)
Overall, it was fine. I do think I was comparing it too much to Harry Potter and Percy Jackson, mostly because it was basically a mixture of both. It certainly didn't help that I ended up re-reading the HP series for university in October as I'm studying Children's Literature. Reading them at the same time probably wasn't the best idea, but it did make me realise how much I loooove Harry Potter. I'm sure there are people who think that this series isn't like it at all, yet others will agree with me, but this is just my personal opinion. I mean, I think Warren is Dobby, one of the other students (the name I cannot remember) is Malfoy and then you got the trio....eh. I've read this before dude.
It had the formula for a middle grade novel with the magic, excitement, wonderment of what will happen to the MC, mixed with friendship and mysteriousness of the school. Sadly, it lacked comedy. I would have enjoyed this more if it was funny because it felt a little flat from my perspective. One thing I adore about books like this is the sass, sarcasm and the silly little lines put in there that make you smile. This one just felt a little dreary, it needed some lines to lift it up a bit (but again, that's my own taste).
There was also the mystery flying around about Callum and his dad, and whether there's a reason for him being accepted at the Magisterium. I kind of didn't care?
I didn't really get the friendships either, they didn't seem to bond as much as Harry, Ron and Hermione. When you read them, you get why they're friends. Callum, Aaron and Tamara, not so much. (Although I do sense a romance between Callum and Aaron, I would be interested to see if this progresses!). There just wasn't a pivotal moment for me that made me think 'that's when they became friends' because they just...started hanging out and going on rebellious missions together? Maybe there was that 'mountain troll' moment but I missed it.
Wasn't really fond of any of the characters either, not even Callum. The only one I kind of liked was Aaron, and mostly because he was the least serious and annoying.
The students had some odd classes and trials, and while I get that they helped the characters evolve, they were incredibly boring to read about. There's probably about 3 chapters on them separating sand with their minds and that's not interesting in the slightest. Authors could have just written 'three months later we were still doing this until one day...' just get on with it bro
It just lacked something, maybe it wasn't magical enough and didn't include enough humour or authentic characters. To me, it seemed like Clare and Black may have been trying too hard to do a "new Harry Potter" but failing to distinguish their own voices for the charcters. I liked the diversity in the books though, and I think the start of this book was rather gripping (especially the opening chapter), but it started to get a bit boring after a while. I found myself forgetting to pick this book up, it was just missing something for me.
I may continue the series as I do have the second book but we'll see.
d about reading this book. On one hand, Holly Black routinely writes enjoyable books - The Coldest Girl in Coldtown is one of my favorite vampire books. On the other hand, Cassandra Clare has some deeply problematic issues in her writing.
I think those came through here - firstly for someone who has been accused of plagiarism and bullying around Harry Potter fanworks, I would hope Clare would have the sense to distance herself further from the realm of Harry Potter - but, three kids going to magic school? Two boys and a girl with a hooded figure on the front cover? The similarities are distressing (i.e. young child marked by an evil trying to become immortal, magic food at meals).
Additionally - where was the plot? World building is fine, but a book needs to have something happen.
I think those came through here - firstly for someone who has been accused of plagiarism and bullying around Harry Potter fanworks, I would hope Clare would have the sense to distance herself further from the realm of Harry Potter - but, three kids going to magic school? Two boys and a girl with a hooded figure on the front cover? The similarities are distressing (i.e. young child marked by an evil trying to become immortal, magic food at meals).
Additionally - where was the plot? World building is fine, but a book needs to have something happen.
It became better as I read each chapter. The writing was a little stilted and sometimes it did not feel like they had thought things through. I do not believe that it us possible to sneak a wolf into your house under your shirt without anyone knowing. Nope. And in the end how they went after Aron it all went by so fast and it was difficult to keep up because there was so little explanation or poor explanation about why they needed to do the things they did.
I can see why people are shouting Harry Potter. There are similarities. But I kind of thought it as fun. Like, what if Harry was from USA and everything was there instead of Britain. This is kind of what it would be like.
It was not the best fantasy, but I do like how Cassandra Clare always throws curveballs. You never know what will happen because she always flips the table like five times before you are settling in with the first new thing. I like that I never know, that I have to be on my toes all the time, always suspecting everything and everyone.
I will read the rest because I want to know how it ends. Fun book. Felt like fan fiction, but Cassandra made me hooked on it as a teen so there is nothing bad with that at all.
I can see why people are shouting Harry Potter. There are similarities. But I kind of thought it as fun. Like, what if Harry was from USA and everything was there instead of Britain. This is kind of what it would be like.
It was not the best fantasy, but I do like how Cassandra Clare always throws curveballs. You never know what will happen because she always flips the table like five times before you are settling in with the first new thing. I like that I never know, that I have to be on my toes all the time, always suspecting everything and everyone.
I will read the rest because I want to know how it ends. Fun book. Felt like fan fiction, but Cassandra made me hooked on it as a teen so there is nothing bad with that at all.