Spellslinger

Kellen is on the threshold of perhaps the most important milestone in the life of a young Jan'Tep. A few days from his 16th Birthday he is due to start his Mage Trials; once through this rite of passage he will receive his Mage name and begin more formal Mage training. There's only one problem and it is rather a large problem - Kellen doesn't really have any magic to speak of. He knows that failing these tests he will let down the whole of the Ke clan and will become a virtual slave as part of the Sha'Tep.Just as things start to get interesting at the first Mage Trial Ferius Parfax seemingly appears from nowhere. Is she a Draoman Spy? Maybe she is an Argosi. Nobody seems able to decide but the Lord Magi definitely don't trust her.Spellslinger is full of rich characters and right form the outset we know so much about the characters of Panahsi, Tennat, Shalla and Nephania and can juxtapose them very easily against Kellen. With a few broad strokes the author has conjured up a living, breathing fantasy world that it is so easy to fall full length in to it.Although I would say this is really more for a teen audience I have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed this descent into the glorious fantasy realm created by Sebastian De Castell. This is clearly the pre-cursor to a series of novels and I am hopeful that we will learn more about the other nations inhabiting this realm just as we have learnt so much about the Jan'Tep and the Sha'Tep.Away from the fantasy story there are clear parables being told about family life, societal pressures and the revisionist nature of history. These could prove great ways of opening up dialogue for younger readers or simply just let them enjoy a rip-roaring read.If you are aged outside the target demographic but love fantasy tales then this is a great book so please don't dismiss it because you feel you are too old.

Kellan comes from a people with two very different types of citizen, you either pass your magic trials before your sixteenth birthday and become Jan'Tep (a mage) or you fail and become Sha'Tep (basically second class citizens whose only duty is to serve the mages). Kellan comes from a powerful family so there should be no question about whether he'll pass or not, there's just one small problem though, his magic is gone. If Kellan can't find a way to get it back his life will be a misery but when Ferius, a mysterious traveller, passes through his village she makes him question everything and offers him the chance at a different kind of life.There is a lot to love about Spellslinger, the story was fast paced and had me totally hooked from very early on. It was very easy to connect to Kellan and it felt like I was going though the trials right alongside him, I hurt for him when he failed and I wanted to climb into the book to defend him when he was bullied by other kids his age for his practically nonexistent magic. There was a lot of humour in the story but there were some really dark things too. It was hard to like any of the Jan'Tep and Kellan's parents crossed lines that were incredibly painful to read about so I'd happily set them on fire and watch them burn.It was only the humour that Ferius brought to the story and the addition of Reichus, the talking squirrel cat, that kept this from being a bit too dark for me but they were such fun characters to read about and I was so invested in Kellan's story that I couldn't put the book down. I have very high hopes for this series and can't wait to see where Kellan's journey takes him next.

I actually sort of want to give the book more than five stars, I enjoyed it that much!! Thoroughly un-put-down-able. I have to say it gets bonus points for not really having the protagonist be a special snowflake 😂 I mean, yes there's one factor, but that doesn't make him all powerful or anything. I really liked that he was considered a weakling and just used his mind to win his battles.I can't wait for the next one now, either! I want to learn more about Ferius, and see more of Reichis's gloriously violent threats. I want to see if Shalla can learn to understand power isn't all, and I hope we see Neph'aria teach her or become powerful enough to teach everyone.And I will definitely be going out and searching for more books by Sebastien De Castell, cause this was great.

The tagline of this book ("Magic is a con game") is what drew me to it—and with that in mind, it wasn't exactly what I expected... I'm quite a picky reader when it comes to fantasy and I did greatly enjoy this and the Spellslinger world, and I likely will look out for the sequel. But my excitement over a magic con-man kind of idea did not pan out, which is what drops a star for me (and also the incessant need to refer to Kellen as "kid" was a bit overwrought).

By way of context, the 4 Traitor's Blade etc books written by same author as some of the BEST I've ever read in my life, genuinely, and I've read a LOT of books so I was full of hope for this one. Loved the crazy concept, but sadly it really didn't deliver for me. Perhaps I need to read book 2, but frankly I don't want to, as the characters and story in this one just aren't good enough as when the book finished I couldn't care less about finding out more of them. Hope this author didn't just have one good series in him as that would be a tragedy given the standard of the Traitor's Blade books.