A world in which magic is split between those who can write spells and those who can cast them.

A forbidden spell gone horribly wrong.

And a quest to try to undo it.

It’s actually a really fun story. I enjoyed the magic school aspects of it and it had a nice whimsical magical feeling to the magic that you don’t always see, even in fantasy novels. Once we get out of the school, we see more of the hidden, dangerous parts of the world, driving more to the fantastical–and deadly.

On another tack, this book is tagged romance and LBGT. If anything, it’s more of magical adventure story with the first hints of what could turn out to be romance–but not in this book. It’s an interesting thread woven through the story–especially in how it’s interacting with aforementioned forbidden spell.

Characterwise, the interplay between our main characters–Leo (writer, POV) and Grimm (caster) is fascinating. Leo’s family is rich, Grimm’s is not. Leo is born talented and refuses to apply himself; Grimm has worked hard to get where he is and it shows.

That dynamic drives the entire story and it, as much as anything, is why I’d love to see where the story goes in the (hopefully coming soon?) sequel. It’s a well enough wrapped up story, but oh, it’s one of those where I want to see what happens next!

Well worth a read.

Onward!