Arcane (The Arinthian Line Book 1)

After just finishing this for the fourth time, I was just as enthralled as the first time I discovered the series. The writing is brilliant and the story told in such a way that you very quickly become invested in the characters. That said, Sever has a knack of giving enough away to allow you to buy into the story and build vivid images, whilst holding enough back to allow your imagination to run wild.

This has got to be THE best series of books I have ever read and being a great Harry Potter fan I did not think I would ever say this. I read them one after the other and left bereft when I had finished. A great adventure for all ages (I'm 62). A trio of teenagers with the weight of the world on their shoulders who had to grow up fast and the love they had for each other shone from the pages. Onto Burden's End now, the first of a new series. Do yourself a favor. Buy book one NOW and immerse yourself in a true epic adventure. You will be blown away I promise.

A good start to an addictive series - this first volume introduces the reader to the main protagonists. In spite of the poor treatment Augum experienced in his childhood, he has grown up to be a decent, honest teenager. His aspirations to become a knight come to nothing when the Legion attack his village and kill everybody else. On the run Augum is struck by lightning and magically transported to safety, and begins his training with the reclusive Mrs Stone. A chance encounter with Bridget, Leera and Robin helps to define his future. I could not wait to start the second volume when I finished this book.

Bought this for my 11 year old son who, after reading another well known magic/fantasy series, never seemed to get engrossed in another book quite in the same way. Well that changed with this book. I initially heard all about the characters and plot through him telling me what he had read, and it was great to hear him really enjoying reading again. Having read the book now myself, I would say although it is probably geared more towards the young reader, if you enjoy fantasy then you should give the a go, no matter what age you are. My son now begging me for the next in the series.

Like most books of science fiction fantasy this follows most of the traditional format, but it doesn't feel like. It's a great story and well worth the read. It's guaranteed you'll want to read book 2.

I really enjoyed this series, so much so that I ended up missing my stop a few times whilst reading it! It's the closest thing I have found to Harry Potter and I say this as a massive Potter fan. The first book is great and the series just gets better and better as it goes on. If you like magic, secret passages, mystery and epic battles this is for you. I was completely gripped from start to finish. I cannot recommend it highly enough. I loved it.

The plot held me enough to finish the book, but the echoes of Harry Potter resonated through the book. However, if you are looking for a read that is easy on the mind and enjoyable, buy. Ps once you get to the end of the book you get the 'normal' author's blurb. This normally tells you how valued you are and gently encourages you to buy the next book, in this case it is was unusual and came across as a crass hard sell - an unfortunate way to finish...

Good fantasy series