Cover Image: Forbidden Magic

Forbidden Magic

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Member Reviews

Ferrier does a splendid job of crafting a story that has this undercurrent of fear as Kai is in this constant state. This crafts a unique world where magic is forbidden and explores a premise that shows the reality of what such a world would be like. A fun read that will appeal to all ages and provide an amazing character arc that blends a hero's journey with a coming-of-age adventure.

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An amazing magical read just what I needed I go too book when you just want a bit of relaxation in a made up world it kept me hooked and I loved the world and the characters well done

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My first attempt to read this book was a failure as I just couldn't get myself into the setting of the book, there was so much drawn out information but I went back to give it another chance... It draws the book our a bit, first goes incredibly slow and then suddenly speeds up so quickly that everything feels flattened out. Not for me, I'm sorry.

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I found the story to be magical and a very fun read! It read as a bit juvenile to me, but I don't think that would be an issue at all for the right reader!

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Our main character in this book is Kai, who currently lives in a village where magic is forbidden by King Okid. However, Kai originally grew up in a village where magic was predominant and later lived with his grandma Channi, who taught him until she got sick. Now, while living with his aunt and uncle who don’t believe in the use of magic, King Okid’s people are randomly testing suspected kids for the Moon People to torture and kill. Upon hearing this, Kai takes the opportunity to run away and find a way to stop this atrocity from happening any further.

It’s often said that first impressions are the last impressions and will last in one’s memory for a while. Well, this book sure reminded me of that because it was missing something. A sprinkle of fairy dust or an added spice to the mix. It made me want to finish the book but not attempt the series further.

The world building in this book is a literal information dump. I feel that fiction books especially fantasy should guide our imagination, but not be our imagination when reading. This book was very descriptive and informative going into very fine details including character looks, personality, achievements and more. Told from Kai’s perspective when he journeyed alone the first half of the book could be said as just laying down the foundation.

However, the remainder of the book speeds up too fast. Going from quite a slow pace to a sudden fast turn of events, leads a lot of events and key descriptions to be lost. Such as, the training process, the bonding between the team members as well as the emotions felt when traveling through time.

Some of the dialogue felt very awkward to me. I found there were quite a few repetitions such as, Kai would mention King Okid’s plan to kill the Moon people while stating which village he’s from but then he’d get asked about King Okid’s plan a few lines down again by the same person. I’m not sure if that was intentional or not but it felt awkward and personally ruined the flow for me. Additionally, I don’t think some of the character descriptions made sense since they were told by a character in the book. I think it would’ve made more sense if those traits and personality were proven and discovered through their acts instead.

Overall, this was an okay book for me. I wasn’t very invested in it because of the lengthy information and description paragraphs in the beginning of the book. I also felt the action or finale of this book was pretty flat. I’ll probably pick up the rest of this series because I don’t prefer unfinished series however this wouldn’t be top of my list.

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This is a fast paced and page turning fantasy adventure full of magic, ancient discoveries and friendship. I guess the Story is targeted to children, so I am not quite the right audience for this book, even so I enjoy fantasy a lot.
Lets Begin with the characters. Though they are very cute at first glance, they actually don't have much personality and feel flat. They have to face serious threats in this story and they do so with ease, so the danger didn't seem much threatening in the end.
We see a creative magic system which could be a little bit more fleshed out. For example if you use magic in this world, there is no real cost to it - you can basically use it all the time of you are awake and focused.
All the little flaws are due to the shortness of the story I think. If we had 100 - 200 more pages, we could have much more worldbuilding and deeper personalities to the characters.
I think I would have liked the book much more as a younger reader.

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This was an average read for me. The plot was interesting, as I like anything with magic and the characters were quite likeable and it made me want to read on. It was quite a unique magic system and the exploration of the Moon People was very allegorical and deep.

However, I felt the pacing got lost in the middle of the book, it slowed right down, which made the plot feel a bit dragged out. It then sped up toward the end, which is something I do not really like. The language was a little stilted which is not always the case for middle-grade books, so that put me off a little.

Overall, an interesting fantasy read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

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Overview: Kai grew up in a household that valued magic but now he and his sister live with their aunt and uncle in Wizandor, a place where magic is reviled and considered a crime. Afraid that he will be imprisoned or murdered for his magical talents, Kai runs away and eventually makes his way to the Academy of Moon Magic. There, he learns that attitudes towards magic in Wizandor may have been caused by a curse. Will he be able to save his world?

My Thoughts: I typically enjoy this type of YA fantasy premise -- young YA protagonist(s) go to a magical academy, learns more about themselves and their strengths, and potentially save the world in the process. This book follows the trope, but the plot takes too long to get going. The book lingers too long on the bullying and negative situation in Wizandor, and Kai doesn't end up at the Academy of Moon Magic until almost halfway through the book. It was a quick read, and enjoyable but didn't "stand out" from other YA fantasy I've read.

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A magical little read - great to immerse a teen in a fantastic world with some great characters and world-building. The pacing slowed down a little toward the middle, which made the plot feel a little drawn out, but still a good read!

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Amazing story. Held my attention throughout. It has earned it's place in my top 20 books I've read this year.

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Okay, I’m a little conflicted about this story. I gave it three stars because I just don’t think I was the right audience for it. The plot was interesting and I instantly wanted to read it. However, I think the writing was a little … hmm I’m not sure if I can find the right word. May juvenile? Or it just needed a little more work especially the dialogue.

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eARC received via NetGalley for free and honest review, given willingly.

So. I'm not sure if this is just a feature of the "middle grade" genre, but while the actual plot of this book was interesting, I found the writing itself often stilted and strangely... simplistic. There was a distinct lack of sentence structure variety, with most of the sentences being simple and declarative, making for a rather monotonous reading experience. There was very little "flow", as it were, to the text, which made reading this book feel very "clunky" and kind of like I was reading a 2nd grader's daily diary entry -- I did this. Then, I did that. And then after, I did this, so on and so forth.

But that besides, I found the characters compelling, the magic system interesting, the persecution of "moon people" a good platform for beginning discussions on prejudice towards people based on things beyond their control (like genetics or the day they're born).

All in all, this was a solid 3 stars for me. I'd probably recommend this to younger readers, who are just getting into Fantasy-esque books. I think this would be a good gateway book to use as a jumping off point, but I can't imagine recommending it to anyone older than say... 11 or 12.

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I like the author's storyline, she came up with unique details I found interesting. I wouldn't say I have any negative views on the book except I think it was a little young for me. I think this is a wonderful story for a child, full of fantasy and magical beasts, life lessons and wonder.

At oome point in the book, I felt like it was dragging a little, and then at others, it was extremely fast paced - especially nearing the end.

Other than that, it was an interesting story and I am glad I read it.

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Fifteen year old Kai and his sister Asa lives in the country of Kalendra, a magical world built up by several smaller kingdoms. But in Wizandor Village, the ruling elite and King Okid has forbidden all uses of magic, because they want to modernize Kalendra. But there are still those who remembers the old days when magic flowed freely.

When Kai's parents dies he and his sister are sent to live with their grandmother Chani in Wizandor Village, they have to supress their magic. But Kai is a Moon Mage, born under two full moons. Moon People are people with strong magical abilities. Because of this, they can talk directly to the moon. When Moon People begin dissappearing and gathered up to be executed by the Kings orders, Kai undertands he has to leave the village. He is able to travel back in time and attend the Academy of Moon People and learn how to stop this from happening and save Kalendra.

The worldbuilding is impressive but it feels like it was just told to me as a reader when explaining it or talking about it to another chracter. Maybe its because the writing is abit stiff and not so descriptive. Its more of a "show me, dont tell me"-vibe for me. It didnt feel immersive and didnt suck me into the story and I had a hard time imagining the setting or characters in my mind.

I like the trope with forbidden magic and how the main chracter had to solve it by going back in time. The magic system in this book was also diffferent and unique to me. I would recommend this book to children and teens in the ages of 12-15 who are new to the fantasy genre.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of this book.

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Kai lives in a village where no magic is allowed, the king has forbidden it. But he grew up in the world of magic and wants to be a Ranger of the Sky, like his father before him. After hearing how magic users would be tortured and stripped of their magic, he leaves the village to hide with forest mages. But he has a different destiny, the Moon has sent him on a quest to save the villages from the king. And for that, he will need some training and some friends…

This is a young adult fantasy story with some interesting time travelling. Imagine going back in time to receive the training you need and having to tell those people their way of life won’t exist in the future. I always find it fascinating how much you should change to preserve your own future. I did like the characters, and I liked the storyline in general. Some of the dialogue sounded a bit like a lecture when the author had one character explain concepts to another. The magic system was an interesting one.

The story is sometimes a bit slow, but it was an easy read. I wouldn’t say I like how information is shared, it does feel a bit like an info dump. But the rest was an adventure, and I would read the rest of the series.

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My first attempt to read this book was a failure as I just couldn't immerse myself into the world since the beginning was just too information but I went back to give it another chance and although the storyline is unique, I couldn't personally connect with the book nor its characters. The dialouge also seemed somewhat unnatural and didn't seem like someone was speaking at all but instead just seemed like an extention or alternate way to describe something (amongst the other countless descriptive paragraphs). I just found it difficult to get through and remeber what happened.

thank you to the publisher, the author and NetGalley for an e-ARC of this book.

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ARC provided by the author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Genres: Sci Fi & Fantasy | Teens & YA

As a whole, I really enjoyed this book. This writing style is good, and the world it creates is really interesting to read about. The plot of Outlawed magic where the MC must hide his powers ,and learn to develop his magic so he can return and repair his world was unique.

However the only flaw is the dialogue can be a little difficult sometimes, I found it did not flow like conversation and became a little difficult to follow.

Overall, I would give this book a solid 3 stars. I like the characters, the friendship and the plot was overall really interesting.

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On the surface, this sounds like the kind of book I would love. Outlawed magic, corrupt rulers, kid characters learning skills with the help of wise teachers. Unfortunately, I struggled to get through it.

Unfortunately, this book could be a masterclass in why you should use "show, don't tell." The first several chapters in particular felt like an information dump rather than having the information about the world and characters integrated nicely, but it doesn't get much better as the book goes on. There were often so many paragraphs of backstory or worldbuilding that I would forget what was supposed to be happening, even when the scene was supposed to be more of an action scene. The point of view would often shift from character to character, but in a way that felt accidental instead of an omniscient narrator. The writing reminded me of a lot of fanfiction I've read. Not horrible, but definitely in need of more development and some great editing.

Part of the reason for the endless telling instead of showing is that in the first part of the book, the main character is often by himself with his only his thoughts. For example, when he goes on a journey, he spends some time thinking about a place and all the grief associated with it, he decides a rock is a companion, he wants to get to the desert, he'll be able to pass miles of land through one option, the land was dry and only hardy plants survived, he ate and it was like he hadn't eaten in a year, the landscape changes to shale, he knows it's dangerous, there's yet another valley, he reaches the second ridge, he decides to spend the night in a cave, he explores a valley the next morning, he passes stone mountains, he wonders why anyone would live in a desert where he knows rain hasn't fallen in years, he wonders if his mind is playing tricks on him, he promises himself he'll stop once he gets to a certain point, he wonders if it will be barren all the way to the sea... and I was left wondering if the book would be barren that far too. Nothing happens for a long time. He wanders through all of these areas and thinks about things the reader should know about the world--for multiple pages.

As an example of the writing found in the whole book:

"Kai walked, skipped, and ran towards the Ancient Kingdom. It looked beautiful. It wasn't a ruin like the Blue Cliff Basin. It was preserved. His fear now was that it was completely empty. But there was only one way to find out.
"The castle here loomed large. He walked up the wide stone staircase and crossed the stone bridge, looking down at the crystal-clear river below. Whatever magic had created this place was powerful and he could feel it in his bones. The bridge was in perfect shape, no signs of wear like the Blue Cliff Basin. He bowed as he walked down the stairs to the large entryway and the double doors. He decided he'd request asylum. He assumed magic as strong as he felt here could welcome or repel people as it saw fit. And he didn't want to end up in a dungeon for being thought of as an intruder."

Unfortunately, it's just boring and it becomes difficult to figure out what is actually going on when there are paragraphs and paragraphs like the ones above in front of nearly every action. The dialogue, too, has so much over-explained detail. The characters don't have individual voices and just match that same wandering description as the narration. For example, this unnatural description:

"What does he look like? Tell me about him."
"He is about six feet tall and has straight black hair and emerald eyes. His skin is a shade darker than your own because he lives in the desert. He runs the Academy of Moon Magic. There are other teachers also and a few wizards come to assist from time to time, but Manni is connected to everyone. His martial arts skills are exemplary. He's quite well rounded [sic] in his magical abilities. You wouldn't guess that from his soft demeanor. Best of all, he runs the first-year program. You will find him easily. I have no doubt."

And then the character goes on. People just don't talk like this in real life, Much of the dialogue is like this, with paragraphs describing things or explaining background information. And while the world has a lot of detail, it never feels immersive, and the characters don't feel like much more than information robots to spit out anything the reader might need to know. I hate to say that I don't think I can even sum up the plot because it was buried somewhere in those endless paragraphs.

Overall, this book reads like an amateur first draft. It could have used a few more drafts and a lot more editing.

I think this book will have an audience. Young readers who enjoy magical worlds and magic training may still find that they enjoy it. The world certainly has many interesting elements to it. Unfortunately, the writing style was a dealbreaker for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy to review.

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I received this book in exchange for an honest review. Let me begin with the positives. The storyline is unique and the author creates a very beautiful world. Personally I am not sure if this was suited to my age group. I didn't feel a connection with the characters and found it really hard to get into. But I feel like in this case it's more of a personal preference then bad writing. If you are ya fantasy then may be for you. 18 and below.

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What a wonderful magic read! It is enchanting and I was hooked from the first page. I highly recommend this for anyone who enjoys magical worlds and a little bit of rebelliousness!

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