The Awakening

The Awakening - Andreas Suchanek

The world as you know it is a lie. For over a century, the mystic Wall has kept the magical society hidden from human eyes, guaranteeing peace and equality between humans and wizards. But in the shadows a war for supremacy rages.

Jennifer Danvers is a wizard. When her friend and comrade-in-arms dies, a new heir to magic awakens in Alexander Kent, whom she must introduce to the world of magic.

Neither of them suspects that the balance of light and darkness is out of control. An ancient evil is rising. Its only goal: to shatter the mystic Wall and bring darkness upon the wizards and immortals.

Being a fan of Harry Potter and Mortal Instruments I was eager to try this series, but at the same time I was slightly hesitant incase it was too similar. I feel that The Awakening was a clever balance of both worlds. Whilst the basis of the world isn’t original the story is gripping enough to keep you interested. The start of the book is a little bit tedious with the introduction of the various characters but it definitely gets better.

This is book one in The Immortal Wizards series, which has already been published in German. I am curious to see what Andreas does with this series.

I would recommend this book to fans of magical worlds.

Rating 4/5

4.5 review

Sometimes the first book in a series can be a little tedious and slow paced, because they have so much detail and world building to set up for the entire series. At first, it took me a while to really sink into this book, but the characters and the intrigue kept me around, and oh boy, I’m so glad I kept on with this book.

I am absolutely hooked on this series already! My expectations were fairly low if I’m being honest. I didn’t know what to expect, and the blurb doesn’t give much away, but Andreas Suchanek has totally blown me out of the water. I don’t normally like books with a complex magical system, because they’re not always written in a way that I’m able to picture clearly, and now look at me, with a new favourite book, and hopefully a new favourite series.

The reason why I didn’t give it 5 stars is because the concept is a little unoriginal, but to be honest, there’s very little new concepts out there nowadays, and also because the book takes a while to really hook you, but I’m telling you, KEEP READING!

All in all, I’m so impressed and so glad that I was given the opportunity to review the ARC of the Awakening by Andreas Suchanek in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, and the author.

I had never read this author before, but the blurb seemed pretty interesting. I dived in to it, and I have to admit I was confused after a bit. The action was good, the characters were interesting, but the magic and the universe really confused me at first. After I finally got a handle on everything, and while that did take longer than I generally like, the book really became much better. I ended the book thinking I couldn’t wait to try the next one and see what is going to happen, the characters had really engaged me, and I was invested in the future of the group. This is a series-starter, and sometimes that can be the weakest book. Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

The world-building was interesting, the plotline is good, however, I felt it a bit slow-paced, I like the details from this type of books, but something was missing. The characters did make up for the story, I am interested in finding out what comes next, this is the first book and so I know we are probably going to be in for a long story. The narration and writing felt a bit odd but saw past that and the different names and also the idea of having a lot of real historical people to see the actual story behind it all. Definitely an intriguing start.

Finally there is a book with characters in their twenties that reads like a young adult novel! That is exactly what I have been looking for ever since I got out of my teens. I love young adult books, who doesn’t? But I don’t want to keep on reading about yet another 16 year old figuring out life. The Awakening is exactly what I needed it to be!

Are the characters childish? Perhaps a little, but do we ever really grow up? I loved the constant bickering between them and so should you! I’m the same age as them and I can relate. The fact that you are in your twenties and called a grown-up doesn’t mean you always ACT like one!

I was moved by their back stories, especially Jen and Alex, when they finally found out what makes the other tick. I enjoyed seeing their relationship grow into friendship.

The whole idea about a magical essence that picks a worthy heir to bear the magic is fascinating and I absolutely loved the creation of the world. It was detailed and I could imagine walking around the Castillo myself. Sitting in the tower with all of the friends, drinking coffee or taking a portal to New York!

This great fantasy book engulfs the reader into a new world of magic. The ever present fight between good and evil runs deep in the story line and fuels the plot.

Mortal instruments meets Harry Potter in this action packed, fun ,and thrilling tale. Science giants such as Einstein and Leonardo make appearances. The characters are diverse and pull you in. You'll envision the words playing out on a big screen. It is an epic first installment, can't wait for part 2.

I took a chance with the book and I am happy that I did. The characters were developed quite well and the story just flowed.

I thought The Awakening was a great book. Suchanek creates an alternative world where magic is hidden from the rest of the world. Step by step he explains how the magical side works, pulling the veil away so every reader can see it. I really enjoyed discovering the nook and crannies of this world. I can't wait for the sequel!!

The first volume in an upcoming series is typically used to build. Build a back story, build a world(s), build characters, etc. This is no exception. This is the Americanized version of a German series that has been around long enough to have a huge following. While I did find the reading a little slower, I also found it well planned and thought out. The overall plot of the series is set and the main characters are in place. Now the action begins and my attention was solidly on the story. I now have the series set.....bring on book 2.

Wizards are real - they're concealed from the world by a magical wall that was constructed 160 years ago. Some are immortal and make up the council - most of whom have been alive for centuries. You will recognize many of their names from history, because they are well-known (painters, scientists, etc.) - I will save them as a surprise for you. I really enjoyed that part of this book, because it was fun getting to know them this way. There are numerous wizards involved in the story, but I would probably say the two main characters are Alexander Kent and Jennifer Danvers. Alexander has just "awoken" as a wizard, which means he just received his magical powers. Jennifer is helping him learn the rules of magic, although some of the knowledge is innate over time.

Non-magical humans, or "Nowiz", used to be aware of wizards and magic, and they were able to exist in peace. Unurprisingly, that didn't last. The presence of evil and dark magic led to jealousy and fear (imagine). There is definitely a dark side, and several nefarious characters lurk there.

The wizards' mission is mainly to fight against evil, which in this case involves a few different enemies. One of them, the most diabolical, is the "queen of shadows", whose true identity has remained elusive. She seems to know and see all, and has nothing but hatred in her heart. She disseminates her darkness and enmity in many ways, causing heartache, sadness, and death. Thankfully, she is facing a lot of strong resistance.

This story has magic, wonder, adventure, suspense, and betrayal. I wasn't too sure at the very beginning, but as it unfolded further, it grabbed me and wouldn't let go until the very end. I really enjoyed it, and look forward to the sequel.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Definitely targeted towards students/kids under the age of 15. I thought this one was interesting and I might recommend to someone who likes Harry Potter or something of that nature. Overall, not too bad of a story.

I want to thank the author/publisher for the opportunity to review The Awakening (The Immortal Wizards, Book 1). Although I am thankful for the opportunity to read this book, the following review is completely mine.

This is the first book in a new series translated from German into English. The original series by Andreas Suchanekc has 24 volumes, and the series is already an award-winning one. When I first started reading the book, I didn't have any background on the author or this series, so I found it fascinating when I did a bit of a deep-dive after finishing the book to learn more about the author and the series.

As the first book in a series, I really liked the book. I think the book is probably an upper-level YA book, but it's entertaining enough that adults will also enjoy the unique magical world that Suchanekc has created.

In this world, magic exists. However, magic is hidden from the nowiz (I know, not the best name I've heard for this in a fantasy series). Just like muggles in the world of Harry Potter before them, the nowiz are generally clueless and have no idea what is going on around them.

So, how does someone become magic? Basically, when someone who is a wizard dies, their magical essence is transferred into the body of another (generally unsuspecting person), which is where this book starts. Out of nowhere one day, Alexander Kent becomes the newest wizard and must be mentored by Jennifer Danvers. Now, Jenn is a bit of an interesting case and not Alex's best friend from the very beginning because the magic inside of him was her former partner's (remember, someone has to die for the magic to be transferred).

Combine this with the dark wizards, a shadowy woman, and a crazed death cult, and lots of mayhem ensues. Oh, and one of their closest allies isn't actually one of their allies.

As a whole, I liked this new world that was built in the first book, and I definitely plan on reading future books in the series. However, I did find some of the authors' choices a bit on the cheesy side. For example, the decision to use historic figures and turn them into immortals was a decision I found awkward. I think the book could have been perfectly fine without trying to infuse any kind f historic-revisionism into it. If anything, random historic figures popping up took me out of the story.

The Awakening is the first book in The Immortal Wizards series by author Andreas Suchanek. I came across this book on NetGalley and found the blurb to be interesting. I was definitely not disappointed. The book takes us into a world of magic, powers and characters from history who are immortal and magical! I would never have imagined getting the chance to be around Joan of Arc, Leonardo da Vinci or even Albert Einstein, but this book brings them to life.

The story introduces us to many characters and explains how they get their power, how it works and how to use it. With a threat looming over the magical world, the author dives right in to the plot interspersing the action with background information and details. This was an interesting way to handle the story and trust me, there is a lot of action and adventure! An old prophecy is introduced and some of the key players in the plot to bring down the Magical Wall.

Some aspects of the plot feel like a repetition, considering that there is only so much one can do with this genre, but putting it aside, the story flows well and remains original for the most part. My suggestion is to persevere through, it is worth it! The characters are well thought out and though we do not interact with them as much as we would like, the reader will still enjoy the interactions.

I truly enjoyed this story and am looking forward to reading the next book in the series!

I thought this was a fun easy book to read. There were some very innovative elements in the story it was not the same pattern as many fantasy novels of this type. It has the makings of a good series as the plot and the cahractes are engaging and it clear that te plot can be furthre developed in many ways.. It is not a great work of fiction, I found the language a little simplistic and very little is left to the reader's imagination as it is all spelt out very clearly. That said I look forward to seeing and reading the rest of the series.