Journals of Evander Tailor - Review
Link to the author's (T. Begley) personal website
Book 1: The Enchanter
Book 2: The Diviner
Book 3: The Abjurer
Blurb: (From Book 1) Evan never thought he was going to be special. As the adopted son of a tailor, he had always expected to manage the shop after his father passed. But when his Aura awakens, he finds himself entering Yesgol Academy of Magic, a place filled with the children of elite mages and nobles, all of whom have had magical education from the time they could walk. Among such prestigious company, Evan will have to learn fast or be left in the dust and in debt.
At Yesgol, he studies the arts of enchanting and divination, but all is not as it seems. As Evan pushes forwards his skills as a mage to catch up with his peers, he finds himself entangled with a secret society for the reformation of magic, deals with the occasional extraplanar horror appearing in the shadows of the school, and catches the eye of a charming young noble who's been excommunicated from his family.
Review: (Review from the first book) A super engaging origin story! I liked the simple start to it, and honestly found it refreshing to not have anything intense aside from a general interest in magic as the initial character motivation. The writing admittedly wasn't instantly engaging, but the cozy initial feeling pulled me in and then the story kept me staying.
I'm not sure if this type of story is becoming overly common nowadays, but I have the general impression that this book benefits very well from its predecessors. The type of story I mean is: They focus on a traditionally 'weak' character (first-year student) that builds themselves up by constructing their own magical gear as they dive deep into a well fleshed out magic system. I found the story engaging and clean, the characters and their dynamics interesting, and thoroughly enjoyed reading about their classes at a magic school. I loved the conclusion of the first book and think it gives plenty of room for the story to evolve into, while still having a satisfying ending. Very much looking forward to continue this series, my hopes are high!
Second book update: My faith in this series has been rewarded. The sequel sticks to the same principles of the first, and delivers exactly what I wanted. It is a fun story with an interesting magic system and nice world building.
Third book update: Delivers everything I was wanting out of it. Reinforces that this series is worth reading.