Notorious Sorcerer

July 4, 2022
An aspiring alchemist faces multiplanar pandemonium in Evans’s energetic epic fantasy debut, which stands out for never taking itself too seriously. “Interplanar errand boy” Siyon Velo spends his days delving into different planes of existence to retrieve alchemical ingredients for the city of Bezim’s magical elite while maintaining an impossible dream of one day being a trained and certified alchemist himself. A chance to prove himself arrives when his new friend Zagiri Savani falls from a clock tower and he improvises an unpolished—and very public—magical rescue, resulting in a burst of inexplicable, unlicensed magic that lands him at the top of Bezim’s most wanted list. Meanwhile, the planes have been thrown out of balance, and external powers claw for control over Bezim’s plane, the Mundane. To restore the balance, one of the Mundane’s alchemists must rise above the others to become the Power of the Mundane. But as many try and fail, it becomes clear that only Siyon has ever harnessed enough magic to earn the title—albeit entirely accidentally. Evans trusts readers to untangle the rules of her expansive world with minimal exposition, which may prove disorienting to some, but the witty prose, endearing characters, and sense of playful whimsy throughout keep the pages turning. This is a charmer. Agent: Kurestin Armada, Root Literary

August 1, 2022
An untrained magician assumes the mantle of unlikely hero. Siyon makes his living delving into magical planes to harvest rare materials for the alchemists of Bezim, the only city in the world where interplanar travel is possible. After he trades away a phoenix feather to a well-connected young man who promptly disappears, Siyon must find a way to recover the missing boy or face banishment or execution. Meddling with the planes in this way carries the risk of shifting them dangerously out of alignment, which might have set Evans' novel up for an intense climax were it not for a dearth of information about the story's most vital aspects, including magic, local laws, international politics, race, and class. Centuries of esoteric laws and theorems govern alchemy and sorcery, but the novel does not explain how these magical systems function or the ways in which they differ, both in law and in practice. Bezim's biased legal system favors the azatani and oppresses both foreigners and the bravi, but we never learn whether azatani and bravi refer to races or social classes. In fact, azatani seems to mean both a race and a social class, although we're left in the dark regarding how the oft-referenced "tiers" of azatani--with their names all ending in -ani--organize themselves. Furthermore, it is possible to be both azatani and bravi without being mixed-race. That Evans leaves these concepts obfuscated via glaring omissions precludes readers' basic understanding of how Siyon's world works. The novel's most interesting subplots are two romances--one hinted at, one consummated, and both queer--but neither reaches a satisfying conclusion. Half-explained political dynamics and magical laws mar an otherwise passable fantasy outing.

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August 1, 2022

DEBUT Siyon Velo lives in Bezim, where alchemy is illegal to everyone except those with enough money and power to talk their way out of trouble. Siyon runs errands to the different planes of existence to get the practitioners' alchemical supplies. One day he performs an unexplainable public act of sorcery in the town square and sets in motion a series of events that only he can fix. The story offers a rich lore of alchemy that fantasy fans will enjoy learning alongside Siyon, and the city of Bezim feels incredibly fleshed out in its politics, social systems, and history. This book also has some wonderfully strong female characters in sisters Zagiri and Anahid, and a wonderful M/M romance that will leave readers longing for the next book in the series. VERDICT Evans's debut is a high fantasy full of excellent worldbuilding, with an enjoyable magic system and strong characters.--Carleigh Obrochta

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2022
Evans' debut novel introduces the city of Bezim, the only place on this plane where alchemy works, though it's illegal due to a magical event that destroyed half the city. Siyon, a bravi who lacks the funds to become a proper alchemist, skirts the edge of legality by selling ingredients retrieved from the other planes to the alchemists who avoid arrest by being rich or part of the city's prominent families. Siyon draws the Inquisitors' attention when he accidentally performs impossible magic very publicly, rescuing his friend Zagiri from a fatal fall; he then experiences a waterfall of disasters that lead the Inquisitors to arrest the entirety of the elite Summer Club. Siyon is the city's only chance to rescue the prefect's son from another plane, as well as to harness the Power of the Mundane to rebalance the planes, before the other Powers invade to correct the balance. Notorious Sorcerer's unique magic system adds to this delightful fantasy setting, leaving readers eagerly anticipating the next book in the Burnished City series.

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