Firstly I just love the set up of this book. Alex Roth lost his parents at a young age to a house fire and has been slaving away in a bakery ever since. But on the day of his 18^th birthday, just as he’s about to go to Magic University he gets branded with the Mark of the Fool. The Ravener has returned and he is one of the heroes chosen to fight it.

To which he replies, “Nope,” grabs his little sister, his best friend and her dog and hairs off in the opposite direction. Great start.

This book is a masterclass in restraint. The Mark that he’s been given, commonly thought of as the least of the Marks, is still stupidly overpowered. It basically means that he can learn almost all skills at a hugely accelerated rate, though it does knacker his ability to learn combat, magic and divinity. However, by focusing on magic it never feels as broken as it should. Alex has always wanted to be a wizard and he’s not going to let being magically crippled stand in his way. It’s a nice slow build, in both his skills and the revelation of the world.

And the world itself is fun as well. It’s described with a fair amount of depth and I loved the perspective it took on the Ravener’s awakening, that for all it seemed such an immediate problem when in the country, the rest of the world takes it much less seriously. It gives a lovely context to everything.

Honestly, this is the sort of book I love to read. There’s action and adventure, sure, but also people trying to work out how to break systems and use their abilities to the best possible advantage. And a deep world full of lore. I can’t wait for the next one.