The Novice (Summoner Trilogy Series #1)

by Taran Matharu

Overview

He can summon demons. But can he win a war?

Fletcher is working as a blacksmith's apprentice when he discovers he has the rare ability to summon demons from another world. Chased from his village for a crime he did not commit, Fletcher must travel with his demon, Ignatius, to an academy for adepts, where the gifted are taught the art of summoning.

Along with nobles and commoners, Fletcher endures grueling lessons that will prepare him to serve as a Battlemage in the Empire's war against the savage Orcs. But sinister forces infect new friendships and rivalries grow. With no one but Ignatius by his side, Fletcher must decide where his loyalties lie. The fate of the Empire is in his hands.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250067128
Publisher:	Feiwel & Friends
Publication date:	05/05/2015
Series:	Summoner Trilogy Series , #1
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	418,465
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.50(d)
Lexile:	890L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

YA fantasy Wattpad sensation, Taran Matharu, is the author of the The Summoner series, which includes two New York Times bestsellers: The Novice and The Inquisition. Taran began to write the Summoner series in November 2013 at the age of 22, taking part in the internet writing phenomenon Nanowrimo. On Wattpad, The Novice has been read over 7.5 million times! The third book in the series, The Battlemage, will publish from Feiwel and Friends in May 2017. Taran Matharu is a half-Brazilian, half-Indian author, born and raised in London.

Editorial Reviews

03/23/2015
In this first installment of the Summoner trilogy (originally posted on Wattpad), a young man discovers he has the ability to summon and control demons. Fletcher, a blacksmith’s apprentice, finds himself in possession of a book that allows him to conjure a rare Salamander demon. Shortly thereafter, he is forced to flee his village, but a lucky chain of events takes him to Vocans Academy, where he is to train as an imperial battlemage. Fletcher is tested to his limits, bullied by the noble students, and subjected to constant scrutiny by the teachers, but he also makes new allies among the less-privileged students, including representatives from the dwarves and elves. Matharu’s fiction debut is a solid offering, albeit one that features an odd mishmash of cultural influences—twin dwarven brothers are named Atilla and Othello, Fletcher’s blacksmith mentor presents him with a khopesh, and law enforcement agents are called Pinkertons. The story itself is strong, but it suffers from uneven pacing and an abrupt ending. Ages 12–up. Agent: Sasha Raskin, Agency Group. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Fletcher is an orphan who lives in the small village of Pelt, not far from the elfen border and the farthest outpost in an on-going war against the orcs. Despite being a skilled hunter and apprentice blacksmith, Fletcher has little status in the village. A chance encounter leads to Fletcher discovering that he can summon demons. This rare skill is found primarily among the nobles of the kingdom and is essential on the battlefront. When his new demon protects him against the village bullies, Fletcher flees for his life and becomes a student at the school for battlemages. . . . [This] plot-focused fantasy adventure will be a satisfying read for a wide age range of readers, especially fans of role-playing games and Christopher Paolini.” —VOYA

From the Publisher

03/01/2015
Gr 7 Up—Fletcher, 15, an orphan raised by a blacksmith in the Hominum Empire's northern village of Pelt discovers he has the ability to summon demonic creatures in this exciting fantasy trilogy opener. After Fletcher and Ignatius, his ferretlike demon, attack the local bully, Fletcher is forced to flee his village. Through a chance encounter with a mage, Fletcher finds himself attending an academy for battle mages. Trained mages are needed in Hominum's ongoing war with the orcs and in the armed truce against the elves. At the Academy, Fletcher, a commoner, endures scorn from the more skilled second-year students of noble birth, especially a pair of snobbish twin siblings, who are particularly cruel to Sylva, the elf chieftain's daughter, and the dwarf Othello. Dwarves are despised and treated as second-class citizens by many humans in Hominum. Their studies culminate in a year-end tournament that determines their student rankings and the opportunity for a senior military position. Fletcher and his small group of allies also become involved in a plot that threatens all of Hominum. This debut's similarities to J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" books, Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" (Knopf), and J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" (Scholastic) (the novel even has a nasty professor with a prejudice against commoners and other races) are unmistakable, but readers won't mind. Fletcher's a sympathetic character whose impulsive behavior leads him to make understandable mistakes. VERDICT The appealing characters, fast-paced plot, focus on racial politics, and interesting demon varieties (demonology addendum included) make this an enjoyable read.—Sharon Rawlins, New Jersey State Library, Trenton

School Library Journal

2015-02-16
A young orphan makes friends (and enemies) at a magic school in this solid series opener.Fifteen-year-old Fletcher assists blacksmith Berdon, haggles with the town guards, and dodges bullies daily. The Hominum Empire is at war with elves in the north and orcs in the south, but Fletcher can do little to help...until he releases a demon bound to an orc scroll and proves himself a summoner. Fleeing a criminal sentence, Fletcher lands in cultural center Corcillum and, after another fortuitous intervention, arrives at Vocans Academy. Previously closed to females, commoners, and members of other species, Vocans now grudgingly accepts all adepts, to Fletcher's delight and the noble students' horror. In between rescuing friends from mobs and entangling himself in the dwarves' rebellion, Fletcher attends class and trains his adorable but deadly Salamander demon. Plot, dialogue, and characters recall other school-set fantasies, but Fletcher is appealing precisely because of his Everyman qualities: he is not the smartest or the strongest, but he is a loyal friend and a fierce fighter against injustice. The detailed setting is a hodgepodge of arrows and ammunition, medieval and industrial, but the few anomalies do not impede the action. Debut author Matharu tackles class inequalities and racism (in the form of speciesism), mixes humor with violence, and plays with fantasy conventions, with varying success. Fantasy readers should enjoy this entertaining, comfortably familiar-feeling adventure featuring an earnest soldier-schoolboy and his demonic sidekick. (Fantasy. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews