CITY OF RAIN

In Lejeune’s debut fantasy novel and series launch, a teen mage hides in a bustling city to safeguard a parchment that holds potentially deadly secrets.

Summer Fontenay, who has just graduated from the Imperial College of Magic, contemplates her future. Her life takes an unexpected detour when she finds the Master Reader, whom she’s been assisting, on the verge of death; he hands her a parchment he’s been translating and, with his final words, tells her to take it to the city of Torrick. She’s to deliver it to the only scholar the Master Reader trusts, but he’s not an easy man to track down. The enigmatic manuscript now in Summer’s possession contains “terrible knowledge” that many people crave, and it’s not long before some interested parties are hunting her to get their hands on the parchment (she also happens to be a murder suspect in the Master reader’s death). Around the same time, 17-year-old mage-to-be Cole Culhane is studying in Torrick. When he surmises that a skilled thief has stolen his books, which he can’t afford to replace, Cole winds up entangled with a group of criminals who are, unsurprisingly, not very trustworthy. His path ultimately crosses with Summer’s, along with those of several others determined to secure the parchment. All the while, Summer struggles to keep her head down, whether among the temples and towers of Torrick’s Upper City or navigating the crowded marketplace in the Lower City.

Lejeune’s impressive worldbuilding introduces myriad characters in an expansive Empire, although the story predominantly sticks to a few cities. The cast includes several standouts who garner the spotlight, like Summer’s fellow graduate Fenya, who’s looking for Summer at the behest of the Wizarding Guild, and Deputy Marshal Arlen, who investigates a fatal drowning and probable murder. All of these plot strands, like Summer’s and Cole’s, intersect in some capacity before this opening series installment is over. Throughout, magic is sublimely incorporated into the narrative without overwhelming it: Some try persuading others through enchantments or hide things with charms; there are “linked” mirrors for instant transportation; and Fenya uses a hex to bully Summer back at school. The author jam-packs the novel with subplots—many spin off into additional subplots. While these secondary stories are absorbing in their own right (such as Cole’s curious encounter with “the River Lady”), they also have the tendency to, at least temporarily, sideline the more essential elements, like Summer finding the scholar or Cole recovering his books. All of the colorful individuals gathered prompt dialogue-laden scenes, but it’s Lejeune’s sharp details that shine brightest: “Men in robes stood about talking in low voices… The large table had been cleared and a great map of the city laid out. [Chief clerk] Olmo, old and stout, was busy explaining it to a gaggle of mages.” By the novel’s end, readers will have no trouble guessing the direction that the planned sequel will likely take.

This lengthy, measured, and character-driven tale of magic kicks off what promises to be an engrossing saga.