Magic-wielding teen coming-of-age mystery/adventure.

I exchanged book recommendations with a friend, and she chose this one because it’s a story she’s read and enjoyed many times.

It’s just over five hundred pages of what are obviously teen wizards complete with wands and magic. Also vampires. But these wizards are called “magicians,” which is tricky for me because I can’t encounter the word without thinking of Gob Bluth.

These kids have a lot to figure out about the plot, about themselves, and about the grownups they trust and look up to.

It’s told from the first-person perspective of different characters, some of whom aren’t integrated into the story until much later. I loved this, along with how fun it could be switching between characters’ thoughts in the middle of big, intense action scenes.

The characters grew on me, and Rowell added a number of twists that were refreshing and satisfying and made the story uniquely its own thing.

I enjoyed reading this and the moving ending it worked up to.