Instantly lovable characters, a distinct magic system, and delightfully terrifying monsters fill Maiga Doocy's debut novel, Sorcery and Small Magics, the start of an enchanting slow-burn cozy fantasy series.
Leovander Loveage is a scriver--a sorcerer who writes spells for others to cast--and is studying at an elite magical academy solely to satisfy his overbearing father. He is the worst kind of student, always getting into mischief and wasting his days on drinking. He sticks to the simplest of charms and avoids Grandmagic for fear of hurting someone, as his Grandmagic spells inevitably seem to do. Sebastian Grimm is Leo's opposite, a steady and sober caster focused on gaining a coveted spot in the Coterie, the magical military that defends Miendor's border against monsters from the Wilderlands. When a classroom mishap results in Leo being bound to Grimm, the two sworn enemies are forced to work together to break the curse, and their adventures lead them into the most dangerous of circumstances. As they spend time together and meet a variety of complex characters, Leo begins to realize he may have been wrong about Grimm--and maybe about himself, too.
Leo's narration doesn't hide the wounded boy underneath his bluster as much as he'd like, although the details of his trauma are not immediately apparent. Information about the characters and the novel's magic system unfurls slowly, allowing readers to be fully drawn into this richly realized queer-normative world and its sensitive healing of two damaged but beautiful young men. --Dainy Bernstein, freelance reviewer