I recently read and reviewed the first book in The Paper Magician Trilogy, The Paper Magician and it was such a nice snack book for me that I immediately started reading the next book, The Glass Magician.

It starts a few months after the first book, so we miss Ceony getting a big part of her origami training which was so much fun to read in the first book. She's still as infatuated with Thane as she was in the first book, but not much has happened it seems. After these months of relative calm, things are about to become more exciting once more as attacks on Ceony's life follow in rapid succession.

This book, once again, was a very nice and easy read. Like I described earlier, it was like a snack. Those books are wonderful to read from time to time. It's only that when you start to think about them, they will all eventually fall short. This one is no exception.

For The Paper Magician I stated I would've loved to see more world building, as I didn't have a clue how the magic was supposed to fit in the rest of the mundane world. Problem is, I still don't know. While it's made clear that the Magician do just mix in with the rest, go to their tearooms and everything and don't mind to talk about magic in public at all. There's a special magician police (and possibly a whole Ministry) but I wonder, how does this all fit in. Will magical criminals be judged by a normal system, or a special system, Is this only for magic related crime or for everyone who's magical no matter what their crime is?

Glass Magicians are a great new addition to the magic, with mirror transportation! No matter how much I like the paper dog, mirror transportation sounds more tempting to me. The spells however are the same as for Paper Magicians and it seems that once enchanted these paper/glass objects can easily be shared among people who are not bound to a certain element.

I had a problem with the bad guy near the end of the story. Do you also find it so annoying when the villains has captured the heroine and then starts telling her his entire plan, and this of course turns out to be vital for the next events? (It feels like reading an episode of Totally Spies)

The romance was still unnecessary for me. Especially since near the end it turns out that

This all said, I did enjoy reading it and will read the last book, The Master Magician when it's published.

The Glass Magician is the second book in The Paper Magician Trilogy. The first book is The Paper Magician and the last book, The Master Magician is expected to be published this summer.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

After graduating Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined top of her class and in one year, Ceony can already feel her apprenticeship for Smelter, one who enchants metal. But fate takes her a different road and she starts her apprenticeship to become a Folder and enchant paper. Though this sounds less cool, it turns out there are quite some interesting things one can do with paper. And there is her teacher, Magician Thane...

I have to admit I have a soft spot for magical schools/apprenticeships. This book being set in Late Victorian/Edwardian London made it even better. So, for me it was going to be hard not to like this novel. Ceony was a nice character, though a bit too perfect for my liking. A large part of the story takes place inside a heart, which is of course a bit strange, but it worked quite well. I was less taken in with the romantic subplot that I feared might get bigger during next books.

I'd liked to discuss the world and the magic, but there's not much explained during the story. To me, it felt like anyone could learn magic by attending a school, which rises the question: 'Why isn't every one a magician?' If there is some kind of aptitude necessary to become a magician, how are these people found? Ceony definitely comes from a family of muggles and everyone's magic is bound to a specific sort of object (like paper, glass or metal). It's not possible to bind something that's not man-made, like stone. Except for the evil magicians, who are bound to blood (and although blood is made in the human body, it feels a bit strange to therefore classify it 'man-made'). And they had to decide right from the start to be evil? It's not clear either just how the magical world fits in the normal one. Are all people aware of the magician? Are they okay with it?

I liked the story, writing, pace and Ceony (Thane's been unconscious for the largest part of the book so what could I tell about him). I do hope however that the next book(s) will contain not too much romance and that the magic and the world will be explained better.

The Paper Magician is the first book in The Paper Magician Trilogy. The second book is The Glass Magician (review to come soon) and the last book, The Master Magician is expected to be published this summer.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!