Publisher Description
Enter a “gorgeously realized world”* and meet a mage destined for greatness in the first novel in the national bestselling Alex Verus series.
Alex is part of a world hidden in plain sight, running a magic shop in London that caters to clientele who can do much more than pull rabbits out of hats. And while Alex’s own powers aren’t as showy as some mages, he does have the advantage of foreseeing the possible future—allowing him to pull off operations that have a million to one chance of success.
But when Alex is approached by multiple factions seeking his skills to crack open a relic from a long-ago mage war, he knows that whatever’s inside must be beyond powerful. And thanks to his abilities, Alex can predict that by taking the job, his odds of survival are about to go from slim to none....
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Jacka's extremely promising urban fantasy series starter introduces cheeky British diviner Alex Verus, who's caught in the middle of a conflict between Light and Dark mages over an ancient magical weapon. Alex can not only see all possible futures but can often choose which ones to make real, so both sides want to use him as a tool. Alex, alienated from other mages because he has developed empathy for the beings around him, refuses to take sides. To save himself and his dependents Luna, a lonely, cursed young woman, and Starbreeze, an ancient air elemental who's "dumb as a sack of rocks" he's forced to think and move nimbly through London and its associated magical realms. Jacka deftly invents the rules of magic as he goes along, creating an emotionally satisfying story arc and a protagonist who will keep readers coming back.
