The Keeper of Magical Things

by Julie Leong

Synopsis:

An almost-mage discovers friendship—and maybe something more—in the unlikeliest of places in this delightfully charming novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Teller of Small Fortunes.

Certainty Bulrush wants to be useful—to the Guild of Mages that took her in as a novice, to the little brother who depends on her, and to anyone else she can help. Unfortunately, her tepid magic hasn’t proven much use to anyone. When Certainty has the chance to earn her magehood via a seemingly straightforward assignment, she takes it. Nevermind that she’ll have to work with Mage Aurelia, the brilliant, unfairly attractive overachiever who’s managed to alienate everyone around her.

The two must transport minorly magical artifacts somewhere safe: Shpelling, the dullest, least magical village around. There, they must fix up an old warehouse, separate the gossipy teapots from the kind-of-flaming swords, corral an unruly little catdragon who has tagged along, and above all: avoid complications. The Guild’s uneasy relationship with citizens is at a tipping point, and the last thing needed is a magical incident.

Still, as mage and novice come to know Shpelling’s residents—and each other—they realize the Guild’s hoarded magic might do more good being shared. Friendships blossom while Certainty and Aurelia work to make Shpelling the haven it could be. But magic is fickle—add attraction and it might spell trouble.

I was really eager about The Keeper of Magical Things because I really loved Julie Leong’s previous book, The Teller of Small Fortunes. And indeed there was much to enjoy here, with this relatively low-stakes fantasy: a pretty cute romance plotline, the personal development of mostly just one of the characters, the story of a community regaining life and vigor after a disaster, and a small-stakes revenge plot. The worst thing that happens is that a tavern is burned down, with some personal consequences — this isn’t crowns and kingdoms.

I didn’t love it quite as much as The Teller of Small Fortunes, because I didn’t find it quite as creative in positioning the magic of the story. Tao’s story stuck out to be because her power of seeing the future is approached in a somewhat unique way: she tries to just see innocuous stuff, like the purchase of a new dress in the near future, but this can sometimes reveal far more than she expects. There’s less of that here: though Certainty’s power is small, the ability to speak to objects, it didn’t feel as clever/surprising, I suppose.

The characters were also a bit less compelling, while being pretty charming: Certainty’s a former farm girl with a need to prove herself and become a mage, while Aurelia is a mage who has problems relating to others, and messed up majorly. I think the most interesting magic angle in this story was actually perhaps in the necklace which helps her to focus. It really works, but it also comes with voices in her head (which sound like her parents) whispering that she’s going to be a failure, forcing her to focus through shame. For a cosy book, though, that’s quite the horrible little object.

Overall, I still had fun, don’t get me wrong — I got invested in the way the two of them ended up using the magical objects to revitalise the town of Shpelling, and in the will-they-won’t-they of their relationship. I loved that the community ultimately stuck up for them, recognising the good they brought even before — well, no more spoilers!

It winds up nicely and is a pretty satisfying read, but it didn’t stand out for me in quite the same way as Leong’s previous novel.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)