Yes, yes, yes, it's a complete rip off of Harry Potter. Even so, Ben has done a great job world building and designing his magic system. I rolled my eyes at first but the story sucked me in and carried me along. I genuinely liked the few main characters, and the writing was pretty strong.

Dialogue among the main, modern characters sounded fairly natural, but the aspects of the story that leaned deeper into fantasy read over-the-top. The tone couldn't find a clear foothold and some of the plot was rushed.

All in all, it was a very fun, quick read. I'll be finishing the series soon. ( )