Summoner Trilogy

The Battlemage: Summoner Book 3 by Taran Matharu

Summary from Goodreads:

One boy’s ability to summon demons will change the fate of an empire … The epic conclusion to the fantasy trilogy described as ‘Harry Potter meets Lord of the Rings meets Pokemon’.

After the thrilling cliffhanger at the end of book two, we rejoin Fletcher and his friends in the ether, where they must undertake a mortally dangerous quest, all the while avoiding capture by enemies and facing foes more terrifying than anything they have yet encountered.

But this is nothing compared to what truly lies ahead for Fletcher, as his nemesis, albino orc Khan, is on a mission to destroy Hominum and everything and everyone that Fletcher loves.

Epic battles, dramatic revelations and breathtaking drama await in the third and final book in the New York Times bestselling Summoner series.

Confession:

I just love those three covers together, although the last one is missing his khopesh. I still remember the first time I saw the first cover, and I thought to myself, “I need to know this guy’s story!”  And it is quite the story!

The first book is a sort of cinderella story, orphan boy discovers he has powers he shouldn’t. Fletcher is a wonderful character, full of strength and leadership skills he didn’t know he had until he needs them.  He also comes up to with solutions to problems in unique ways.  I also liked that from the beginning he wasn’t afraid to stand up to the people in charge when it was warranted.   I loved the demon world too.  I found the whole idea of being able to summon a demon and use them as weapons an amazing idea. And the use of runes to summon and use magic was very different.  Ignatius was a darling little demon that looks a little like a dragon, you can just see him peaking over Fletcher’s shoulder on the first cover.  

Book two is where we see Fletcher’s leadership skills become something to reckon with. After leading his group on an impossible mission where everyone, including him at times, think they will fail,  Fletcher is able to pull almost everyone through and complete it.  We see and learn more of the Orc culture in this book. I don’t think anyone knew full truth of the Orcs and their power until Fletcher and his group made some of their discoveries. The second book does end with a big cliff hanger, so if you haven’t read this series yet, you don’t have to wait like I did to find out what happens.

Book three was amazing and a great ending to the series. The first third of the book is Fletcher getting the group out of their predicament from the end of the second book.  They have some amazing adventures along the way, and Ignatius goes through some unexpected but good changes.  Sylva, an elf, and Fletcher go through some changes as well, accepting that things will never change in their cultures and how that impacts their relationships. There is an amazing battle scene at the end of the book.  I love a well written battle scene and this is certainly worth the read.  

The overall theme of these books, discrimination and all of the harm that comes from it, is very prominent in this last book.  The situation with the dwarves living among the humans is beginning to come to head and a war almost breaks out.  Fletcher and Sylva are able to help divert that, but war does come with a huge orc invasion at the end.  I love the fact that Fletcher never wavered in his beliefs that everyone can live and work together, and he worked hard to make that a reality. That everyone no matter who they are can contribute to society and help make it better.

Although this is the end of Fletcher’s story, there will be another book coming out next year set in this world.  I am very much looking forward to reading it. 

Here is a book trailer about the first book and the series: