The Demon's Design

Schooled in Magic #25

by Christopher G. Nuttall, Brad Fraunfelter

The most dangerous collection of tomes of eldritch lore in the world lies buried under Whitehall, its existence known only to a select few. They hold secrets long lost, from foretelling the future to tapping into powers far beyond human ken. But now those books have been stolen, forcing Emily to chase the thief across a world ruined by war and teetering on the brink of further conflict before the books can be opened, read, and used to unleash a nightmare …

But it may already be too late. As dark powers start to stir in the ruins of the post-war world, and inhuman eyes watch from the shadows, Emily must find an answer to an impossible question. How can she win against an enemy who can see her every move before she makes it?

Genres: Fantasy, Magic

426 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 3, 2025

Reviews

[Donald Clark]

Christopher has long been one of my favorite authors and for the 1st 15 volumes this was one of my favorite series. But Alas its getting stale. More and More difficult for the author to find a big bad to challenge Emily. It's either time to retire the series or realize that the challenges don't have to be personal combat encounters. Emily has already changed society perhaps now she need to realize the challenge is to continue those changes in a more positive and less damaging direction. For someone at her level a bit of cleverness should mean you can make an omelet without making a mess breaking the eggs.

[Christie Arnold]

Great to see Emily again

Good story as usual, however we are 25 books into this series and I would like to see Chris dispense with the waffle he includes in his books. I'm sure I have mentioned this in reviews of his in the past. Examples in this book include descriptions of shop owners being well within their rights to kill intruders, or magicians being protective of their personal belongs (yes, we know, this has been mentioned in every book). The unnecessary repetition of information, we who have followed this series for a long time already know drags down the book. I am however glad to see Emily back and did not realise there would be further books. I have yet to read other books set in the same world as I much prefer reading Emily's point of view.

[CozyKaos]

Had such high hopes but I think I'm done with this series as it hasn't been that great for the last few books. It feels like its one thing after another, after another, after another.... 25+ books in and it just feels like the same plot at this point. Something bad happens and she will some how trick who or whatever is causing said bad thing. Its way too same-y at this point. This series should have been finished by now. It stopped being enjoyable at book 16/17 after she defeated Randor. And even in the last book with her defeating Void was just sad and felt wrong. This one just feels lost. It feels like the author is ready for this series to be over with as well. There are already spin offs for this so just end this series off and continue with the spin offs. The first dozen or so books in this series are awesome and I love every one of them but these last 8 or so are just not as good. I will still continue to recommend the series as I love the first 15+ books or so but not so much after that.

[Ruby Ridge]

As always after the long wait for another "Schooled in Magic" novel it finishes too quickly - not because it is a short book, it isn't, just I cannot put it down. Emily must rank as one of my favorite characters in literature.
Emily is developing into a lone power in her own right and some of the storylines from previous books are coming to fruition. The pacing of the book is flawless and keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way through. Writing and grammar are impeccable and the details bring the story to life.
There is so much more to know - the post-bellum world, the demons and their human allies, the Fae, Void and others that I hope this series continues for may more novels.
Five well deserved stars.

[KaireLouise]

I've read every book in this series so far and have given every single one 5 stars. I just couldn't do it this time. So many rape triggers, so much violence (and not the sort you normally read about in this series). If that's your kind of thing (I don't judge) then you really will like this book but for me it's nothing like the storylines I've truly come to enjoy, so much so I'm not sure I'll dare to read another and after all this time I will miss them terribly. So Mr. Nuttall, as a longtime fan, I ask in all earnesty ... please quit that!

[Mark]

A good continuation

So this is book 25 in the series and does a very good job of tying up a lot of the loose ends from previous books while still leaving enough mystery for further expansion without resorting to A** pull like so many others have done when their most famous and profitable series reaches the end of a planned arc so 5 stars

[Tom]

The beginning of a New Story Arc

Another excellent story from Master Nuttall :)

This is where the future goes forward.

Read and Enjoy.

I don't give 5 Stars to anything but Hugo/Nebula winners.
Sometimes it feels like an author goes flat in a series. But this series has not ever gone flat.

Enjoy.

[Jobey]

Characters and story tired

Read series through book 25, but this is the last one I’m buying. While the book was well written grammatically and is a very fast read, the characters are now irritating to follow, their thoughts and actions ignorant, and they keep repeating the same mistakes. Obviously the story is well over due to be completed and needs to be retired.

[Christopher Ellerbe]

good read

Still a pretty good read, however as I read this one, it felt different to me than the others. I can’t exactly put my finger on why exactly. I feel as though it was more or less of the same thing happening over and over again this story that almost made it feel like it was just dragged on.

[donna maul]

Emily matures

You can tell that Emily has gotten stronger with her magic, that Void really helped her progress in controlling her magic. She
understands the world in which she lives and how dangerous it is.

[Pam Brann]

Schooled in Magic book 25

Another great book from Christopher Nuttall. I have enjoyed reading all of these books. I really enjoy Emily as the Character, I usually like a male hero but, I have found I like her. Can’t wait for the next book!

[Stuart Macmartin]

Not really 4 stars on my scale - the secondary characters were one sided and there was a lot of repeated thought and although some ideas were clever, some were confusing, and I might not remember much of the plot in a few months - but it was nice to read anther book in this series finally!

[Jared McIntyre]

loved it

Emily is back and it’s great! I’m really glad to have more a schooled in magic!! And Chris doesn’t disappoint

[Robert Miller]

Good

It was nice to have a Emily book to enjoy and I enjoyed this one very much. Now for the next one.

[Helen Fleischer]

Dang that went fast!

[Johnie C]

Very good read

I enjoyed reading this book very much and I recommend this book to anyone who like magic and demons with lots of action.

[michael smith]

Doesn't disappoint

Very enjoyable read and love the cliffhanger. The author doesn't disappoint keeps the story going in great fashion. Looking forward to the next book.

[Wilbur G. Lloyd, Jr.]

I love this story line

I loved it but this story line is getting pretty weird. I would like to see more of the side stories too.

[Chris]

Enjoyable

I liked where this went. I won't say what happens but it leaves a good framework going forward. Can't wait for the next one.

[Michael]

I'm so happy Emily is back!!!

So happy christopher nutthall is continuing the Emily series. Sucked in from the first sentence like always. I love this author

[Latch Holmgren]

I have always loved this series. I hope it keeps going.