The Cardsmith: Book 1 [Irwin's Journey]

by John Carrarn

The young, sickly Irwin has seen nothing but bad luck in his short life. When his brother finally returns with a magical card for him, his luck is about to change. But will it change for the better? Irwin is sent off together with a group of youths to placate a group of sorcerers. With just the weird utility card gifted by his brother, he can only pray to stay alive long enough.

Little does he know that this is the start of an epic journey that will take him across his world and many others, gathering friends, enemies, and power as he does.

Genres: Fantasy

Kindle Edition

Published February 2, 2026

About the author

J. Carrarn is a forty-year-old husband, and father of one who lives in the Netherlands. Most of the day, he sits behind a computer, solving software problems. For over thirty years, he has been spending his free time reading whatever fantasy and sci-fi he could get his hands on, from Tolkien to Dan Simons’ Hyperion. If he wasn’t reading, he was playing fantasy and sci-fi games.

Nowadays, the time he doesn’t read or write books, he spends with his wife and son, hits the gym, or cooks Italian food.

Social media:
https://www.patreon.com/carrarn
https://www.facebook.com/john.carrarn
https://twitter.com/carrarn_writes

Reviews

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is being written over on Royal Road and is in my favorites list. I figured since the author was nice enough to let us read it for free as he wrote it. I could do him a solid and post a little review here for him. If you like deck building stories with a bit of a twist and a premise where he basically builds his own cards check out this series.

[Sundeep · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book started with a worsening situation where an increasing number of portals upended an already bleak situation. It was darker than I was comfortable with, but the magic system and a potential game changing card for our hero kept me interested. The cast of characters was well done and I'm looking forward to how the immensely huge setting would play out.

[Aubrey Maynard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book

Interesting world building and character development throughout the book. I was getting some YA dystopian vibes at certain points but the story feels original and different from other books that I have read in the past. I look forward to reading the next book.

[Ciaran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing Sprawling Story

One of the most interesting and engaging stories in progression fantasy. I enjoy how engaging the characters are and how they change as the story shapes them.

[Jim Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little dark

Tried and true premise but this just turned a little dark for me. I never really found a sense of hope. Craft was good. Scenes flowed and the characters seemed well thought out. No matter how much I disliked them.