I was given a copy of this book by the author, in return for an honest review.
This book has a very manga-like feel, with an interesting take on magic: coloured dots, representing different elements, like grey for wind magic and purple for lightning, with the mage school organised by those elements. I also like the idea that some animals naturally have their own magic (hence the magimals of the title), a bit beyond the usual fantasy familiars. The story is fairly standard “special young boy goes to mage school” stuff, and to me it suffered from there being too many characters – Soarame (aka Soaring Flame) quickly gains a group of something like ten friends, plus there are a variety of antagonists, so keeping everyone straight is something of a challenge. However, the writing is very visual and descriptive, and I found I could picture the magic - it would probably make a great graphic novel.
The language is pretty basic, chatty and informal, with elements of gamer speak (levelling up for magic grades) and the way five-year old Soarame of the first two or three chapters speaks was a bit off-putting, as his phrases were too mature. That said, I know I wouldn’t try to write a book in a language other than my native one, and I suspect that a lot of the issues here would be solved by working with a native English-speaking editor to really bring out the author’s ideas.
All in all, I enjoyed the book and liked the world, which has a lot of potential for future development. I’ll be curious to read any other stories Weiqi Wang sets in this universe.