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Studies in Demonology #1
Warlock in Training
Angus Donohue doesn’t want to be a warlock. He believes draining demons for magic is evil, but it’s a dangerous opinion to have—his father is a powerful and well-connected warlock, and Angus is expected to follow the family tradition.
His only way out is to fail the demon summoning class. Failure means expulsion from the Warlock College. Despite Angus’s best efforts to fumble the summoning, it works. Although not the way anyone expects.
Angus’s demon, Saka, is a powerful mage with his own need for a warlock.
Saka wants to use Angus in a ritual to rebalance the magic that is being stripped from Demonside by warlocks. If Angus survives his demon’s desires and the perils of Demonside, he’ll have to face the Warlock College and their demands.
Angus must choose: obey the College and forget about Demonside or trust Saka and try to fix the damage before it’s too late. Whatever he does, he is in the middle of a war he isn’t qualified to fight.
His only way out is to fail the demon summoning class. Failure means expulsion from the Warlock College. Despite Angus’s best efforts to fumble the summoning, it works. Although not the way anyone expects.
Angus’s demon, Saka, is a powerful mage with his own need for a warlock.
Saka wants to use Angus in a ritual to rebalance the magic that is being stripped from Demonside by warlocks. If Angus survives his demon’s desires and the perils of Demonside, he’ll have to face the Warlock College and their demands.
Angus must choose: obey the College and forget about Demonside or trust Saka and try to fix the damage before it’s too late. Whatever he does, he is in the middle of a war he isn’t qualified to fight.
244 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 14, 2017
298 people are currently reading
1440 people want to read
About the author
T.J. Nichols
89 books348 followersTJ Nichols (they/them) is the author of the Studies in Demonology and Familiar Mates series. They write mostly gay fantasy and paranormal romance, but sometimes gay action/horror as Toby J. Nichols.
After traveling all over the world and Australia, TJ now lives in Perth, Western Australia.
Free gay shifter novella when you join TJ's newsletter: http://tjnichols-author.com/lp/
You can find TJ on
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TJNichols
Ream: https://reamstories.com/tjnichols
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TJNichols.au...
follow me on Amazon: http://amazon.com/author/tjnichols or Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/tj-ni...
After traveling all over the world and Australia, TJ now lives in Perth, Western Australia.
Free gay shifter novella when you join TJ's newsletter: http://tjnichols-author.com/lp/
You can find TJ on
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TJNichols
Ream: https://reamstories.com/tjnichols
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TJNichols.au...
follow me on Amazon: http://amazon.com/author/tjnichols or Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/tj-ni...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
March 15, 2017
4.5 HEARTS--I knew this author's first novel would be great. It was magical.
This isn't my first T.J. Nichols; all previous works were urban fantasy/ paranormal short stories: The Vampire's Dinner and A Wolf's Resistance . Both works had great world building and paranormal ideas. The same can be said for Warlock in Training. But what I wanted to see is what the author could do with something novel length.
Not disappointed.
Earth has changed, new countries have formed and magic is known. Well I should say warlocks and wizards are real on Earth, or Humanside. The Earth is continuing to change, forget global warming, it's approaching an ice age. Most of the population doesn't know what the cause is for it. Warlocks are believed to be the saviors to stop it, But what they don't want people to know is they're the culprits. Magic exists in Humanside and Demonside, a second world where demons and other paranormal beings live. Demonside is experiencing extreme global warming, the world turning into a desert, water is scarce. Do these changes share something in common?
Wizards practice magic without using demons. Warlocks on the other hand drain demons for their magic to be more power, have stronger magic. Wizards are looked down on in the magical society. Warlocks are the upper echelon, the 1% if you will.
Nineteen year old ginger Angus Donohue doesn't want to be a warlock, despite his prestigious warlock family history. His father is forced him to attend warlock college and threatened him not embarrass the family name or him. Angus doesn't even want to summon a demon during a requisite class and tries to fail.
And that's where the magic begins.
Enter demon Saka (I am 1000% for him). He chooses Angus despite Angus trying to fail and takes him to Demonside across the void (the bridge between the two worlds). Points to the story being dual POV. Both worlds are too interesting not to immerse yourself in.
The cover is so fitting! Because I think Angus has the potential to be the bridge.
Saka is a demon mage and is trying to help his world. He's smart, calm and wicked with a knife. He shows Angus there is more to life and magic. I couldn't help but imagine Saka something like Hellboy (black horns instead, no hair, the similar skin tone)
I always try to find a Hellboy in demons I read about. LOL
Saka teaches different types of magic: soul, blood and sex. Saka's really great at the last two.
A lot of urban fantasy, tends to have an alpha type as the lead. Not the case in Warlock in Training. Angus is nineteen and reads nineteen - unsure of himself, still learning his place in the world, exploring relationships with potential partners. But he's not the typical teenager. Demonside helps open his eyes.
There is a battle between two magical worlds that felt similar to what the political and global feel is right now. The 1% is ruining both worlds, damn the results as long as they're in power. It's magical politics. People are dying for a cause that does not benefit the greater good. The ones in charge lie to the masses and attacks any form of resistance.
But there is a resistance.
And it's growing.
The book ends with a cliffhanger of sorts. There are loose threads that need to be answered. Such as who really is in charge? Why the harvesting of so much power? The suspense is well written.
Before jumping all over this, I feel I should warn potential readers of possible triggers/deal breakers: There are romantic undertones rather than a defined romance. Both main characters have sex with other people (But I feel I should explain demons have different views on 'relationships' - monogamy is not the norm,) There were brief MF moments. (Also, didn't mind. The moments were a blip on the entire scale of things) Cutting is practiced for magical purposes.
How erotic does this get? There is on page sex but don't expect pages of a drawn out sex scene. (Quite happy about that, it can be a chore to read drawn out pages) The relationship between Saka and Angus is still forming, is kinda fluid. There is another character that has a potential of maybe making this a love/lust triangle. It's not romantic. More as a means to an end but there is potential for deeper feelings. Sex on Demonside can be and is used for ritualistic needs. If you are a reader who needs the one and only, I would say to approach with caution. Because the way the sex, relationship and openness is written fits the characters. And they struggle. But it's secondary to the world building, action and suspense.
I want to rate this all the hearts but I have tiny issues, pretty minor. Technically, the story reads well. But I feel some of the chapters ended in odd spots. I like the fact the chapters aren't overly long but some ended with where it could have just combined with half of the next chapter for better impact.
But I see this book as the foundation for more to come. War is approaching. What side are you on? Will the resistance win?
Bonus was that this book stars my favorite paranormal beings: DEMONS!
And a ginger warlock! It was like it was written just for me. ;P
Fans of urban fantasy should definitely check this series out because the world building is tops. The author obvious is an urban fantasy fan and it shows in their work. The first third is mostly building. The other two thirds are fast paced and filled with intrigue. My heart started to crumble in the last 5-8% but the author pulled it through.
I am so there for this series! And I'm definitely a fan of this author after this. It's 3 out of 3 for me!
Recommended.
A copy provided for an honest review.
This isn't my first T.J. Nichols; all previous works were urban fantasy/ paranormal short stories: The Vampire's Dinner and A Wolf's Resistance . Both works had great world building and paranormal ideas. The same can be said for Warlock in Training. But what I wanted to see is what the author could do with something novel length.
Not disappointed.
Earth has changed, new countries have formed and magic is known. Well I should say warlocks and wizards are real on Earth, or Humanside. The Earth is continuing to change, forget global warming, it's approaching an ice age. Most of the population doesn't know what the cause is for it. Warlocks are believed to be the saviors to stop it, But what they don't want people to know is they're the culprits. Magic exists in Humanside and Demonside, a second world where demons and other paranormal beings live. Demonside is experiencing extreme global warming, the world turning into a desert, water is scarce. Do these changes share something in common?
Wizards practice magic without using demons. Warlocks on the other hand drain demons for their magic to be more power, have stronger magic. Wizards are looked down on in the magical society. Warlocks are the upper echelon, the 1% if you will.
Nineteen year old ginger Angus Donohue doesn't want to be a warlock, despite his prestigious warlock family history. His father is forced him to attend warlock college and threatened him not embarrass the family name or him. Angus doesn't even want to summon a demon during a requisite class and tries to fail.
And that's where the magic begins.
Enter demon Saka (I am 1000% for him). He chooses Angus despite Angus trying to fail and takes him to Demonside across the void (the bridge between the two worlds). Points to the story being dual POV. Both worlds are too interesting not to immerse yourself in.
The cover is so fitting! Because I think Angus has the potential to be the bridge.
Saka is a demon mage and is trying to help his world. He's smart, calm and wicked with a knife. He shows Angus there is more to life and magic. I couldn't help but imagine Saka something like Hellboy (black horns instead, no hair, the similar skin tone)
I always try to find a Hellboy in demons I read about. LOL
Saka teaches different types of magic: soul, blood and sex. Saka's really great at the last two.
A lot of urban fantasy, tends to have an alpha type as the lead. Not the case in Warlock in Training. Angus is nineteen and reads nineteen - unsure of himself, still learning his place in the world, exploring relationships with potential partners. But he's not the typical teenager. Demonside helps open his eyes.
There is a battle between two magical worlds that felt similar to what the political and global feel is right now. The 1% is ruining both worlds, damn the results as long as they're in power. It's magical politics. People are dying for a cause that does not benefit the greater good. The ones in charge lie to the masses and attacks any form of resistance.
But there is a resistance.
And it's growing.
The book ends with a cliffhanger of sorts. There are loose threads that need to be answered. Such as who really is in charge? Why the harvesting of so much power? The suspense is well written.
Before jumping all over this, I feel I should warn potential readers of possible triggers/deal breakers: There are romantic undertones rather than a defined romance. Both main characters have sex with other people (But I feel I should explain demons have different views on 'relationships' - monogamy is not the norm,) There were brief MF moments. (Also, didn't mind. The moments were a blip on the entire scale of things) Cutting is practiced for magical purposes.
How erotic does this get? There is on page sex but don't expect pages of a drawn out sex scene. (Quite happy about that, it can be a chore to read drawn out pages) The relationship between Saka and Angus is still forming, is kinda fluid. There is another character that has a potential of maybe making this a love/lust triangle. It's not romantic. More as a means to an end but there is potential for deeper feelings. Sex on Demonside can be and is used for ritualistic needs. If you are a reader who needs the one and only, I would say to approach with caution. Because the way the sex, relationship and openness is written fits the characters. And they struggle. But it's secondary to the world building, action and suspense.
I want to rate this all the hearts but I have tiny issues, pretty minor. Technically, the story reads well. But I feel some of the chapters ended in odd spots. I like the fact the chapters aren't overly long but some ended with where it could have just combined with half of the next chapter for better impact.
But I see this book as the foundation for more to come. War is approaching. What side are you on? Will the resistance win?
Bonus was that this book stars my favorite paranormal beings: DEMONS!
And a ginger warlock! It was like it was written just for me. ;P
Fans of urban fantasy should definitely check this series out because the world building is tops. The author obvious is an urban fantasy fan and it shows in their work. The first third is mostly building. The other two thirds are fast paced and filled with intrigue. My heart started to crumble in the last 5-8% but the author pulled it through.
I am so there for this series! And I'm definitely a fan of this author after this. It's 3 out of 3 for me!
Recommended.
A copy provided for an honest review.
February 20, 2017
Between 2.5 and 3 stars.
This was a conflicting read for me, on one hand it reads as Young Adult but there is sex and blood play, neither are terribly exciting, dark or sexy. There is even an orgy but it's the least orgy seeming of orgies I've ever read - I'm kind of glad in a way because Angus just seemed so young. I really don't mind the lack of stimulating sexual activity, I'm more about fantasy/paranormal world building and storylines at this point, what I do mind, however, is feeling like I'm reading a YA book that is actually marketed as adult. It puts me off a book. I thought Harmony Ink was DSP's YA side, not DSP Publications.
I also must add that Angus didn't try terribly hard to not summon a demon, just putting that out there. I thought he might give failing an actual red hot go but he just lamented having to do it and, bam, he had a demon... and a powerful one.
Readers seem to really like this one but I honestly can't say I feel the same enthusiasm. I found it okay. I liked Saka, Angus' demon, he made the book worth reading. Angus, while sweet, could frustrate the adult me. The writing was simplistic and young and repetitive, I'm not into young people at college, even if it's at Warlock Academy. I honestly expected it to be more mature, both character development wise and stylistically, and with a bit more oomph.
On the positive side, there is a very good message behind the story - balancing out magic and the effects the lack thereof has on the different 'worlds' - human and demon. In reality people take and take from Earth and less and less of us are giving back, we need to leave this world intact for our children and our children's children, the parallels are good.
If you lean toward YA and if you like the sound of (a kind of) Avatar meets Harry Potter in a very easy to read, youngish package then you might be right into Warlock in Training, it was somewhat flat for me and I doubt I'll continue on. Shame, Aussie author. I'd like to find one I love reading.
This was a conflicting read for me, on one hand it reads as Young Adult but there is sex and blood play, neither are terribly exciting, dark or sexy. There is even an orgy but it's the least orgy seeming of orgies I've ever read - I'm kind of glad in a way because Angus just seemed so young. I really don't mind the lack of stimulating sexual activity, I'm more about fantasy/paranormal world building and storylines at this point, what I do mind, however, is feeling like I'm reading a YA book that is actually marketed as adult. It puts me off a book. I thought Harmony Ink was DSP's YA side, not DSP Publications.
I also must add that Angus didn't try terribly hard to not summon a demon, just putting that out there. I thought he might give failing an actual red hot go but he just lamented having to do it and, bam, he had a demon... and a powerful one.
Readers seem to really like this one but I honestly can't say I feel the same enthusiasm. I found it okay. I liked Saka, Angus' demon, he made the book worth reading. Angus, while sweet, could frustrate the adult me. The writing was simplistic and young and repetitive, I'm not into young people at college, even if it's at Warlock Academy. I honestly expected it to be more mature, both character development wise and stylistically, and with a bit more oomph.
On the positive side, there is a very good message behind the story - balancing out magic and the effects the lack thereof has on the different 'worlds' - human and demon. In reality people take and take from Earth and less and less of us are giving back, we need to leave this world intact for our children and our children's children, the parallels are good.
If you lean toward YA and if you like the sound of (a kind of) Avatar meets Harry Potter in a very easy to read, youngish package then you might be right into Warlock in Training, it was somewhat flat for me and I doubt I'll continue on. Shame, Aussie author. I'd like to find one I love reading.
February 17, 2017
4.5 magical stars rounded up to 5 because still 1/2 stars here on GR and dragons!!!
Uuuuummmm...excuse me, but where do I sign up for book #2?
Because I want it...like yesterday...now would be good but yesterday would have been even better because then I could reading it now.
I admit this book probably isn't for everyone but when I saw the blurb I was curious and fairly certain it would work for me...well, that was an understatement. I loved it. It's magic and wizards, warlocks, mages, demons and Oh hell yeah! There's a dragon or two just for good measure.
Let's start with Angus, he's definitely the center of the story. He's a warlock in training and in his world any warlock worth his salt has a demon and Angus manages to get the demon to end all demons because his demon's a mage.
Have I confused you yet? Well let me clarify things a little. Angus is human and he lives on the humanside and he's training to be a warlock, not that he wants to be but daddy thinks he should or at least he does until he doesn't but we're not going to go there right now.
For the purposes of this story a warlock is someone who is trained in the use of magic and draws their magic from his demon who he calls forth from the other side of the void, which is essentially the demonside of this world. Now a wizard is someone who uses magic but it's magic that they gather and they don't use a demon. Which is nice considering that no one asked the demon if he wanted to do this they just use them until they've used up their power and a mage is a demon who can use magic, so basically a combination of a wizard and a warlock in that they're trained but they draw their power from their surroundings more like a wizard and that's all the world building we're going to cover for now.
So we have Angus a warlock in training who just happens to call forth Saka who is a mage and not in training and powerful. Now I'm going to talk about why I want the next book so freakin' bad.
First off while there is a romance in this book it's definitely a secondary part of the story and let's just say it's unusual...there's even a bit of a romantic triangle...potentially and bonus points boys and girls there's a orgy that's right a full on demon ritual orgy and it does involve both boy and girl bits, however, I really didn't find the details to be excessively graphic or offensive and lastly there's also a definite cliffhanger to the ending, so if any of this is an issue for you, than this might not be the book for you.
T. J. Nichols is a new to me author who basically blew me out of the water with this book. I loved the world building and the character development, especially with Angus. He showed a lot of growth from start to finish and given everything he went through I probably would have tanked things if it had been any different.
Saka was more than a little interesting and I'm really not sure how to explain him because...hello? demon here and a really interesting one not to mention pretty hot if we take Angus's word on things and did I mention he's got a tail...I'mma just sayin'.
Saka is a mage and a powerful one even by his people's standards. He's also a teacher, he wants to restore the magical balance to both humanside and demonside but what he also wants is to do it in a way that is beneficial to both races and without war between the two sides, however, time's running out for everyone because the humanside of this world is getting colder and demonside is getting hotter, so while a long term fix is the ultimate objective neither world can ignore the need for stop gap measures as well.
My only little niggle with this book was that the pacing occasionally felt a little slow but at the same time there's not anything in this story that I'm willing to give up...so little niggle from my perspective.
At the end of it all if fantasy, with some awesome world building, a side of romance and a strong plot is your thing you need to check this one out. Do I wish I had the next book...of course, if it's anywhere near as good as this one it's going to be one hella' good read. Am I sorry I read this one only to be left sitting on the edge of a cliff...nope, not even a little bit...the view from here is very promising.
********************
An ARC of 'Warlock in Training' was graciously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Uuuuummmm...excuse me, but where do I sign up for book #2?
Because I want it...like yesterday...now would be good but yesterday would have been even better because then I could reading it now.
I admit this book probably isn't for everyone but when I saw the blurb I was curious and fairly certain it would work for me...well, that was an understatement. I loved it. It's magic and wizards, warlocks, mages, demons and Oh hell yeah! There's a dragon or two just for good measure.
Let's start with Angus, he's definitely the center of the story. He's a warlock in training and in his world any warlock worth his salt has a demon and Angus manages to get the demon to end all demons because his demon's a mage.
Have I confused you yet? Well let me clarify things a little. Angus is human and he lives on the humanside and he's training to be a warlock, not that he wants to be but daddy thinks he should or at least he does until he doesn't but we're not going to go there right now.
For the purposes of this story a warlock is someone who is trained in the use of magic and draws their magic from his demon who he calls forth from the other side of the void, which is essentially the demonside of this world. Now a wizard is someone who uses magic but it's magic that they gather and they don't use a demon. Which is nice considering that no one asked the demon if he wanted to do this they just use them until they've used up their power and a mage is a demon who can use magic, so basically a combination of a wizard and a warlock in that they're trained but they draw their power from their surroundings more like a wizard and that's all the world building we're going to cover for now.
So we have Angus a warlock in training who just happens to call forth Saka who is a mage and not in training and powerful. Now I'm going to talk about why I want the next book so freakin' bad.
First off while there is a romance in this book it's definitely a secondary part of the story and let's just say it's unusual...there's even a bit of a romantic triangle...potentially and bonus points boys and girls there's a orgy that's right a full on demon ritual orgy and it does involve both boy and girl bits, however, I really didn't find the details to be excessively graphic or offensive and lastly there's also a definite cliffhanger to the ending, so if any of this is an issue for you, than this might not be the book for you.
T. J. Nichols is a new to me author who basically blew me out of the water with this book. I loved the world building and the character development, especially with Angus. He showed a lot of growth from start to finish and given everything he went through I probably would have tanked things if it had been any different.
Saka was more than a little interesting and I'm really not sure how to explain him because...hello? demon here and a really interesting one not to mention pretty hot if we take Angus's word on things and did I mention he's got a tail...I'mma just sayin'.
Saka is a mage and a powerful one even by his people's standards. He's also a teacher, he wants to restore the magical balance to both humanside and demonside but what he also wants is to do it in a way that is beneficial to both races and without war between the two sides, however, time's running out for everyone because the humanside of this world is getting colder and demonside is getting hotter, so while a long term fix is the ultimate objective neither world can ignore the need for stop gap measures as well.
My only little niggle with this book was that the pacing occasionally felt a little slow but at the same time there's not anything in this story that I'm willing to give up...so little niggle from my perspective.
At the end of it all if fantasy, with some awesome world building, a side of romance and a strong plot is your thing you need to check this one out. Do I wish I had the next book...of course, if it's anywhere near as good as this one it's going to be one hella' good read. Am I sorry I read this one only to be left sitting on the edge of a cliff...nope, not even a little bit...the view from here is very promising.
********************
An ARC of 'Warlock in Training' was graciously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
February 28, 2017
4.3 Stars
For a book I originally had little to no intention of reading I am more than just a bit surprised by how much I actually liked it. The world-building was tight and detailed, the premise engaging and interesting. With this kind of potential I am definitely looking forward to the next one.
I'm too tired right now to do a more in-depth review but here's the text of my comment about the orgy scene and a potential love triangle from the Buddy Read thread:
For a book I originally had little to no intention of reading I am more than just a bit surprised by how much I actually liked it. The world-building was tight and detailed, the premise engaging and interesting. With this kind of potential I am definitely looking forward to the next one.
I'm too tired right now to do a more in-depth review but here's the text of my comment about the orgy scene and a potential love triangle from the Buddy Read thread:
March 16, 2017
3.5 Stars
Full Review:
*I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher. This has not influenced my review.*
This book didn’t really click with me in the beginning, but I ended up getting more into it as it went on. I still have some mixed feelings about it though.
First of all, there was a lot of sex just for the sake of including sex. I mean, it had an explanation in the story (they were using sex magic to rebalance the realms), but, if we’re being honest, it was in the book just for the sake of being in the book. And it started so soon, before I even cared about the characters and before they had any feelings for each other. Actually none of the sex was particularly meaningful or full of feeling (other than lust), so I just kind of didn’t care about the sex scenes because I prefer them with emotion.
Then there was the kind of but not really blood play. It made me uncomfortable because of the dubious consent. Angus definitely consented to and enjoyed the sex, but he only consented to the cutting because he knew it was needed to balance the realms, not because he wanted to or enjoyed it. And he knew that if he hadn’t consented, Saka would’ve taken his blood anyway. In the author’s defense, it wasn’t referred to as blood play, but knowing Angus was only letting someone cut him out of obligation still made the scenes uncomfortable for me. The orgy scene, however, was surprisingly well-written. When you think orgy, you probably think extreme, but this really wasn’t. Angus’s thoughts and how the magic affected him made it believable, and the sexual stuff wasn’t even particularly graphic.
There were also some romantic feelings more near the end of the book. There was a potential maybe love triangle/maybe unique relationship situation, so I’m not sure where that’s going to go. The feelings between Angus and both possible love interests seemed too strong too quickly though (no one professed any love, thankfully, but still), unless maybe I didn’t quite understand the amount of time that passed, which is a definite possibility. But even if more time did pass, I didn’t get to see the characters spending time together, so I didn’t feel the connections between them.
That being said, the romance wasn’t the focus of the story. The focus was the magic, how Humanside and Demonside were being affected, and the way the humans at the top were abusing magic and killing demons and ultimately destroying both realms. And the Demonside culture, way of life, hierarchy, environment, etc. was unique and interesting.
As for the characters, Saka (the demon) was a pretty serious character since he had an important job that he took seriously and always put his tribe and realm before his own personal desires. And Angus was kind of entitled and petulant in the beginning but grew over the course of the book and was smarter and more mature by the end. The problem was that, even though they were well-written, I just didn’t connect to either one.
So overall, even though this book had a lot of sex and I had a hard time connecting to the characters, I still thought the characters were well-written, thought the parts about the balance of magic between the realms and how they’re planning to fix things were good, and thought the book had a very unique take on magic and demons!
Recommended For:
M/M paranormal/urban fantasy readers who want a unique take on magic and demons.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
Full Review:
*I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher. This has not influenced my review.*
This book didn’t really click with me in the beginning, but I ended up getting more into it as it went on. I still have some mixed feelings about it though.
First of all, there was a lot of sex just for the sake of including sex. I mean, it had an explanation in the story (they were using sex magic to rebalance the realms), but, if we’re being honest, it was in the book just for the sake of being in the book. And it started so soon, before I even cared about the characters and before they had any feelings for each other. Actually none of the sex was particularly meaningful or full of feeling (other than lust), so I just kind of didn’t care about the sex scenes because I prefer them with emotion.
Then there was the kind of but not really blood play. It made me uncomfortable because of the dubious consent. Angus definitely consented to and enjoyed the sex, but he only consented to the cutting because he knew it was needed to balance the realms, not because he wanted to or enjoyed it. And he knew that if he hadn’t consented, Saka would’ve taken his blood anyway. In the author’s defense, it wasn’t referred to as blood play, but knowing Angus was only letting someone cut him out of obligation still made the scenes uncomfortable for me. The orgy scene, however, was surprisingly well-written. When you think orgy, you probably think extreme, but this really wasn’t. Angus’s thoughts and how the magic affected him made it believable, and the sexual stuff wasn’t even particularly graphic.
There were also some romantic feelings more near the end of the book. There was a potential maybe love triangle/maybe unique relationship situation, so I’m not sure where that’s going to go. The feelings between Angus and both possible love interests seemed too strong too quickly though (no one professed any love, thankfully, but still), unless maybe I didn’t quite understand the amount of time that passed, which is a definite possibility. But even if more time did pass, I didn’t get to see the characters spending time together, so I didn’t feel the connections between them.
That being said, the romance wasn’t the focus of the story. The focus was the magic, how Humanside and Demonside were being affected, and the way the humans at the top were abusing magic and killing demons and ultimately destroying both realms. And the Demonside culture, way of life, hierarchy, environment, etc. was unique and interesting.
As for the characters, Saka (the demon) was a pretty serious character since he had an important job that he took seriously and always put his tribe and realm before his own personal desires. And Angus was kind of entitled and petulant in the beginning but grew over the course of the book and was smarter and more mature by the end. The problem was that, even though they were well-written, I just didn’t connect to either one.
So overall, even though this book had a lot of sex and I had a hard time connecting to the characters, I still thought the characters were well-written, thought the parts about the balance of magic between the realms and how they’re planning to fix things were good, and thought the book had a very unique take on magic and demons!
Recommended For:
M/M paranormal/urban fantasy readers who want a unique take on magic and demons.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
February 15, 2017
Angus Donohue never wanted to be a warlock–a magic user who gets most of his power by using a demon–but his father has ideas about how Angus’ life should be lived and let’s just say self-determination is not involved in any way. That’s how Angus finds himself in college training to be a warlock and failing miserably at failing to be said warlock. When his purposefully botched summoning actually results in him summoning a demon from the other side he is confused a more than a little disappointed. But things go from bad to worse when instead of having the demon under his command, Angus is instead pulled thru the veil to the Demonside by the demon he summoned.
Once a reluctant warlock in training, now Angus is a warlock trapped on the other side and unable to get home. He also has little say in what happens to him on the Demonside, and the demons are not shy in asking for his blood, his soul, or his body to help rebalance the terrible effects of the warlocks’ use of demons and their magic. Angus also has a DemonMaster who challenges his every preconceived notion about how both their worlds work. Something that could get Angus killed if he ever did find a way back to his home.
As much as I was looking forward to this story, I’m a bit unsure how I feel about it in the end. There was definitely a lot of things going for it, but I must admit to a lack of connection to both the characters and the story. On paper, and taken on their own, the characters and the world built up here was really good. Angus and Saka–the demon that Angus ends up summoning–are interesting and nicely crafted. I also really liked the way the morality in this book is heavy on the shades of gray. Demons and humans alike rarely ever come across as “good guys.” Probably all that human sacrificing going on. Hard to be a typical good guy when you either participate in or supply the means of human sacrifices.
The first chapter of this book was good. It totally pulled me in and Angus’ failed attempts at failing (and the consequences thereof) seemed like a really good set up to this story. But after that part I struggled with connection to Saka, and as a result Angus (since their actions were so tied up in each other). I liked them, yeah, but I never got any deeper than that. There was just no need to know how everything turned out. No deeper connection, no driving force. And I’m not entirely sure that it is the book’s fault. I think this might be the result of several things that happen in the book that I just didn’t feel comfortable with personally even though I feel they were very well done.
Mostly the human sacrifices. Like, I get it. I really do. And I even like the whole idea. Just some part of me kinda withdrew every time the topic came up. In my head I can totally rationalize it as different cultures and social norms. That this was a necessary part of keeping their whole world alive. I just can’t care all that much about characters and people that are willing to slaughter a bunch of people. Even if they are demons and that’s what demons do.
Also, the orgy in the last quarter of the book so wasn’t my thing. I felt uncomfortable for that whole scene.
So even though I liked this book a whole lot, I never really felt the connection to it that I was really hoping for. I would definitely recommend it if you like characters of dubious morality and well-written paranormal/fantasy, though. There was a lot here that I can tell other people will really love, but just didn’t work quite as well with me for whatever reason.
3.5 stars
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for Love Bytes. Go there to check out other reviews, author interviews, and all those awesome giveaways. Click below.
Once a reluctant warlock in training, now Angus is a warlock trapped on the other side and unable to get home. He also has little say in what happens to him on the Demonside, and the demons are not shy in asking for his blood, his soul, or his body to help rebalance the terrible effects of the warlocks’ use of demons and their magic. Angus also has a DemonMaster who challenges his every preconceived notion about how both their worlds work. Something that could get Angus killed if he ever did find a way back to his home.
As much as I was looking forward to this story, I’m a bit unsure how I feel about it in the end. There was definitely a lot of things going for it, but I must admit to a lack of connection to both the characters and the story. On paper, and taken on their own, the characters and the world built up here was really good. Angus and Saka–the demon that Angus ends up summoning–are interesting and nicely crafted. I also really liked the way the morality in this book is heavy on the shades of gray. Demons and humans alike rarely ever come across as “good guys.” Probably all that human sacrificing going on. Hard to be a typical good guy when you either participate in or supply the means of human sacrifices.
The first chapter of this book was good. It totally pulled me in and Angus’ failed attempts at failing (and the consequences thereof) seemed like a really good set up to this story. But after that part I struggled with connection to Saka, and as a result Angus (since their actions were so tied up in each other). I liked them, yeah, but I never got any deeper than that. There was just no need to know how everything turned out. No deeper connection, no driving force. And I’m not entirely sure that it is the book’s fault. I think this might be the result of several things that happen in the book that I just didn’t feel comfortable with personally even though I feel they were very well done.
Mostly the human sacrifices. Like, I get it. I really do. And I even like the whole idea. Just some part of me kinda withdrew every time the topic came up. In my head I can totally rationalize it as different cultures and social norms. That this was a necessary part of keeping their whole world alive. I just can’t care all that much about characters and people that are willing to slaughter a bunch of people. Even if they are demons and that’s what demons do.
Also, the orgy in the last quarter of the book so wasn’t my thing. I felt uncomfortable for that whole scene.
So even though I liked this book a whole lot, I never really felt the connection to it that I was really hoping for. I would definitely recommend it if you like characters of dubious morality and well-written paranormal/fantasy, though. There was a lot here that I can tell other people will really love, but just didn’t work quite as well with me for whatever reason.
3.5 stars
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for Love Bytes. Go there to check out other reviews, author interviews, and all those awesome giveaways. Click below.
August 29, 2021
2 stars.
DNF-ing at 50%. The story was going in circles and I honestly could not concentrate any longer.
Too much pressure was put on one inexperienced student who was supposed to perform better and more (and save not one but two worlds while at it) than the mean old underground movement had done so far.
Bloodletting did not bother me, but I wasn't thrilled about it either. Neither did I care for mmm and especially mmf.
DNF-ing at 50%. The story was going in circles and I honestly could not concentrate any longer.
Too much pressure was put on one inexperienced student who was supposed to perform better and more (and save not one but two worlds while at it) than the mean old underground movement had done so far.
Bloodletting did not bother me, but I wasn't thrilled about it either. Neither did I care for mmm and especially mmf.
June 27, 2022
3.2 Stars
First things first. This is the first volume in a series and the plot is by no way finished at the end of this first book. Also be warned this is a book where after the first meeting and very quick sexual attraction both MCs have sexual thingys going on with other parties.
The book is set in a world that seems like maybe a dystopian earth. There are places called Vinland and New Holland, so it feels earth-connected but the rest remains a bit unclear. In this world some people can use magic and they are called wizards. Their magic is very limited though. If you are either very talented or come from a wealthy or prestigious family you can visit the warlock college and learn how to summon a demon to who you will be bound then. A warlock can drain his demon for a much much bigger magical impact.
Meet our MC Angus. Angus is in college because his father insists on him becoming a warlock even though Angus has serious doubts and would much rather study medicine. So when he has to summon his designated demon he intends to fail and be expelled - instead his demon drags him through the veil between the human world and the demon world. There Angus learns that humans have for a long time now taken too much magic from demons and are destroying their world. And this magic can be restored by death, blood or sex. Guess which one he chooses ...
I am a bit torn about this book. There were plenty of interesting ideas, though some of them were presented in a not fully fleshed out way. The characters were .... I don't know I thought I liked them and then they revealed a next layer and thought ... maybe I didn't like them all that much. I felt Angus was a bit unclear. And Saka, the demon, was fulfilling Angus' and the readers sex cravings but he clearly doesn't understand the idea of monogamy or love how humans see it. There was an orgy showing Angus and Saka in the middle of other writhing lust-filled bodies -giving at the same time to each other and others. So sex yes. Not what I would consider romantic though. On one hand I don't like my books too sweet, so I should have liked this more than I did. On the other hand this is only the first volume and the romance may yet bloom. There is also another candidate for the romance, so maybe it won't be Saka after all for Angus ... though I still think that Saka is the main love interest.
The suspense plot. I found it interesting, intriguing even and I even was surprised at a few turns the story took. But at the same time the author had an erratic way of writing. Sometimes that was good, but quite a few times it felt just inexperienced.
Overall I would say this book could have benefitted from some serious editing. Not only to find all those typos and grammar mistakes (I'm not a native speaker, so if even I say there was a lot of them it is worrisome) and also to straighten out those bumps in the story. It definitely could have been more than it was. I'm still interested to see where the author is going with this story and because I like things that are different - and that it was.
First things first. This is the first volume in a series and the plot is by no way finished at the end of this first book. Also be warned this is a book where after the first meeting and very quick sexual attraction both MCs have sexual thingys going on with other parties.
The book is set in a world that seems like maybe a dystopian earth. There are places called Vinland and New Holland, so it feels earth-connected but the rest remains a bit unclear. In this world some people can use magic and they are called wizards. Their magic is very limited though. If you are either very talented or come from a wealthy or prestigious family you can visit the warlock college and learn how to summon a demon to who you will be bound then. A warlock can drain his demon for a much much bigger magical impact.
Meet our MC Angus. Angus is in college because his father insists on him becoming a warlock even though Angus has serious doubts and would much rather study medicine. So when he has to summon his designated demon he intends to fail and be expelled - instead his demon drags him through the veil between the human world and the demon world. There Angus learns that humans have for a long time now taken too much magic from demons and are destroying their world. And this magic can be restored by death, blood or sex. Guess which one he chooses ...
I am a bit torn about this book. There were plenty of interesting ideas, though some of them were presented in a not fully fleshed out way. The characters were .... I don't know I thought I liked them and then they revealed a next layer and thought ... maybe I didn't like them all that much. I felt Angus was a bit unclear. And Saka, the demon, was fulfilling Angus' and the readers sex cravings but he clearly doesn't understand the idea of monogamy or love how humans see it. There was an orgy showing Angus and Saka in the middle of other writhing lust-filled bodies -giving at the same time to each other and others. So sex yes. Not what I would consider romantic though. On one hand I don't like my books too sweet, so I should have liked this more than I did. On the other hand this is only the first volume and the romance may yet bloom. There is also another candidate for the romance, so maybe it won't be Saka after all for Angus ... though I still think that Saka is the main love interest.
The suspense plot. I found it interesting, intriguing even and I even was surprised at a few turns the story took. But at the same time the author had an erratic way of writing. Sometimes that was good, but quite a few times it felt just inexperienced.
Overall I would say this book could have benefitted from some serious editing. Not only to find all those typos and grammar mistakes (I'm not a native speaker, so if even I say there was a lot of them it is worrisome) and also to straighten out those bumps in the story. It definitely could have been more than it was. I'm still interested to see where the author is going with this story and because I like things that are different - and that it was.
June 20, 2020
“Saka wasn’t his lover; he was his demon, which made Angus his human. In that moment he glimpsed what the demon-human relationship should be. The use of magic, then its return. All balances kept.”
Earth / Humanside isn’t what it used to be. Magic is common knowledge but not everyone can wield it. Those with magic abilities attend college to become Warlocks where they learn to summon their own demon and use it as a power source.
Wizards are practitioners of magic who choose not to use and drain demons for their power and instead only use magic in its natural form. The magic of demons make Warlocks stronger than Wizards and Wizards are looked down upon for their refusal to use demon magic.
Warlocks summon demons to Earth, but Demons can also pull humans over to Demonside when the void is opened. This is what happens to Angus when he tries to summon his first demon in class. His demon is Saka, a mage who plans to use Angus to re-balance the magic that warlocks have been draining from demonside.
“He knew the answer, but he still had to ask. “Where am I?” “What you call Demonside. We call it Arlyxia. It is one of the dimensions closest to yours, thus the bleed through.”
In Demonside, Angus quickly learns that the lack of magical balance between the two worlds is destroying both demonside and humanside equally.
Earth has been turning colder and colder as the humans fight to find a magical fix for the ice age quickly approaching them. But the more magic they use to “repair” Earth, the more they destroy it by further draining Demonside of magic and causing more of an unbalance between the worlds.
Demonside, on the other hand, is suffering from a lack of magic as their world becomes hotter and hotter and water and food becomes scarce.
Main Characters:
● Angus Donohue
Forced to attend Warlock College by his Father, a high-level Warlock, Angus has no choice but to summon a demon once the class requires him to. He purposefully attempts to fail his demon summoning but succeeds despite his lack of effort. What he’s not expecting is to be pulled over to demonside by a powerful mage named Saka.
● Saka
From first glance he appears to be nothing more than a common black horned demon but he is clearly much more than his appearance makes him seem.
Saka is a high-ranking Mage in Demonside, determined to help repair his world and save demonkind from the humans trying to drain them and their world. He plans to use the young warlock he dragged over to Demonside by having him practice the return/transfer of magic back to him and his kind. This can be done with powerful emotions such as fear or during sexual intimacy.
Other Characters:
● Terrance
3rd year. Underground Warlock. Angus’ Tutor in All Things Magic
Likes:
+ The author rotates between both Saka and Angus’ POV, allowing the reader to view the situation from both a human and demon perspective.
+ T.J. Nichols is a new author for me and I was blown away by their world building and character development in Warlock in Training. This is such a diverse world where we actually get to explore two different worlds (Earth and Demonside). The development and descriptions of Demonside had me totally immersed in the story as well as the descriptions of the different types of demons and their way of life.
+ I enjoyed watching as Angus had his mind opened to the reality of demonside and what the warlocks were actually doing to demons by using them for magic. He’s so willing from the beginning to hear Saka out and try to understand how the exchange and return of magic is supposed to work between Demons and Humans.
Once Angus learns how bad things are for both Demonside and Earth, he’s willing to fight alongside Saka, all of Demonside, and the Underground Wizards that are on their side. He faces off against his own father and is disowned by him completely, but he’s determined to do what’s right.
“It takes no courage to destroy a world, just lies and secrets.”
Dislikes:
- A love triangle of sorts develops at one point in this book between Angus / Saka / Terrance. I’m not a fan of love triangles, or squares, or octagons, any shape. I would even prefer for this to be a poly relationship as long as the characters were on the same page about their relationships with each other.
I hate the drama that love triangles bring, however, and would rather the side plot of Angus/Terrance’s relationship not have happened. I think the two of them make great friends, but they really didn’t need to explore anything more than that.
I get that Angus is struggling to find a balance between his normal life on Earth and his relationship with his demon, but c’mon, does he really need someone he can go on dates with to the movies? Who says you can’t bring your demon to the movies? I mean, sure, plenty of people would stare, but who cares?
Overall:
The Studies in Demonology Series definitely won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. There’s some intense themes and plot lines throughout including blood play, magical orgies, non-monogamous relationships, and more.
Romance is far from the main focus in the first book, Warlock in Training, and I highly doubt it will be in future books. This is more of an Urban Fantasy book heavily focused on plot and world building with a bit of romance thrown in. There’s plenty of sex scenes, but the sex scenes are (for the most part) happening because sex magic is a powerful form of magic.
I feel like despite the main characters, Angus and Saka, having plenty of sex throughout the book, there’s more of a focus on them developing trust/understanding/a friendship than romantic feelings.
I can't wait to spend more time with both Saka and Angus as well as learn even more about demonside and the Underground Wizards on Humanside. Warlock in Training had me captivated from beginning to end and I can't wait to continue with the series.
April 13, 2017
Warlock in Training
By TJ Nichols
Dreamspinner Press, 2017
Four stars
What a smart, thoughtful book. Fantasy/magic is a genre that can be silly, in a literary culture so altered by JK Rowling (all hail), but Nichols does something really interesting. Dreamspinner was smart to pick up this book by TJ Nichols, another fine Australian novelist.
In our own world, in my nation, we love to demonize the “other,” whether they be gay people, people of color, or Muslims. In Angus Donohue’s world they demonize, um, demons. The human world is linked to the demon world, called Demonside, by magic. Magic is the source of energy for humans. It is power, and humans who can handle magic (wizards) are hungry for it. Angus is in training to be a warlock, which is a wizard who can call a demon and use that demon’s magic to increase his own power.
This all seems very straightforward, until we realize that humans bonded to demons draw on their demon’s magic until the demons is drained and dies. Then they simply dispose of it and call a new one from Demonside. Human students in training to be Warlocks are taught a very clear history: demons are monsters, and will destroy humans if not controlled. This is why warlocks have such cultural power, because they can control demons.
Angus Donohue doesn’t want to be a warlock. He wants to be a doctor and is trying to fail his demon-calling exam. When the demon he calls grabs him and takes him through the void to Demonside, Angus’s whole life changes. He learns the truth about demons, and learns the extent of the misinformation being taught at the Warlock College. He learns that magic the drain of magic by greedy warlocks is rapidly destroying Demonside.
There is a double parallel that gives Nichols’ narrative a shivery relevance. On the one hand, the demons and their magic are like the oil-rich Muslim nations, whom the West both depends on and vilifies. On the other hand, the relationship between human and demon is uncomfortably like that of master and slave in the good old days in the USA, when slaves were seen as sub-human, to be used and discarded without a thought. There are other parallels, too, and Nichols makes her story more powerful by sticking to the world she has created and letting the readers draw their own conclusions.
Nichols gives us very beautiful world-building here, and Saka, Angus’ demon, becomes the mirror-image to Angus himself. Saka is the embodiment of all of the truth about which Angus’ father and the other warlocks have been lying for generations. He becomes the lens through which we see Demonside in all its dark beauty and complexity.
I would say that this is not a romance. Saka and Angus’ relationship is critical, and emotionally powerful, but it is simply a piece of the larger story. The narrative is quite erotic, in a way that is essential to the plot. Strangely enough, another parallel that came to mind as I read was in the animated film “Monsters, Inc.,” when Sully and Wazowski realize that the power in a child’s laughter is far greater than the power of a child’s terrified scream.
The book ends neatly, but I looked somewhat desperately for a sequel in the works, and found no sign of one on Nichols’ website. However, the title online is subtitled “Studies in Demonology #1” which is a good sign. I felt satisfied at the end of “Warlock in Training,” but was hungry for the next chapter.
By TJ Nichols
Dreamspinner Press, 2017
Four stars
What a smart, thoughtful book. Fantasy/magic is a genre that can be silly, in a literary culture so altered by JK Rowling (all hail), but Nichols does something really interesting. Dreamspinner was smart to pick up this book by TJ Nichols, another fine Australian novelist.
In our own world, in my nation, we love to demonize the “other,” whether they be gay people, people of color, or Muslims. In Angus Donohue’s world they demonize, um, demons. The human world is linked to the demon world, called Demonside, by magic. Magic is the source of energy for humans. It is power, and humans who can handle magic (wizards) are hungry for it. Angus is in training to be a warlock, which is a wizard who can call a demon and use that demon’s magic to increase his own power.
This all seems very straightforward, until we realize that humans bonded to demons draw on their demon’s magic until the demons is drained and dies. Then they simply dispose of it and call a new one from Demonside. Human students in training to be Warlocks are taught a very clear history: demons are monsters, and will destroy humans if not controlled. This is why warlocks have such cultural power, because they can control demons.
Angus Donohue doesn’t want to be a warlock. He wants to be a doctor and is trying to fail his demon-calling exam. When the demon he calls grabs him and takes him through the void to Demonside, Angus’s whole life changes. He learns the truth about demons, and learns the extent of the misinformation being taught at the Warlock College. He learns that magic the drain of magic by greedy warlocks is rapidly destroying Demonside.
There is a double parallel that gives Nichols’ narrative a shivery relevance. On the one hand, the demons and their magic are like the oil-rich Muslim nations, whom the West both depends on and vilifies. On the other hand, the relationship between human and demon is uncomfortably like that of master and slave in the good old days in the USA, when slaves were seen as sub-human, to be used and discarded without a thought. There are other parallels, too, and Nichols makes her story more powerful by sticking to the world she has created and letting the readers draw their own conclusions.
Nichols gives us very beautiful world-building here, and Saka, Angus’ demon, becomes the mirror-image to Angus himself. Saka is the embodiment of all of the truth about which Angus’ father and the other warlocks have been lying for generations. He becomes the lens through which we see Demonside in all its dark beauty and complexity.
I would say that this is not a romance. Saka and Angus’ relationship is critical, and emotionally powerful, but it is simply a piece of the larger story. The narrative is quite erotic, in a way that is essential to the plot. Strangely enough, another parallel that came to mind as I read was in the animated film “Monsters, Inc.,” when Sully and Wazowski realize that the power in a child’s laughter is far greater than the power of a child’s terrified scream.
The book ends neatly, but I looked somewhat desperately for a sequel in the works, and found no sign of one on Nichols’ website. However, the title online is subtitled “Studies in Demonology #1” which is a good sign. I felt satisfied at the end of “Warlock in Training,” but was hungry for the next chapter.
July 3, 2017
Just a FYI:
Here are a few things to mention before reading the book:
1. This story is more Mystery/Suspense with a dash of possible romance thrown in.
2. There is an orgy takes place in Chapter 24 (83% mark), where there are two BRIEF mentions of MF interactions.
3. We are left with a cliffhanger.
Wow, just wow! This is my first book from TJ Nichols and she does not disappoint. There is soooooo much awesomeness in this book it is ridiculous. The author spares no expense when it comes to the world building on not just one, but two worlds/dimensions. Yeah you heard me...TWO: Earth (Earthside) and Arlyxia (Demonside)! Not to mention the wonderful way she constructs the characters in the book and the hierarchy in both dimensions.
So it begins on Earthside. Angus is summoning his first demon, when in fact all he wants is pursue something nonmagical in life; like becoming a vet or possibly a doctor. In fact, he was trying to fail, and fail miserably. However, he didn’t account on Saka, a demon mage, to answer his call. In that moment, everything starts to change for this 19-year-old.
Saka, sees something in that moment with Angus and decides to take him to Demonside. He does so, not only to rebalance the power (sexy times involved), but to open Angus’s eyes to the truth. That truth being that both worlds are suffering due to the magical imbalance on both sides. Earthside is getting colder, where Demonside is getting hotter.
Angus soon realizes that facts are being withheld, and in their place they are given carefully constructed information that is then reinforced by the schools and the media. That is where The Underground comes into play. They consist of rogue wizards and warlocks set on making things right. Seeking out the truth to save their world.
With all of this going on, something starts to form between Angus and Saka, and it wasn’t just from the hot sex they did to restore a bit of the power in each world. No, it is more than that. Both Angus and Saka have their own thoughts and feelings towards what is happening between them, however, neither one will say it out loud. There is a moment when I thought something was forming between Angus and another warlock, Terrance. Thinking Angus finally deserves some sort of happiness. Someone to love and have that feeling returned without thought. However, shit hits the fan and what could exist between the two of them is put on hold indefinitely.
In the end, I was left with many questions and mixed emotions.
1. I am sad for Angus, and everything he has endured up until the end. If anyone at this point deserves a HEA at the end of this series, it is him.
2. I'm excited to see what happens with the partnership of sorts between Demonside and The Underground.
3. I have this feeling that there is more to Angus’s power.
4. Who is really the mastermind(s) behind everything?
5. Are they really storing power and if so why?
So, needless to say I need the next book like now!
I am one of many reviewers at Gay Book Reviews and can be found here: http://gaybook.reviews/author/steph/
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
1. This story is more Mystery/Suspense with a dash of possible romance thrown in.
2. There is an orgy takes place in Chapter 24 (83% mark), where there are two BRIEF mentions of MF interactions.
3. We are left with a cliffhanger.
Wow, just wow! This is my first book from TJ Nichols and she does not disappoint. There is soooooo much awesomeness in this book it is ridiculous. The author spares no expense when it comes to the world building on not just one, but two worlds/dimensions. Yeah you heard me...TWO: Earth (Earthside) and Arlyxia (Demonside)! Not to mention the wonderful way she constructs the characters in the book and the hierarchy in both dimensions.
So it begins on Earthside. Angus is summoning his first demon, when in fact all he wants is pursue something nonmagical in life; like becoming a vet or possibly a doctor. In fact, he was trying to fail, and fail miserably. However, he didn’t account on Saka, a demon mage, to answer his call. In that moment, everything starts to change for this 19-year-old.
Saka, sees something in that moment with Angus and decides to take him to Demonside. He does so, not only to rebalance the power (sexy times involved), but to open Angus’s eyes to the truth. That truth being that both worlds are suffering due to the magical imbalance on both sides. Earthside is getting colder, where Demonside is getting hotter.
Angus soon realizes that facts are being withheld, and in their place they are given carefully constructed information that is then reinforced by the schools and the media. That is where The Underground comes into play. They consist of rogue wizards and warlocks set on making things right. Seeking out the truth to save their world.
With all of this going on, something starts to form between Angus and Saka, and it wasn’t just from the hot sex they did to restore a bit of the power in each world. No, it is more than that. Both Angus and Saka have their own thoughts and feelings towards what is happening between them, however, neither one will say it out loud. There is a moment when I thought something was forming between Angus and another warlock, Terrance. Thinking Angus finally deserves some sort of happiness. Someone to love and have that feeling returned without thought. However, shit hits the fan and what could exist between the two of them is put on hold indefinitely.
In the end, I was left with many questions and mixed emotions.
1. I am sad for Angus, and everything he has endured up until the end. If anyone at this point deserves a HEA at the end of this series, it is him.
2. I'm excited to see what happens with the partnership of sorts between Demonside and The Underground.
3. I have this feeling that there is more to Angus’s power.
4. Who is really the mastermind(s) behind everything?
5. Are they really storing power and if so why?
So, needless to say I need the next book like now!
I am one of many reviewers at Gay Book Reviews and can be found here: http://gaybook.reviews/author/steph/
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
August 30, 2017
Overview:
I had high hopes going into this book, but it very quickly took a turn that I wasn't expecting. I suppose it's my fault for not reading/heeding the reviews. It's alright, but it has some problems in my opinion.
Characters:
Nothing particularly notable, I thought the characters were rather bland themselves with little personality or life to them. I didn't really get much of a sense of them as people, with some traits thrown on. Angus doesn't really have much of a driving force throughout the book.
Worldbuilding:
Here is where this book shined, I thought the whole concept of the balance between worlds was super cool, the siphoning of demonic magic and the reclaiming of magic was such a neat and unique concept.
Unfortunately, most of it wound up feeling like it was being written as an excuse for sex magic which was... not great.
Plot:
The overlying concept was great, but the actual meat of what we got was lacking, in my opinion. Angus is snatched to rebalance magic and learns so much more about the world than he thought, then there is a lot of sex magic and he decides to help the demons not die because that would kill Earth too.
Meh, made promises it didn't keep.
Other Cons:
-The sex wasn't great, I'm sorry but it just was boring and poorly written.
-Also, unexpected blood play. Not going to kink shame but did not expect that.
-I loathe books that consider a minor resolution to be the point to end their novel on. This just stopped without any real satisfaction for me.
Final Thoughts:
Although I'm interested in where this story is going, I'm not picking up the next book and I wouldn't recommend it.
I had high hopes going into this book, but it very quickly took a turn that I wasn't expecting. I suppose it's my fault for not reading/heeding the reviews. It's alright, but it has some problems in my opinion.
Characters:
Nothing particularly notable, I thought the characters were rather bland themselves with little personality or life to them. I didn't really get much of a sense of them as people, with some traits thrown on. Angus doesn't really have much of a driving force throughout the book.
Worldbuilding:
Here is where this book shined, I thought the whole concept of the balance between worlds was super cool, the siphoning of demonic magic and the reclaiming of magic was such a neat and unique concept.
Unfortunately, most of it wound up feeling like it was being written as an excuse for sex magic which was... not great.
Plot:
The overlying concept was great, but the actual meat of what we got was lacking, in my opinion. Angus is snatched to rebalance magic and learns so much more about the world than he thought, then there is a lot of sex magic and he decides to help the demons not die because that would kill Earth too.
Meh, made promises it didn't keep.
Other Cons:
-The sex wasn't great, I'm sorry but it just was boring and poorly written.
-Also, unexpected blood play. Not going to kink shame but did not expect that.
-I loathe books that consider a minor resolution to be the point to end their novel on. This just stopped without any real satisfaction for me.
Final Thoughts:
Although I'm interested in where this story is going, I'm not picking up the next book and I wouldn't recommend it.
February 21, 2017
I really enjoyed this one. Could have easily been a 5 star book for me if not for Terrence and the orgy scene. If you want me to believe the romance aspect then our MCs can't be fucking other people all over the place after they have already started a relationship with each other. No matter how tentative. I don't care if it's a "ritual" or not. That is just my personal feeling on the matter. Other than that the book was fantastic. Love the world building and I look forward to the next book.
February 27, 2017
I really love it when an author creates a well, thought out, new world. Excellent world building! My favorite is the Demon side world. The descriptions were so vivid, I could even smell the heat and sand. And I think the real gem of this book is Saka. That is one hot demon. As for Angus, I see a lot of potential for character growth. A good start for a series.
May 31, 2018
The m/f scene totally ruined it for me. I could get over the hints that the demon was bisexual (since chasing true mm fiction is a captain ahab endeavor) but when the 'gay' warlock starts embracing heterosexuality (and his internal monologue confirms this is exactly what's happening), that's where I draw the line. I did finish this one but certainly won't continue the series.
June 2, 2024
I generally like the concept: that if a warlock can summon a demon, he runs the risk of being summoned back to the Demonside by a more powerful demon. But the execution is lacking. Besides poor world building, I don’t like too much hand-holding and finger-pointing. The concept is not that complex, I can understand it perfectly without the need of constant repetition, thank you very much. Characters are bland, and plots dull enough for me to skip pages at a time to finish the book.
November 11, 2023
Not for me.
June 2, 2018
World Building: although a bit much on the side of sustainability or the effects if it's not cared for the story follows the questions of what if the demons are no spawn of hell but inhabitants of a dimension where magic is so powerful that it's visible; what if warlocks on the human side can open the void between both worlds and summon the demons to take their magic for their own purpose while the demons can't do the same; what if magic is some kind of energy and follows the principles of physic. T.J. Nichols has some interessting ideas how that is working and throws human ignorance and greed for power into the game as well as some strange demon attempts to get the balance back. While the human world is a bit too black and white, the demons and their lifestyle comes in all shades.
Interaction: we have power hungry warlocks with a even at the end of the book still open agenda; we have a wizzard underground siding with the demons somehow but we don't see the underground fighting against the ruling warlocks and their fake news; we have the demons discussing how to save their dying world and try to prevent the worst with blood rituals and sex magic and then we also have a father-son conflict but that is so far on the backseat that it's nearly wasted.
Romance: seems we're heading into a threesome in the next book or at least a relationship with Angus the warlock and mage in training in the middle of a triangle with the demon Sakka on one side and Terrance, a senior at the warlock college and secret follower of the underground on the other side. While I could enjoy the world building I had trouble to care about the romance. Angus/ Terrance is too much in the fledgling stages at the end of book one to talk about und Angus/ Sakka is ... complicated. The age difference is huge and the cultural gap hard to overcome. I'm not rather sure if it isn't more a teacher-student infatuation while working on the subject of sex magic.
Interaction: we have power hungry warlocks with a even at the end of the book still open agenda; we have a wizzard underground siding with the demons somehow but we don't see the underground fighting against the ruling warlocks and their fake news; we have the demons discussing how to save their dying world and try to prevent the worst with blood rituals and sex magic and then we also have a father-son conflict but that is so far on the backseat that it's nearly wasted.
Romance: seems we're heading into a threesome in the next book or at least a relationship with Angus the warlock and mage in training in the middle of a triangle with the demon Sakka on one side and Terrance, a senior at the warlock college and secret follower of the underground on the other side. While I could enjoy the world building I had trouble to care about the romance. Angus/ Terrance is too much in the fledgling stages at the end of book one to talk about und Angus/ Sakka is ... complicated. The age difference is huge and the cultural gap hard to overcome. I'm not rather sure if it isn't more a teacher-student infatuation while working on the subject of sex magic.
February 3, 2020
‘Warlock in Training' is an amazing read, and I loved exploring the rules and background of this story’s universe. Here, wizards and warlocks both use magic but in very different ways – wizards draw magic from nature and pay for its use but warlocks summon demons from a parallel existence and drain their magic. The official version that only warlocks are properly trained and “approved” allows political control by a small group of power-hungry, unscrupulous warlocks (idiots, really) who would rather destroy Demonside (and probably Earth as a consequence since both are linked) than give up control. There is lots to learn about this world as the story unfolds, and the truth only emerges slowly.
Please find my full review of the second edition on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Please find my full review of the second edition on Rainbow Book Reviews.
March 26, 2017
I loved the world the author created. The demon world was fascinating. Unfortunately the main characters were dry. The emotional interaction was sparse. I hope that changes as the series moves on.
November 17, 2018
Book – Warlock in Training (Studies in Demonology #1)
Author – T.J. Nichols
Star rating - ★★★★★
No. of Pages – 226
Cover – Gorgeous!
POV – 3rd person, dual POV
Would I read it again – YES!!
Genre – LGBT, Paranormal, Supernatural
** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Reviewed for Divine Magazine
Warnings: an orgy (explicit and with MF and MM partners) as well as pain play, cutting (for blood sacrifice and pleasure, not for pain) and some instances of violence
~
Part of a Series
Wow...the feels in this book!
First off, I just want to give T.J. Nichols a huge shout out from a big series-lover in thanks for marking this as a series. All too often, I've seen books with no warning that it's part of a series and I end up frustrated when I get to the end only to find it's a huge cliffhanger or it doesn't answer the questions I need answered. There was no issue here.
As well as the warnings on both the publisher's website and the Goodreads page that this was book 1 of a series, I knew by about 70% that there was no way all that needed to be told in this story would fit into the space left, so I was prepared in advance for the slightly-cliffhangery ending.
Still, I really feel that it answered all of my questions and rounded off the story that had been told adequately. Though there's still so much more to tell, it didn't end in that cliffhanger where you're right in the middle of something important and it just stops dead. This is a well rounded ending to a complete, if more complex and continuing, storyline.
~
Right from the beginning, I was in awe of just how captivating and intriguing this story was. From line 1 I was interested in Angus and his story, then when Saka was introduced I was practically vibrating with exciting because the two together were just gold! Pure genius!
What was so great about them together was the intense chemistry right from their first look. Every tiny interaction was laced with so much feeling and depth that it was impossible not to love them together.
I really loved the fact that this wasn't your typical Master/Slave relationship. It didn't go the way of a Dom/sub relationship either. It was simply a matter of Angus gaining a demon that he expected to be his magical-slave, only to find that Saka was in the same position, expecting a human-warlock-slave to help him save his world. The way they find a balance with each other is charming and contained just the right amount of give and take between the demon and warlock. What made it even better was the free exchange of appreciation, knowledge and respect.
The story itself was so unique. The world-building required was immense, but I never felt bogged down by too much information or concepts that I couldn't understand or that were never explained. Every foreign concept was explained in a relatable, reasonable way that appeared just when it was needed and when it made the most sense. The little nuances of how different the worlds were became a constantly bleed through reminder of just how different that made Angus and Saka from each other, without being in your face or sounding repetitive. I also really loved that Saka's tail made multiple appearances without being intrusive. These subtle reminders really added to the integrity of the world-building and the sensation of being in the world with the characters.
Angus started this story as any other disgruntled teenager, who didn't want to be where he was and had a tricky family life that made him want to rebel. As the story unfolded, not only did he grow immensely but he found himself by finding Saka. The way that Saka showed respect and a willingness to accept Angus into his life and world was perhaps the pivotal thing that really showed Angus that it was time to not only grow up but also to show the same respect in return. I really felt that, finally, Angus had found someone he could talk to, who understood him and who didn't see him as the weirdo freak or have expectations that he couldn't fulfill.
Saka was...charming. Brilliant. Amazing. I could gush forever about this bossy demon who stole Angus' (and my!) heart. His knowledge and the way he treated Angus made our time in Demonside exciting and rippling with tension. The way that he helped Angus find his feet and himself was amazingly gentle, but also very hot.
Terrance was an interesting side character and I can really see why he was needed, even though he wasn't particularly powerful or progressive for the story. He had a quiet, human-charm about him that drew Angus into some pretty well crafted love-triangle confusion and made him question everything.
I'll freely admit that I cried and I was moved multiple times. To be fair and not give too much away, I'm only going to mark that points where I couldn't hold back any more:
“Let me die in Saka's bed.”
“Run and don't look back.”
“The greater tribe wanted him to live.”
“I don't want another warlock. I want you.”
“You have a place here.”
Yup, that's right. I cried at all five of those moments, for good reasons. But to find out why, you'll have to read it. But you should be doing that anyway.
~
Overall
With a well plotted, exceptionally written and unique storyline, T.J. Nichols impressed me to no end. Not only is this story intriguing and the characters thrillingly engaging, but it was an excellent first foray into their novel writing (as I've only read a short story before.) I will eagerly be returning to more of their work. There is a perfect balance of detail, action and description that allows the reader to sink deep into the story and the world, without feeling any more out of place than Angus first felt when he entered Demonside.
Powerful. Moving. Stunning.
This will be getting added to my paperback collection the minute it's released. And I'll be first in line to read book 2, Rogue in the Making.
~
Favourite Quote
“The uncertain young man who Saka had dragged across the void had died out on the sand, and in his place was a warlock who knew what he wanted.”
Author – T.J. Nichols
Star rating - ★★★★★
No. of Pages – 226
Cover – Gorgeous!
POV – 3rd person, dual POV
Would I read it again – YES!!
Genre – LGBT, Paranormal, Supernatural
** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Reviewed for Divine Magazine
Warnings: an orgy (explicit and with MF and MM partners) as well as pain play, cutting (for blood sacrifice and pleasure, not for pain) and some instances of violence
~
Part of a Series
Wow...the feels in this book!
First off, I just want to give T.J. Nichols a huge shout out from a big series-lover in thanks for marking this as a series. All too often, I've seen books with no warning that it's part of a series and I end up frustrated when I get to the end only to find it's a huge cliffhanger or it doesn't answer the questions I need answered. There was no issue here.
As well as the warnings on both the publisher's website and the Goodreads page that this was book 1 of a series, I knew by about 70% that there was no way all that needed to be told in this story would fit into the space left, so I was prepared in advance for the slightly-cliffhangery ending.
Still, I really feel that it answered all of my questions and rounded off the story that had been told adequately. Though there's still so much more to tell, it didn't end in that cliffhanger where you're right in the middle of something important and it just stops dead. This is a well rounded ending to a complete, if more complex and continuing, storyline.
~
Right from the beginning, I was in awe of just how captivating and intriguing this story was. From line 1 I was interested in Angus and his story, then when Saka was introduced I was practically vibrating with exciting because the two together were just gold! Pure genius!
What was so great about them together was the intense chemistry right from their first look. Every tiny interaction was laced with so much feeling and depth that it was impossible not to love them together.
I really loved the fact that this wasn't your typical Master/Slave relationship. It didn't go the way of a Dom/sub relationship either. It was simply a matter of Angus gaining a demon that he expected to be his magical-slave, only to find that Saka was in the same position, expecting a human-warlock-slave to help him save his world. The way they find a balance with each other is charming and contained just the right amount of give and take between the demon and warlock. What made it even better was the free exchange of appreciation, knowledge and respect.
The story itself was so unique. The world-building required was immense, but I never felt bogged down by too much information or concepts that I couldn't understand or that were never explained. Every foreign concept was explained in a relatable, reasonable way that appeared just when it was needed and when it made the most sense. The little nuances of how different the worlds were became a constantly bleed through reminder of just how different that made Angus and Saka from each other, without being in your face or sounding repetitive. I also really loved that Saka's tail made multiple appearances without being intrusive. These subtle reminders really added to the integrity of the world-building and the sensation of being in the world with the characters.
Angus started this story as any other disgruntled teenager, who didn't want to be where he was and had a tricky family life that made him want to rebel. As the story unfolded, not only did he grow immensely but he found himself by finding Saka. The way that Saka showed respect and a willingness to accept Angus into his life and world was perhaps the pivotal thing that really showed Angus that it was time to not only grow up but also to show the same respect in return. I really felt that, finally, Angus had found someone he could talk to, who understood him and who didn't see him as the weirdo freak or have expectations that he couldn't fulfill.
Saka was...charming. Brilliant. Amazing. I could gush forever about this bossy demon who stole Angus' (and my!) heart. His knowledge and the way he treated Angus made our time in Demonside exciting and rippling with tension. The way that he helped Angus find his feet and himself was amazingly gentle, but also very hot.
Terrance was an interesting side character and I can really see why he was needed, even though he wasn't particularly powerful or progressive for the story. He had a quiet, human-charm about him that drew Angus into some pretty well crafted love-triangle confusion and made him question everything.
I'll freely admit that I cried and I was moved multiple times. To be fair and not give too much away, I'm only going to mark that points where I couldn't hold back any more:
“Let me die in Saka's bed.”
“Run and don't look back.”
“The greater tribe wanted him to live.”
“I don't want another warlock. I want you.”
“You have a place here.”
Yup, that's right. I cried at all five of those moments, for good reasons. But to find out why, you'll have to read it. But you should be doing that anyway.
~
Overall
With a well plotted, exceptionally written and unique storyline, T.J. Nichols impressed me to no end. Not only is this story intriguing and the characters thrillingly engaging, but it was an excellent first foray into their novel writing (as I've only read a short story before.) I will eagerly be returning to more of their work. There is a perfect balance of detail, action and description that allows the reader to sink deep into the story and the world, without feeling any more out of place than Angus first felt when he entered Demonside.
Powerful. Moving. Stunning.
This will be getting added to my paperback collection the minute it's released. And I'll be first in line to read book 2, Rogue in the Making.
~
Favourite Quote
“The uncertain young man who Saka had dragged across the void had died out on the sand, and in his place was a warlock who knew what he wanted.”
February 3, 2020
‘Warlock in Training' is an amazing read, and I loved exploring the rules and background of this story’s universe. Here, wizards and warlocks both use magic but in very different ways – wizards draw magic from nature and pay for its use but warlocks summon demons from a parallel existence and drain their magic. The official version that only warlocks are properly trained and “approved” allows political control by a small group of power-hungry, unscrupulous warlocks (idiots, really) who would rather destroy Demonside (and probably Earth as a consequence since both are linked) than give up control. There is lots to learn about this world as the story unfolds, and the truth only emerges slowly.
Please find my full review of the second edition on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Please find my full review of the second edition on Rainbow Book Reviews.
May 26, 2017
Review can be read at It's About The Book
This is another one of those books that in theory I should love. I’m a huge fan of magic. A school for warlocks will suck me in anytime despite the fact I don’t love YA books. I’m easy that way! This is more NA as it’s a college of sorts though. Throw in some demons and other worlds and I’m sold. This book for me however fell pretty flat.
Angus makes a fairly lame attempt at NOT conjuring a demon. A requirement for students to continue at the Warlock College. Instead of failing Angus conjures up a very powerful mage demon from the Demonside. A world quickly losing all water resources because the Humanside or Earth is taking too much magic and not giving balance back. Earth is getting colder everyday. You’d think someone would figure out the balance is off but a group of greedy powerful Warlocks have floated around lies for so long their version of “truth” is being taught in schools. To question them at all means you could be banished to Demonside or up and disappear one day. The humans take a demon for power. Force them to do their will. Sucking up all their magic until they die and then repeat the cycle of trapping another demon. Once there was a mutual benefit to a human and demon relationship but no longer. There’s a divide and a power struggle. The corruption I and greed is costing both humans and demons their worlds.
Despite liking the world building and conflicts between the realms for the most part I had problems with this book. First parts of this book were overly descriptive to the point I’d blank out while reading them. Never good. Maybe it’s because a lot of it was repetitive? Either way parts of this book dragged. There was an abundance of sex scenes just for the sake of sex I wanted to skim read because they had no emotion behind them. I know this is a personal preference. Sake, the demon who snatches Angus during the summoning, uses sex magic to balance out his world. Although Angus is willing because he feels lust for Sake it has a non con feel initially. I get it serves a purpose In this world and Angus seems to enjoy it more than blood magic but it just didn’t add anything to the story for me beyond lots of sex scenes. Also there’s an icky demon orgy where Angus was offered up somewhat unwillingly that kind of squicked me out. It’s tame as far as orgies go but I still found it uncomfortable to read about.
I did like the correlation of humans taking too much from the world without giving back in comparison of how we treat our planet in real life. How given a pass we can overlook the harm done by our actions but eventually it’s all going to catch up. I also enjoyed some of the Demonside politics. The Earth side resistance gaining power and realizing what needs to be done may make future books more promising. This book relied heavily on sex between Sake and Angus which I don’t find all that interesting. Angus had minimal growth. Sake’s character was interesting. He’s hot and cold. More practical. He gets jealous of others wanting Angus at times but then he’s okay with a lover on Earth for Angus. Yes it seems an unbalanced love triangle is coming basically because Sake isn’t capable of giving Angus what he wants. I’m not a fan of love triangles BTW. This seems to be a YA or NA trope. So I don’t know that I’ll be reading the next book in the series. There’s enough there to be intriguing of what will happen next but I do not want to sit through another book of sex magic. The rest of the world building is fairly interesting. There was just too much of the book that couldn’t hold my attention sadly.
This is another one of those books that in theory I should love. I’m a huge fan of magic. A school for warlocks will suck me in anytime despite the fact I don’t love YA books. I’m easy that way! This is more NA as it’s a college of sorts though. Throw in some demons and other worlds and I’m sold. This book for me however fell pretty flat.
Angus makes a fairly lame attempt at NOT conjuring a demon. A requirement for students to continue at the Warlock College. Instead of failing Angus conjures up a very powerful mage demon from the Demonside. A world quickly losing all water resources because the Humanside or Earth is taking too much magic and not giving balance back. Earth is getting colder everyday. You’d think someone would figure out the balance is off but a group of greedy powerful Warlocks have floated around lies for so long their version of “truth” is being taught in schools. To question them at all means you could be banished to Demonside or up and disappear one day. The humans take a demon for power. Force them to do their will. Sucking up all their magic until they die and then repeat the cycle of trapping another demon. Once there was a mutual benefit to a human and demon relationship but no longer. There’s a divide and a power struggle. The corruption I and greed is costing both humans and demons their worlds.
Despite liking the world building and conflicts between the realms for the most part I had problems with this book. First parts of this book were overly descriptive to the point I’d blank out while reading them. Never good. Maybe it’s because a lot of it was repetitive? Either way parts of this book dragged. There was an abundance of sex scenes just for the sake of sex I wanted to skim read because they had no emotion behind them. I know this is a personal preference. Sake, the demon who snatches Angus during the summoning, uses sex magic to balance out his world. Although Angus is willing because he feels lust for Sake it has a non con feel initially. I get it serves a purpose In this world and Angus seems to enjoy it more than blood magic but it just didn’t add anything to the story for me beyond lots of sex scenes. Also there’s an icky demon orgy where Angus was offered up somewhat unwillingly that kind of squicked me out. It’s tame as far as orgies go but I still found it uncomfortable to read about.
I did like the correlation of humans taking too much from the world without giving back in comparison of how we treat our planet in real life. How given a pass we can overlook the harm done by our actions but eventually it’s all going to catch up. I also enjoyed some of the Demonside politics. The Earth side resistance gaining power and realizing what needs to be done may make future books more promising. This book relied heavily on sex between Sake and Angus which I don’t find all that interesting. Angus had minimal growth. Sake’s character was interesting. He’s hot and cold. More practical. He gets jealous of others wanting Angus at times but then he’s okay with a lover on Earth for Angus. Yes it seems an unbalanced love triangle is coming basically because Sake isn’t capable of giving Angus what he wants. I’m not a fan of love triangles BTW. This seems to be a YA or NA trope. So I don’t know that I’ll be reading the next book in the series. There’s enough there to be intriguing of what will happen next but I do not want to sit through another book of sex magic. The rest of the world building is fairly interesting. There was just too much of the book that couldn’t hold my attention sadly.
February 17, 2017
4.25 stars
I actually really liked this. I'm not usually a fan of the magic/warlock MM genre, but this turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Loved the worldbuilding and characters. Can't wait for the next book to see what happens with Angus and Saka. :)
I actually really liked this. I'm not usually a fan of the magic/warlock MM genre, but this turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Loved the worldbuilding and characters. Can't wait for the next book to see what happens with Angus and Saka. :)
February 15, 2017
Fantastic 1st in a new urban fantasy series!
Warlock in Training is the first book in TJ Nichols’ Studies in Demonology series. This is the first work of Nichols’ that I’ve read and I must admit that I plowed through it in one day! Nichols created an entrancing binary world where humans and demons interact and work magic. A world which is nearing a tipping point environmentall, one which reminded me of where we find ourselves in our current state of global warming.
In the human dimension, here referred to as Vinland, the world is rapidly cooling. Reversely, Demonside, as the land of demons is called, is quickly heating and drying up. These events are triggered by an imbalance of magic, an imbalance wherein the human warlocks are taking more magic from Demonside than they are replenishing. Human warlocks use and summon demons to provide them with magic to cater to individuals able to pay their high fees for services rendered..
Enter Angus. The reluctant hero of the story. He is a first year student at East Vinland Warlock College. He is desperately trying to fail his courses and abandon the family legacy of becoming a warlock. He simply wants to study medicine. Or maybe become a vet. He just knows he doesn’t want magic in his life.
Enter Saka.The demon mage. With horns. And a prehensile tail. While attempting to fail at summoning a demon, Angus rips through the void to Demonside and in comes Saka, who promptly snatches him back to his world.
What ensues is a slow discovery of buried truths and blatant lies perpetrated by the warlocks at the college, by Angus’ father, and by the world at large. Saka and Angus end up working together toward the end of restoring magical balance in the world--a balance that can only be restored through blood, soul, and sex magic. Since this is a romance book, take a gander at which type of magic Saka is an expert in? Warning, aside from sex magic, there is a fair bit of blood magic in the book, so if knives and bloodletting are not your thing, even to restore magic and save the world, maybe you should skip those sections.
So, what did I like about the book? I loved the conception of the two co-dependent worlds and how different they were. I also liked how this felt like a metaphor to our current environmental problems: Those in power harvest and consolidate more power with little consequence to the long term effects of their actions be they environmental, social, or political. I also loved Demonside. I wanted to learn more about it--heck, I wanted to visit it and be Saka’s apprentice!
What didn’t work for me? For one, the human setting, both spatial and temporal was not well defined for me. I was unclear as to the political structure on the human side, how much power the Warlock College had, and how pervasive around the world/globe the use of magic via demons was. In essence, this is world building in the fantasy and science fiction genre and I felt it could have been more specific. Second, things took a while to get going and Angus was a bit repetitive in his musings. However, the action totally skyrocketed the last quarter of the book.
What important things did I learn? Demons have ritualistic sex orgies to raise water from the buried red sands. Demons are matrilineal. Demons have demon animals just like humans. Rugby players make hot magical tutors. And most importantly, spunk=magic.
I am anxiously awaiting the next book in Studies in Demonology. Well done, TJ Nichols!
Warlock in Training is the first book in TJ Nichols’ Studies in Demonology series. This is the first work of Nichols’ that I’ve read and I must admit that I plowed through it in one day! Nichols created an entrancing binary world where humans and demons interact and work magic. A world which is nearing a tipping point environmentall, one which reminded me of where we find ourselves in our current state of global warming.
In the human dimension, here referred to as Vinland, the world is rapidly cooling. Reversely, Demonside, as the land of demons is called, is quickly heating and drying up. These events are triggered by an imbalance of magic, an imbalance wherein the human warlocks are taking more magic from Demonside than they are replenishing. Human warlocks use and summon demons to provide them with magic to cater to individuals able to pay their high fees for services rendered..
Enter Angus. The reluctant hero of the story. He is a first year student at East Vinland Warlock College. He is desperately trying to fail his courses and abandon the family legacy of becoming a warlock. He simply wants to study medicine. Or maybe become a vet. He just knows he doesn’t want magic in his life.
Enter Saka.The demon mage. With horns. And a prehensile tail. While attempting to fail at summoning a demon, Angus rips through the void to Demonside and in comes Saka, who promptly snatches him back to his world.
What ensues is a slow discovery of buried truths and blatant lies perpetrated by the warlocks at the college, by Angus’ father, and by the world at large. Saka and Angus end up working together toward the end of restoring magical balance in the world--a balance that can only be restored through blood, soul, and sex magic. Since this is a romance book, take a gander at which type of magic Saka is an expert in? Warning, aside from sex magic, there is a fair bit of blood magic in the book, so if knives and bloodletting are not your thing, even to restore magic and save the world, maybe you should skip those sections.
So, what did I like about the book? I loved the conception of the two co-dependent worlds and how different they were. I also liked how this felt like a metaphor to our current environmental problems: Those in power harvest and consolidate more power with little consequence to the long term effects of their actions be they environmental, social, or political. I also loved Demonside. I wanted to learn more about it--heck, I wanted to visit it and be Saka’s apprentice!
What didn’t work for me? For one, the human setting, both spatial and temporal was not well defined for me. I was unclear as to the political structure on the human side, how much power the Warlock College had, and how pervasive around the world/globe the use of magic via demons was. In essence, this is world building in the fantasy and science fiction genre and I felt it could have been more specific. Second, things took a while to get going and Angus was a bit repetitive in his musings. However, the action totally skyrocketed the last quarter of the book.
What important things did I learn? Demons have ritualistic sex orgies to raise water from the buried red sands. Demons are matrilineal. Demons have demon animals just like humans. Rugby players make hot magical tutors. And most importantly, spunk=magic.
I am anxiously awaiting the next book in Studies in Demonology. Well done, TJ Nichols!
February 16, 2017
A Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Review An Alisa Review:
Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
This is wonderful and thought out story. Angus has been struggling with himself since his father placed him in Warlock College and has been trying to figure out how to get out without just quitting like he wants to. When Saka takes him back to Demonside most of his beliefs and research about the use of demons in his world are confirmed.
Both Angus’s and Saka’s worlds were well developed and I wasn’t questioning the actions of the characters throughout the story as can often happen with little things seem to be missing. While the “relationship” between Angus and Saka is not the main focus of the story it is important for this story for the future in this series. They both have a deep connection to the other, but are unable to actually voice this to others or really themselves.
We see the views of both Angus and Saka in this story. Angus is trying to figure out how to help Saka while also not being a rogue on his side; unfortunately he has more confrontation than he planned on. I couldn’t help, but feel his desperation and how hopeless his situation felt at many points throughout the story. Saka has never fully agreed with what many on his side deem the proper solution for bring the worlds back into balance, but as long as he is able he will work to do what he thinks is the best solution. This is a great start to this series and I look forward to more of these stories.
Cover art by Catt Ford is wonderful and shows both of the worlds Angus is trying to live in.
Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
This is wonderful and thought out story. Angus has been struggling with himself since his father placed him in Warlock College and has been trying to figure out how to get out without just quitting like he wants to. When Saka takes him back to Demonside most of his beliefs and research about the use of demons in his world are confirmed.
Both Angus’s and Saka’s worlds were well developed and I wasn’t questioning the actions of the characters throughout the story as can often happen with little things seem to be missing. While the “relationship” between Angus and Saka is not the main focus of the story it is important for this story for the future in this series. They both have a deep connection to the other, but are unable to actually voice this to others or really themselves.
We see the views of both Angus and Saka in this story. Angus is trying to figure out how to help Saka while also not being a rogue on his side; unfortunately he has more confrontation than he planned on. I couldn’t help, but feel his desperation and how hopeless his situation felt at many points throughout the story. Saka has never fully agreed with what many on his side deem the proper solution for bring the worlds back into balance, but as long as he is able he will work to do what he thinks is the best solution. This is a great start to this series and I look forward to more of these stories.
Cover art by Catt Ford is wonderful and shows both of the worlds Angus is trying to live in.
March 24, 2017
I'm really conflicted.
I didn't like the fact it ended in such an abrupt cliffhanger nor did I like that there wasn't any resolve on the romantic triangle. The author tried to make the triangle (- poly ?) - open relationship work, but when you put jealousy on the game then it doesn't work. Other times sex was just sex and then it was something more, and then third parties get involved it was a mess. Someone said the sex was in the book just for the sake of sex and trying to process the book I agree. I don't explain it correctly but the author didn't clear it from the beginning what the MCs relationship would be regarding romance. So in the end it kind of pissed me off, because it seemed that with a little encouragement from Saka they could be a couple and no one else had to be involved romantically. (Not taking into consideration the sex magic). But it didn't happen and Angus was left wondering and needing other things which the third guy can provide I guess.
Another thing I wouldn't even realise this is YA unless someone said it.
I liked the writing, although I have some questions about the workings of demons and the book's world in general.
I didn't like the fact it ended in such an abrupt cliffhanger nor did I like that there wasn't any resolve on the romantic triangle. The author tried to make the triangle (- poly ?) - open relationship work, but when you put jealousy on the game then it doesn't work. Other times sex was just sex and then it was something more, and then third parties get involved it was a mess. Someone said the sex was in the book just for the sake of sex and trying to process the book I agree. I don't explain it correctly but the author didn't clear it from the beginning what the MCs relationship would be regarding romance. So in the end it kind of pissed me off, because it seemed that with a little encouragement from Saka they could be a couple and no one else had to be involved romantically. (Not taking into consideration the sex magic). But it didn't happen and Angus was left wondering and needing other things which the third guy can provide I guess.
Another thing I wouldn't even realise this is YA unless someone said it.
I liked the writing, although I have some questions about the workings of demons and the book's world in general.
March 19, 2017
2.5 stars. This is a very reluctant 3 star rating. I was really disappointed by this story. Normally covers like that mean I'll like the story, but I just didn't. I'm actually pretty proud I even finished it; I was pretty bored there in the middle.
What I didn't like was that while there is technically a relationship between the two MCs, it didn't feel like it. I'd almost venture to say this was a pwp, except for the fact that the sex scenes weren't overly abundant or that hot... but honestly the story revolved around the idea that us having sex will literally save the world.
Overall, the characters didn't really seem rounded or connected to each other.
Then the ending was just as if this was a longer book cut in half, so we're left with only half a story. The climactic scene wasn't even built up to. Within its own chapter, the situation was presented and resolved.
it's an interesting concept, but it fell short in my opinion
What I didn't like was that while there is technically a relationship between the two MCs, it didn't feel like it. I'd almost venture to say this was a pwp, except for the fact that the sex scenes weren't overly abundant or that hot... but honestly the story revolved around the idea that us having sex will literally save the world.
Overall, the characters didn't really seem rounded or connected to each other.
Then the ending was just as if this was a longer book cut in half, so we're left with only half a story. The climactic scene wasn't even built up to. Within its own chapter, the situation was presented and resolved.
it's an interesting concept, but it fell short in my opinion
August 13, 2020
Une histoire avec un super potentiel qui, je l’espère, sera pleinement exploité dans les tomes suivants.
J’ai beaucoup aimé l’univers qui m’a un peu rappelé celui de Kara Gillian, les enjeux, etc. Je suis moins fan de l’omniprésence de sexe même si ça s’intègre très bien dans l’histoire.
Impatient de lire la suite !
J’ai beaucoup aimé l’univers qui m’a un peu rappelé celui de Kara Gillian, les enjeux, etc. Je suis moins fan de l’omniprésence de sexe même si ça s’intègre très bien dans l’histoire.
Impatient de lire la suite !
September 26, 2017
Nice world-building. Solid characters. And a happy ending that's also realistic for the scale of the problems being dealt with.
I liked both Angus and Saka, as well as their chemistry. If I had any niggle, it'd be the pacing of the chapter-to-chapter POV switches didn't always work for me, but it wasn't bad. It never felt like the story was dragging.
Anyway, if there's ever a sequel, I'd be up for reading it.
I liked both Angus and Saka, as well as their chemistry. If I had any niggle, it'd be the pacing of the chapter-to-chapter POV switches didn't always work for me, but it wasn't bad. It never felt like the story was dragging.
Anyway, if there's ever a sequel, I'd be up for reading it.
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