Tag: Magic

Book Review: Beggar Magic, by H.L. Burke

Book Review: Beggar Magic, by H.L. Burke


Over the past few days I have had the pleasure of listening to H.L. Burke’s Beggar Magic through Audible. I’ve listened to lots of audiobooks over the past few months (Lord of the Rings, Outlander, Dune, The Martian…) and this one didn’t disappoint.

Burke’s imaginative world of Gelia City is a city of magic–a magic that resides in the very air and fills the city with its ever-changing sounds: the Strains. But not everyone is fortunate to hear the Strains and use their magic as well as others. The Highmost are born with seemingly unlimited control over the Strains, but the Common are only able to weakly wield them, with beggar magic.

Leilani, a Common, no-nonsense girl, crosses paths with a high-strung Highmost called Zebedy, and her world takes an unusual turn as she is swept into the manic life of the Highmost.  One of the things I admired about Leilani’s character is that she never settled for anything she didn’t want, and never let anyone walk over her.  Gotta love a strong female lead!  The two friends are drawn into a serious mystery concerning the Strains, leading them through Highmost intrigue, breaking class barriers, and there’s even a bit of romance.

The writing (and narration) flow quite naturally, and I loved all of the tiny details placed throughout the book by Burke.  Even before the main conflict was presented, I was drawn in to the unique setting and the two girls’ strong characters.  Seriously, the Strains were a whole new type of magic, the idea of which kept me thinking about this book even when I wasn’t reading it.

This is an audiobook that you can gobble up really easily.  I would definitely recommend it for fantasy lovers of any age.

I received a complementary copy of the audiobook in exchange for this honest review.

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