The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

Have you ever wished your life could be different?  Callum Hunt certainly did.  He wished he had two working legs.  He wished he could do sports.  He wished he had friends.  What he didn't wish was to do magic.  His father warned him against magic and told him that mages were terrible people.  But, he was still called to participate in The Iron Trial, which his father hoped he would fail.

In the first book of the Magisterium Series, The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare (Lexile: 830; Interest Level: Grades 3-6), Callum Hunt faces the magical trials and, at first, fails miserably--the only child to get a negative score!  But when Master Rufus picks him as an apprentice anyway, Call must decide what he wants to do with his fate.  His father wants him to fail and be sent home. Call isn't so sure, especially when he begins to make friends at the Magisterium.  And when he begins to learn things he never thought possible.

Fans of fantasy, magic, and school stories will delight in this new series.  It certainly surprised me!  And, it is a good segway into the more advanced writings of Holly Black and Cassandra Clare, both of whom usually write for young adults. (304 pages)

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