Notorious Sorcerer
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- Create Date：2022-07-23 07:51:50
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Davinia Evans
- ISBN：035651868X
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Summary
Since the city of Bezim was shaken half into the sea by a magical earthquake， the Inquisitors have policed alchemy with brutal efficiency。 Nothing too powerful， too complicated， too much like real magic is allowed–and the careful science that’s left is kept too expensive for any but the rich and indolent to tinker with。 Siyon Velo， a glorified errand boy scraping together lesson money from a little inter-planar fetch and carry， doesn’t qualify。
But when Siyon accidentally commits a public act of impossible magic， he’s catapulted into the limelight。 Except the limelight is a bad place to be when the planes themselves start lurching out of alignment， threatening to send the rest of the city into the sea。
Now Siyon， a dockside brat who clawed his way up and proved himself on rooftops with saber in hand， might be Bezim’s only hope。 Because if they don’t fix the cascading failures of magic in their plane， the Powers and their armies in the other three will do it for them。
But when Siyon accidentally commits a public act of impossible magic， he’s catapulted into the limelight。 Except the limelight is a bad place to be when the planes themselves start lurching out of alignment， threatening to send the rest of the city into the sea。
Now Siyon， a dockside brat who clawed his way up and proved himself on rooftops with saber in hand， might be Bezim’s only hope。 Because if they don’t fix the cascading failures of magic in their plane， the Powers and their armies in the other three will do it for them。
Reviews
Emily
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Thank you to the author， the publishing company， and Goodreads for the e-arc of this book。This book is a startlingly human story full of exploration， failure， and doubt。 Siyon is an amusing blend of cocky ruffian， seat-of-your-pants scholar， and wildly daring mad scientist。 Each of the characters in this book is an interesting blend of want and frustration， each in their own ways and for their own reasons， and all are entirely compelling。This book feels like dipping your toes into a puddle after Thank you to the author， the publishing company， and Goodreads for the e-arc of this book。This book is a startlingly human story full of exploration， failure， and doubt。 Siyon is an amusing blend of cocky ruffian， seat-of-your-pants scholar， and wildly daring mad scientist。 Each of the characters in this book is an interesting blend of want and frustration， each in their own ways and for their own reasons， and all are entirely compelling。This book feels like dipping your toes into a puddle after a rainstorm。 Familiar， but with some differerences， the scent of new on the horizon。 And while it is clear that this book only scratches the surface of the world and its mythos， it never gets overwhelming。 It even ends with tantalizing morsels for the next book in the series。The overall plot of the story is simple， but the richness imbued in the details， the attention paid to the peaks and valleys of Siyon's journey turns this into an excellent frollick of 500 pages that went by in a blink。 I very much look forward to picking up the hardcover when it releases and to the next work in the series。 。。。more
Erin Sabourin
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Thank you to Orbit Publishing， Davinia Evans， as well as Netgallery for the eARC in exchange for an honest review。 These options are my own。 Book release date is Sept 22， 2022This books story dives right in， so much so that for the first 30% of the story it feels as if you are attempting to play church up。 But the magic system in this world is very interesting！ Very much a planes magic system。 I liked the different magical planes as well as the different alchemy elements that came from them。 The Thank you to Orbit Publishing， Davinia Evans， as well as Netgallery for the eARC in exchange for an honest review。 These options are my own。 Book release date is Sept 22， 2022This books story dives right in， so much so that for the first 30% of the story it feels as if you are attempting to play church up。 But the magic system in this world is very interesting！ Very much a planes magic system。 I liked the different magical planes as well as the different alchemy elements that came from them。 The writing is good， no grammatical errors。 The flow of the writing is also enjoyable。 Lots of action to the story and story progression。 I found the first half of the book very confusing / struggled to figure out the world building that was happening。 The alchemists are illegal but they also aren’t。 It was tough to get into the world and how it worked。 It also took me a hot second to place where this story took place / what kind of cultural atmosphere it was， I felt the world building around that could have been handled better。 More description could have helped early on to help someone place the stories location。 I love a fast paced and action packed story。 But I found that this story jumped forward and we didn’t get the chance to longer and see how the story was affecting the characters。 I find that swearing has it’s time and place in a story / narrative。 Most of the time it’s used to accentuate the story or a key part of it。 But I found that this book had quiet a bit of swearing up front， so much so that it took the impact of it away from the story。Fav Quote: “There was something thrilling about chasing an idea through paper， in a different way from chasing over rooftops or across the planes。”Would I buy a paper copy of this book？ No Will I read the next book in the series？ No 。。。more
jordyn ♡ birdie's book nook
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For more of my reviews， check out my blog。Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Books for providing an ARC copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review。I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this book。 Unfortunately， it took me a long time to understand what was going on in Notorious Sorcerer。 I’m talking at least 30% of the way into the book。 I was totally and completely lost all because there was little to no explanation of the world the story is set in。 Right away， the author throws around For more of my reviews， check out my blog。Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Books for providing an ARC copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review。I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this book。 Unfortunately， it took me a long time to understand what was going on in Notorious Sorcerer。 I’m talking at least 30% of the way into the book。 I was totally and completely lost all because there was little to no explanation of the world the story is set in。 Right away， the author throws around terms like we’re supposed to know what they mean — I Googled and could find no real-world equivalent for a good many of them。 Notorious Sorcerer desperately needs a glossary or index of character names and terms right at the beginning of the book。 There’s no shame in one of these — I love learning tidbits of the world before diving in。 If there had been some explanation for frequently used terms， I think I would have enjoyed this book a hell of a lot more。The world Davinia Evans sets up in Notorious Sorcerer is fascinating and deeply rich。 However， I couldn’t place what culture she was basing things off of。 And I know， not every fantasy book is based off of something in real life。 It’s entirely possible this was just all in her head。 But regardless， the city of Bezim reminded me a lot of Istanbul and Venice all mashed together。 Evans name-drops certain alcoholic drinks that exist in real life， and mentions specific instruments and clothing styles just muddied the waters further for me。 There is also the question of the law — alchemy is strictly illegal， but almost everyone gets away with it？ Until things go south and then the inquisitors arrive to arrest people。 Another confusing piece of the confusing puzzle。It took much longer than it should have for me to get my legs steady in the world set up in this book。 Once I did understand what was going on， I loved the story。 The ending climax is fantastically well done。 I really did love the characters as well — they all had very clear motivations， leaving few of them particularly flat or unexplored。Siyon Velo is our main character。 He is a supplier of alchemical ingredients。 He is not an alchemist， but oh how he wishes he was。 Siyon is poor， has no family， and does what he has to， to get by。 He’s also extremely sassy。 A brat， if you will。 He reminded me of Locke Lamora in all good ways。 But by the end of the novel， we’re really only given snippets of his past， leaving me （at least） wanting to know more about him。 Zagiri and her sister， Anahid were extremely fun to read。 They are complete opposites of one another， yet still care deeply for one another。 Anahid， in particular， was my favorite。 A high society woman finally figuring out she can get away with more than she thought。 Izmirlian Hisarani， Siyon’s love interest， is left a little vague， but it mostly works。 （I have some questions about what his arc is saying， honestly。） The various alchemists that dapple the pages are all equally entertaining and ridiculous。Overall， my enjoyment of the book would have been vastly improved had I known what was going on sooner。 If you’re willing to be lost for almost a quarter of the book， then you’re in for a wild ride。Also， it bothers me that his coat is PUPRLE in the book and very clearly bright red on the cover。 🤦🏻♀️ 。。。more
Karyn Silverman
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Loved it。 Big Camorr and Riverside vibes， but not in a copycat way - and the author interview back matter namechecks both as influences， so clearly her wheelhouse and mine are pretty similar。 （I also found myself laughing at Carrick since this one also could sit right alongside The Mask and the Mirror）。 Amazing world building even if I wanted more more more details。 Loved the love story which is just present enough to add a little something but definitely not the point。 Really， I loved the whole Loved it。 Big Camorr and Riverside vibes， but not in a copycat way - and the author interview back matter namechecks both as influences， so clearly her wheelhouse and mine are pretty similar。 （I also found myself laughing at Carrick since this one also could sit right alongside The Mask and the Mirror）。 Amazing world building even if I wanted more more more details。 Loved the love story which is just present enough to add a little something but definitely not the point。 Really， I loved the whole package。 Can’t wait for the next book。 。。。more
Jess
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Many thanks to Orbit Books and NetGalley for the ARC， which was provided in exchange for an honest review。 Notorious Sorcerer has an incredibly strong emotional core and this story， one that I at first thought would be more of a lighthearted jaunt， ended up being quite moving （in fact， it had me in tears for the final 20% or so） It centers around Siyon， an amateur street "practitioner，" someone who makes a living selling alchemical materials obtained from other planes of existence to more experi Many thanks to Orbit Books and NetGalley for the ARC， which was provided in exchange for an honest review。 Notorious Sorcerer has an incredibly strong emotional core and this story， one that I at first thought would be more of a lighthearted jaunt， ended up being quite moving （in fact， it had me in tears for the final 20% or so） It centers around Siyon， an amateur street "practitioner，" someone who makes a living selling alchemical materials obtained from other planes of existence to more experienced practitioners。 He does this in hopes of gaining an education and becoming a full alchemist himself。 When performs an unexpected and supposedly impossible feat， and this gains him possible entry into a circle of elite alchemists from the privileged class， while also getting him tangled up with the law， which officially outlaws alchemy。 Siyon lacks the social cachet to avoid repercussions of his actions， and thus is forced into hiding， ironically taking refuge in the upper class home of the town's most skilled alchemist， Nihath Jeddani and his wife Anahid。The characters in Notorious Sorceror are extremely sympathetic and human， with the main character， Siyon， at the center of a strong ensemble cast。 Siyon is an incredibly endearing main character， an unlikely hero who despite having everything stacked against him， including his own suspicion that he's just not good enough， never stops trying。 Siyon lacks the formal education of the elite alchemists， and suffers from imposter syndrome as a result。 There is so much triumph in his rare bursts of confidence。 Likewise， the strength he draws from those who believe in him make me love those characters even more。 My heart broke for him with each setback and loss， and I was sincerely rooting for him to prevail。 Class issues are up front and center in Notorious Sorcerer， and they're handled well。 There are unexpected alliances between the upper class and lower class characters， and while Siyon becomes more comfortable with， and even falls in love with someone from the ruling class， he never loses awareness of the fact that he is an outsider， and even when he gains nominal status and access to some privilege through his power， it is always conditional and can be revoked at any moment。 Siyon spends most of the book acutely aware that he is doing things that would get him killed， whereas his upper class friends might receive a slap on the wrist。 There is a scene in which Siyon is stuck outside after curfew and his upper class lover walks out brazenly into the night to rescue him， and the way Evans handles Siyon's warring emotions， the relief， gratitude， and resentment， is very well done。 The romance between Siyon and Izmirlian blooms slowly and is more satisfying for it。 Izmirlian， an explorer with an insatiable curiosity， is drawn immediately to Siyon， whose alchemy is unconventional and often outside the boundaries of the known "rules" of the practice。 They both defy borders， both socially， romantically， and magically， and in a book that establishes a "like attracts like" magical principle early on， there is certainly an element of these two being kindred spirits。 While their romance does not dominate the story， it is very much present， and I found myself looking forward to scenes with Izmirlian。 While their story is certainly not over， their goodbye in this book was heartwrenching and I sincerely hope there is something less bittersweet in store for them in future books。I was surprised how attached I became to some of the other characters， such as Anahid， the society wife who learned only after her marriage that her new husband already had a live in lover。 Her friendship with Siyon was unexpected and heartfelt。 Her husband， Nihath， who could have been a cardboard villain type， is somewhat sympathetic。 Anahid's younger sister， Zagiri， is endearing （if a bit naïve） as an emerging firebrand who has avoided fully joining upper class adult society but finally decides to do so specifically so that she can wield her privilege to enact change。 The prose is accessible and easy to read， if slightly quippy at times。 The tone is almost deceptively light at first， but handles the switch between madcap action and quiet melancholy with relative ease。 Sometimes overly quippy， modern sounding prose can be a miss for me in fantasy， particularly if it breaks immersion by recalling current modern slang or references too strongly （fantasy characters going "well that happened，" which I've read in other books）。 Here， once I'd gotten into the story and was emotionally on the hook， which happened fairly early on， the breezy quippy prose， which was never really overdone anyway （the closest it came was a stray "get bent" early on） didn't really bother me。 Overall， Notorious Sorcerer is a strong recommend from me。 。。。more
Emma Cathryne
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I LOVE physical magic systems。 The more tangible， the better。 Give me gross and fun and squishy hands-on magic: stirring pots and combing devilish ingredients and crawling around on the ground to draw summoning circles。 I struggle with magic that feels ephemeral and theoretical， so it was a delight to see Davinia Evans make magic into a hard science of trial and error and hypotheses and action that makes my little researcher heart happy。 Yet， the magic system is only one star in the constellatio I LOVE physical magic systems。 The more tangible， the better。 Give me gross and fun and squishy hands-on magic: stirring pots and combing devilish ingredients and crawling around on the ground to draw summoning circles。 I struggle with magic that feels ephemeral and theoretical， so it was a delight to see Davinia Evans make magic into a hard science of trial and error and hypotheses and action that makes my little researcher heart happy。 Yet， the magic system is only one star in the constellation that makes this story brilliant。 I’m also a sucker for well-realized fantasy societies， and I loved learning about the hierarchies of the Azatani （the rich and privileged elite）， the hilarious theatrics of the Bravi （Shakespearean gangs of play-fighting dandies）， and even the dirty politics of the dockworkers （a close， clan-like society of criminal fisherman）。 The main characters are well-situated in their respective tribes， but stood out less to me as individuals and more as representative of their respective， memorable communities。 My one disappointment is the world-building of the city of Bezim itself。 For all that the inhabitants of the city and their dynamic were beautifully imagined， I struggled to place myself inside the physical location。 Evans’ writing style is comedic and action-oriented but sometimes fails to linger on descriptions of the city。 Bezim feels faceless: like a person you’ve talked to over the phone and can generally imagine， but not vividly picture in the same way you would a trusted friend。 。。。more
Kortney
，
Do you wish you could transport yourself into other dimensions using a rope and household items？ A sprinkle of this， a dash of that and some wood shavings from a freshly sharpened pencil？ This right here is a good book for you。 This high-fantasy （occurs in a made up world and setting） alchemical romp is a race against time， and planes between the dreamers and the ones who mean to keep order。 And we all know how well that worked for the Empire v Rebels。 Even though the back and forth was a little Do you wish you could transport yourself into other dimensions using a rope and household items？ A sprinkle of this， a dash of that and some wood shavings from a freshly sharpened pencil？ This right here is a good book for you。 This high-fantasy （occurs in a made up world and setting） alchemical romp is a race against time， and planes between the dreamers and the ones who mean to keep order。 And we all know how well that worked for the Empire v Rebels。 Even though the back and forth was a little obnoxious at first， you’ll be able to settle into the characters nicely by the halfway point。 There’s a little romance but it doesn’t completely override the story。 Altogether， 4 stars up for the Notorious Sorcerer。 This review was made possible by access granted to a galley proof by the publisher。 。。。more
theplaguedoctorreads
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TBR。
fatma
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DNF at 35%Going into this book， I was expecting a fun and charming fantasy; what I got instead was okay， but not really compelling enough for me to keep reading。 Notorious Sorcerer moves at such a breakneck speed that there is virtually no time for us to get to know its characters， or for them to actually process the events of the plot。 It felt like every single scene we got had to move the plot forward， which is fine in itself， but there were barely any--or， from what I read， no--scenes that we DNF at 35%Going into this book， I was expecting a fun and charming fantasy; what I got instead was okay， but not really compelling enough for me to keep reading。 Notorious Sorcerer moves at such a breakneck speed that there is virtually no time for us to get to know its characters， or for them to actually process the events of the plot。 It felt like every single scene we got had to move the plot forward， which is fine in itself， but there were barely any--or， from what I read， no--scenes that were just about the characters: how they were feeling， their dynamics with each other。 Those two things are not mutually exclusive--scenes can help progress both plot and character--but I didn't find that to be the case with this novel。 Also， I'd heard a lot about how funny and fun Notorious Sorcerer was， and while I definitely wouldn't say it's a dour book， there also wasn't anything about it that was tonally exceptional。Thanks so much to Orbit for providing me with an eARC of this via NetGalley！ 。。。more
Olivia Atwater
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A brilliant alchemical recipe！ Notorious Sorcerer is a delicious melange of my favourite things， remixing historical magic with class consciousness。 I couldn’t put it down。I should start this review by saying that I am one hundred percent this book's intended audience， and if you are another would-be reader， you must measure your love next to mine with the following questions:- Are you currently， or have you ever been， moderately obsessed with medieval alchemy？- Do you enjoy watching arrogant up A brilliant alchemical recipe！ Notorious Sorcerer is a delicious melange of my favourite things， remixing historical magic with class consciousness。 I couldn’t put it down。I should start this review by saying that I am one hundred percent this book's intended audience， and if you are another would-be reader， you must measure your love next to mine with the following questions:- Are you currently， or have you ever been， moderately obsessed with medieval alchemy？- Do you enjoy watching arrogant upper-class magicians make total fools of themselves？- Are rooftop parkour and sword fights in the street kind of your thing？- Do you like a dash of scathing class consciousness in your fantasy？Fantastic！ Have I got a book for you。Notorious Sorcerer primarily follows Siyon Velo， a young man from the roof-running， street-fighting bravi。 Siyon regularly goes diving into other planes of existence in order to gather alchemical ingredients for the upper-class alchemists of Bezim， collecting intangible things like duty， conscience， or wrath for their experiments。 Siyon has dreams of becoming a respected alchemist himself， despite the fact that it's basically illegal for all but the city's nobility， who ignore the laws against alchemy with impunity。 When Siyon accidentally pulls off an impossible feat of alchemy in public， however， he's dragged into the sort of events which bring down cities， laws， and even entire planes of existence。The beginning of Notorious Sorcerer was a bit of a difficult learning curve， with lots of concepts to absorb all at once， but it held my attention well despite throwing several fantastical concepts at me。 I got my head around the setting by chapter two， at which point I didn't stop reading until I had finished （full disclosure: the sun came up， and I just kept going）。 The book had a bit of a romance between Siyon and one of the city's nobles， but I wouldn't call it the main draw: most of the story was focussed on the alchemy， the politics between alchemists， inquisitors， and the lower-class people caught between them， and a few fascinating jaunts into other planes of existence。 For the alchemy geeks among us: by the end of the book， the Great Work is。。。 well， if not finished， then at least well started， and the element of Earth is given its proper due。I honestly feel the book wrapped up quite well as it is， though I know there's meant to be a sequel。 There were a few interesting avenues for expansion left as hints， but I suspect that even readers who prefer self-contained novels will enjoy this one。 It's nice to feel both a solid sense of closure and a hint of interest as to what comes next。 。。。more
Katie
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Notorious Sorcerer has one of the most unique magic systems I've seen in a while， with a not-quite portal fantasy element when Siyon goes ingredient harvesting in other planes and an intricate， if not fully explained， system between the different planes and how they interact with Siyon's world。 The novel is extremely fast-paced， and I felt that some of the character work suffered for it。 There was a degree of disconnect between Siyon and everyone else where I felt the motivations never truly fel Notorious Sorcerer has one of the most unique magic systems I've seen in a while， with a not-quite portal fantasy element when Siyon goes ingredient harvesting in other planes and an intricate， if not fully explained， system between the different planes and how they interact with Siyon's world。 The novel is extremely fast-paced， and I felt that some of the character work suffered for it。 There was a degree of disconnect between Siyon and everyone else where I felt the motivations never truly felt fully justified。 I also wish we could have dived more into city's history and the academia aspect， especially since I never felt like I really understood what the law's definition of magic vs alchemy was。 Luckily， it seems we will be diving much more into the city's history in the sequel！ Overall， I rate this book a 3。5/5。__3。5/5A gripping fantasy novel with a unique magic system！ Not quite portal fantasy but most of the elements are there。 I wish the worldbuilding was just a little stronger， felt like there was a bit of disconnect and some of the city's history could have been expanded more。 Hoping to learn more in book 2！ 。。。more
Elizabeth Morgan
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Full disclosure: I've known the author for a bajillion internet years （this is an actual measurement of time） and she sent me an ARC。I can't even tell you how fun this was - cosy tropes encased in beautiful language and FEELS， because obviously。 Mage from the slums who can do 'impossible' things， because he hasn't been taught they're impossible。 Should-be debutante who instead hangs out with the lower classes and gets her eyes opened to social and class injustice。 A fight against prejudice and a Full disclosure: I've known the author for a bajillion internet years （this is an actual measurement of time） and she sent me an ARC。I can't even tell you how fun this was - cosy tropes encased in beautiful language and FEELS， because obviously。 Mage from the slums who can do 'impossible' things， because he hasn't been taught they're impossible。 Should-be debutante who instead hangs out with the lower classes and gets her eyes opened to social and class injustice。 A fight against prejudice and authoritarianism。BUT ALSO， inter- and extra-planar shenanigans， a cracking pace， a delicious romance （FEELS）， and a sidekick I did not see coming。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Notorious Sorcerer
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Notorious Sorcerer&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Notorious Sorcerer&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0