ik verwachtte een slap aftreksel van Harry Potter, maar dit is toch echt weer wat anders. Leuk boek, beetje kostschoolboek in magische wereld, maar dan ook echt een andere wereld, die niets te maken heeft met de onze. Dat is een van de grote verschillen met Potter, evenals het gebrek aan humor (wat geen gebrek van het boek is overigens, het is gewoon een totaal ander soort boek). Fijn boek voor tussendoor, wel een yaffie. ( )

Read this book ages ago and for life of me, could not remember the title until I stumbled upon it in the library a few days ago.

Tris is a witch who enrolls in a school for sorcery (like the title states) and quickly begins learning about her own abilities, despite boring ethics classes and a catty roommate.

However, two power-hungry students soon manage to summon demons from another world who steals Tris's beloved. They mock her and then propsse a challenge to her to get him back with her own power. The headmistress tells her to undergo the challenge to bring them back. This is one point that bothers me. It does not make sense that the staff could not stop these idiotic power-hungry students. I call this a plot hole deliberately created to give Tris and her friends an plot point.

The middle drags, but I can suffer through it because I love the ending. Seriously, one of the best endings I've seen in a book.

Three stars because I loved this book when I was little and it has a really memorable ending. ( )

Read this book ages ago and for life of me, could not remember the title until I stumbled upon it in the library a few days ago.

Tris is a witch who enrolls in a school for sorcery (like the title states) and quickly begins learning about her own abilities, despite boring ethics classes and a catty roommate.

However, two power-hungry students soon manage to summon demons from another world who steals Tris's beloved. They mock her and then propsse a challenge to her to get him back with her own power. The headmistress tells her to undergo the challenge to bring them back. This is one point that bothers me. It does not make sense that the staff could not stop these idiotic power-hungry students. I call this a plot hole deliberately created to give Tris and her friends an plot point.

The middle drags, but I can suffer through it because I love the ending. Seriously, one of the best endings I've seen in a book.

Three stars because I loved this book when I was little and it has a really memorable ending. ( )

I was enjoying it at first. The world was a little ill-defined, but I'm a sucker for school stories. However, then it got sort of woo-woo and murky and muddled. She's supposed to learn how to use magic, not from her classes, not from her teachers, not even from the guidance of her teachers, or even from books. She's just sort of.. supposed to... figure it out on her own.. somehow.

A few chapters in, I had pulled the next book from the library shelf and checked it out, assuming I'd want to read it. Near the end, I definitely didn't want to read the next one. At the end, well, if it's about an entirely different character and situation, maybe? Maybe.

Not like I don't have 100 other books to read.

* 100 is an exaggeration. I have way way way more than that. ( )

Just my thoughts as reading:

Tria is as judgmental as Zoey and as stupid as Clary.

She causes the problems, relies on everyone else to provide the impetus for the solution--though Tria herself has to actually take action at least, since she's the only one with any power.

Tria does not suffer enough for the consequences of what she does.

The characterization is overwhelmingly shallow.

The worldbuilding fails

All of this is primarily tied to the fact it's mostly telling vs. showing.

I'll try to come up with a more coherent review later, but sometimes it just made me angry.

On the other hand, the concept is okay, and the actual execution of the jumping through mirrors, etc, actually worked pretty well. It just hadn't been set up in the story. The tone is uneven and the plot isn't built. ( )