Finished
the first book in the "Royal Institute of Magic" series.The first book, "Elizabeth's Legacy", introduces us to a world where our countries coexist alongside magical kingdoms in secret. In a magical world that's rustic yet modern, goblins wear jeans, Starbucks makes its famed coffee drinks and dodo sandwiches with only magic, dragon-pulled trains depart and dock in underground facilities (a la London's Underground) and soar through the air, and magic is bought and sold alongside dodo sandwiches from Starbucks and high-end designer jeans.
While it appears on the surface to be another attempt at being the next Harry Potter, we soon discover that this is more than just a "hidden magical world" tropes of Harry Potter or its ancestor The Worst Witch. Like J.K. Rowling's famed series, the normal world remains (mostly) oblivious to the existence of magic, until a young man finds out that magic is real and hidden away from our eyes.
Ben Greenwood, the book's main character, does seem like he's cut from the same cloth as Rowling's legendary "Boy Who Lived", much like how his friend Charlie and their R.I.M. guide/new friend Natalie seem to fill similar roles to Ron and Hermione. Years after his parents' disappearance, Ben soon discovers a secret kept from his parents, and finds himself riding a dragon-pulled train to the titular Royal Institute of Magic, established by Queen Elizabeth I as a means of keeping an invading kingdom of dark elves in check while uniting the other Unseen Kingdoms.
Personally, I could totally see this getting an adaptation, either as a motion picture to compete with superhero epics and the latest teen lit adaptation du jour, an original series on Amazon Video or Hulu or Netflix, or even airing on a television network like the BBC alongside our favorite Time Lord.
A perfect way to start my New Years' Resolution to read a new book every month (I don't HAVE TO start or finish it in a month, but basically 12 books by the end of the year), which only includes books I haven't read before and excludes books I've started before the New Years Day.
I had some money in my Amazon wallet so I went ahead and snagged the second book, which is $3.99, as opposed to the first book which sells for 99 cents.
Sadly, the author Victor Kloss passed away back in 2016, with the final novel released posthumous a year later.