Title: Blaze of Glory

Author: Michael Pryor

Genre: Fantasy, politics

Blurb: Aubrey Fitzwilliam is the son of a prominent ex-prime minister. He's also brilliant at magic, but he's stuck at boarding school. At least he has his best friend, George, there to back him up. George would follow Aubrey anywhere - and with Aubrey's talent for thinking up daring schemes that will get them both into trouble, that's no easy thing to do.

At a weekend shooting party at Prince Albert's country estate, the boys find themselves in a hotbed of political intrigue. They discover a golem, a magical creature built to perform one task: to kill Prince Albert. Aubrey and George are hailed as heroes for foiling the attempt on the prince's' life - but who sent the golem, and why? Aubrey is far too curious to let the authorities handle this one, and he and George start investigating ...

Opinion: I picked this one up randomly and I liked it straight away. For one thing, the first line is extremely eye-catching: "Aubrey Fitzwilliam hated being dead. it made things much harder than they needed to be." Of course, being insanely curious the way I am, I had to keep on reading. If Aubrey was dead, why is he still telling the story? Is he even the protagonist?

That was a very clever opening line. As I read on, I find out the secret of Aubrey's apparent 'death', and over time, I came to like the guy. He's got guts and a brain, and Aubrey doesn't sound too bad a name either. Magic and political conflicts are woven into this novel and makes it one very exciting read. Reading this will keep you on your toes and hopefully, you'll come to love this book as I did. Magic is in a completely different world here, and more than just swishing a wand and saying a magic word.

Having the word 'investigating' in the blurb also makes it a mystery of sorts, and I absolutely love enthralling mysteries. This is something you should read if you haven't already.

Rating: 5 out of 5!