This is probably the third time I've decided to reread through the Circle of Magic quartet in the hopes that I'll enjoy it more, but I don't think I ever will. I quite enjoy the overall premise of the story, the kids with strange magical abilities become magically bonded and have to figure things out with their teachers, and I enjoy the characters themselves (both the four main characters and their teachers), but I always struggle through.

Particularly with this first book, it feels like there's so much set up without much happening. The kids don't actually figure out they have magic until about 200 pages into this 250 page book. It's mostly how they came to find themselves at the temple community (Niko brought them all) and introducing the characters to each other. There's a little bit of plot revolving around the earthquake, but not a whole lot. It just bores me.

Which isn't to say it's bad. It's three stars, it's fine. I probably would have liked it better had I read it as a child, but it always feels lacking to me. I want more character development and more development of their magic. It feels like there's a lot that could be explored and just isn't.

I've also always been a bit irritated that Sandry got cheated out of her own book in this initial quartet. This book feels almost equal in terms of POV and importance to the story, while the rest of the books focus on each individual character much more. I like Sandry quite a bit and wish she'd gotten more than a shared book.

I don't dislike this book. I think there are a lot of positives in this series overall, but I can't really bring myself to care about this one, or even much of the first quartet. It bores me a bit and it took me a couple days to read despite being so quick and short.