Rielle Lazuli: Millennium's Rule by Trudi Canavan

Millennium's Rule by Trudi Canavan:
1. Thief's Magic.
2. Angel of Storms. (2015)
3. Successor's Son. (2016)

Strength Rating: 3
Recommended: 5

Rielle Lazuli lives in a land ruled by priests. They believe that magic comes from the Angels. Anyone other than a priest using magic is immediately arrested for stealing from the Angels. Because using magic causes a stain in the air visible to those who are magical, the tainted are usually caught quickly. Rielle has been able to see stain her whole life. As this means she has magic potential her aunt tells her to keep it secret. They don't know what the priest do to those who can see it.

Tyen Ironsmelter is a student of archeology and sorcery at the Academy. He is on an expedition when he finds a tomb he has been researching. Students often pay their way at the Academy by bringing back artifacts found on digs. Tyen is somewhat disappointed when the only thing he finds is a book. Until he opens it. The book was once a woman named Vella - a powerful sorcerer in her time who was turned into the book against her will. She stores all of the knowledge of everyone who has ever held her.

Tyen knows he has to turn the book over but wants to make sure Vella is not put in a storage vault or destroyed for her outdated magical knowledge - there has been an industrial revolution of sorts since she was put in a tomb. But if Tyen is caught with Vella he will be branded a thief and kicked out of the Academy.

Sonea: Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan

Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan:
1. The Magicians' Guild.
2. The Novice.
3. The High Lord.

Strength Rating: 5
Recommend: 5

In a world where magic is controlled - both for the safety of society and of the magician - is has been centuries since someone came upon magic on their own. Usually a magician will check a child for magical potential and then release his or her magic. And this only happens to children within the Houses, the upper parts of society.

Each Winter the king orders the Purge of the city where city guards and the magicians' guild moves the homeless and lowest classes out of the city walls. There is a huge city outside of the walls at this point, but it is has none of the luxuries of the city like running water, sewage systems, etc... So people move back into the city to find work each Spring.

The last hold out is always a square near the city gate. The magicians form a protective barrier and slowly push people toward the gate. Each year there are street kids to throw rocks at the magicians in protest, but they just bounce off of the shield. This year, when Sonea hears a rude comment one of the magicians makes about people like her, she throws a rock herself. She hopes with all of her being that the rock passes through the barrier. And it does.

Now the magicians are looking for her. They say they are trying to help her control her magic, but the lower classes have never seen the magicians do anything good for them. If the Thieves will help hide her in the underground tunnels she may have a chance - unless her magic gets too strong for her to control without training.