Rested in bed with Bran Hambric. There's a lot of magic in this book, but I'm already on page 246, past halfway of the entire novel, and the secret of Bran Hambric hasn't been revealed yet--either to me or to Bran Hambric himself. As a result, the protagonist is unable to take any action whatsoever, and this makes very boring reading.

Also wondering why Harry Potter, Charlie Bone, and Bran Hambric have to share similar, if not identical, situations: living in a house with abusive relatives, dealing with bullies, experiencing terrible loneliness and alone-ness, and not understanding their magical abilities--as though they can't understand their own sexuality. Have their authors never met NORMAL mages before?