Disclaimer: You need to finish reading the set first before reading this review because there’s gonna be spoiler here and there. I don’t want to ruin your reading experience, so come back after finish reading the set.
I have finished The School for Good and Evil series and the Handbook. The series was fun! It’s like being in the school and having an adventure together with Evers and Nevers. The school’s vibe is like Harry Potter, yet it owns different kinds of magic. The school only has two housings instead of four, Good or Evil. The mechanism to determine which housing the new student belongs to also differ.
I’m a little bit surprised when Chainani wrote a prequel set to TSGE series. I mean, the sequel of TSGE itself is fine, though they’re not as vivid and solid as the first book of the whole series. The books are great, but the first one without a doubt tops them all. I don’t really have high hopes on the prequel set, though there might be some things that answer the teeny-tiny unexplained history of some characters.
After I read both novels, I can say Rafal is my favorite character. When I say Rafal, I’m referring to the actual Rafal in the prequel set, not the ‘Rafal’ in TSGE series. Since they started to exist, the Pen only said one of them was Evil and the other was Good. However, it was actually not stated who was who. Just one Evil and one Good. Growing up, the twin just accepted that Rafal was Evil and Rhian was Good. They stayed faithful to each other until things started to come in the way.
Though Rafal looked like Jack Frost and rule Evil school, he actually was Good inside. Rhian was the opposite. From the description, Rafal’s magic was nurturing and he was the one who always helped Rhian whenever he got into trouble. Rhian’s magic was unpredictable. It’s as if it lived on its own. Rhian ruled Good, but he often created bad decision, always jealous and prejudiced towards Rafal.
I had a heartbreak when Rafal died and Rhian took over Rafal’s appearance to fulfill the Pen’s prophecy of the One School Master ruling over both school. He then called himself ‘The School Master’, but I call him “Rafal”. At the same time, I felt I could relate to the twins. I have an identical twin sister. I’m sure I’m not the only one who sometimes get a gut feeling that one of us become the spotlight and the other becomes the shadow and it can cause inner jealousy. After I read the duology, I came into realization. Perhaps I was Rhian with Rafal’s skin all this time.
Okay, back to the story. Personally, the vibe of the duology isn’t as strong as TSGE. It’s still fun and answers why the schools are the way they are in TSGE, but I’ve lived with TSGE. The vividness of TSGE wins over this duology. My rating is 4 out of 5. I’ll recommend this duology anyway.