Cunningham’s new Forgotten Realms series is based on Halruaa which is ruled by wizards. The blurb on Amazon has some mistakes: Matteo hasn’t got any magical abilities. He’s the main character and he’s a jordain, a person who has been specifically bred to be immune to magic so that he can be a counselor to mages and rulers. Even though they have been thoroughly trained for their task, they know next to nothing of live outside their monastery. They don’t lie, they can’t gather wealth and they fight like monks. The Magehounds are inquisitors whose job it is to keep everyone in line including the jordain.

The second main character is Tzigone, a young woman who is on the run from the wizards. She was born out of wedlock which is very rare in Halruaa because of the tight laws. She is used to running all the time and she gets along with all kinds of people. Occasionally, she dresses as a boy when she performs in the taverns. 

The main villain in the book is the Magehound Kiva who is trying to get the jordains to work for her. Her loyal partner is Mbatu who is a wemic, a creature who is half lion and half man. 

Cunningham paints a vivid picture with Halruaa which isn’t a very familiar place to most readers. The plot centers on political plotting and character interactions but there are some fights, too, especially in the latter third of the book.

 An interesting new series. Cunningham familiarizes the characters quickly and the setting is quite different from the usual Forgotten Realms fare.