Stop me if you've heard this one before: Pre-teen boy, blessed or burdened with abilities beyond those of the ordinary humans among whom he lives, enrolls in an ancient institution that is part school, part cloister, and part fortress, where over almost a decade he learns traditions that are thousands of years old, studies the arcane lore of his chosen field, and develops the unusual faculties that set him apart from the people outside his school's walls. Though he is a less-talented student than many of his friends, he is somehow annointed, to the chagrin of some of his more capable peers, as a key figure in the fight against a shadowy enemy that threatens not just his school, but the entire world. With some misgivings, much luck, and no particularly spectacular insight, and with the help of his friends -- including a know-it-all fellow student, a band of trained fighters, a surrogate father later killed by the enemy, and a wizened mystic who sacrifices himself -- he manages to defeat the threat and find love along the way. It's a fun read, even if the author needs an editor who will trim unnecessary detours and lengthy digressions into esoterica that appeal only to the author's more obsessive fans.
That book, of course, is
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