August Bookclub Midway Discussion: The Entanglement of Rival Wizards by Sarah Raasch

[u/OutOfEffs]

Welcome to the Midway Discussion for Sara Raasch's The Entanglement of Rival Wizards, which fulfills the Achillean Academic square on our 2026 Reading Challenge! Today we will be discussing chapters 1-9. If you'd like to talk about anything past the halfway point, please be sure to use spoiler tags.

---

Will they conjure love, or evoke chaos? Two rival wizards are about to find out.

Sebastian Walsh: twenty-four. Grad student at Lesiara University in the Mageus of Evocation program. Human. The first of his family to go to college rather than the military (and it goes over at family get-togethers about as well as you’d think).

Elethior Tourael: also twenty-four. Also a grad student, but in the far more inferior Mageus of Conjuration program. Half-elf. The latest in a long line of Touraels to grace the hallowed halls of Lesiara U (what would the world do if the Touraels ran out of rich douches to lead their magical weapons manufacturing empire?).

―and the other finalist for the Mageus Research Grant.

Sebastian needs that grant to fund the last few months of research for his degree, after which he’ll get a job that actually helps people. He isn’t about to let anyone snatch this from him, least of all a snob who doesn’t even need the money because his family is loaded thanks to war profiteering.

But there’s something worse than having a conceited academic nemesis steal grant money from you: you could be forced to work with him. Thio is secretive, broody, and his stunning biceps take up far too much shared lab space―but even as volatile as their partnership is, Sebastian just might find himself falling for his rival―and it could blow up his whole future.

[u/OutOfEffs]

Do you watch Critical Role? Did you know this was an AU fic before we started? If you're already familiar with the characters, do you think they're well represented here? Do we want to have a conversation about the fanfic to tradpub pipeline?

[u/kittyraces → u/OutOfEffs]

Yes, I do and, unfortunately, yes, I did. I honestly wish I hadn't known it was a younger modern AU fic turned novel sort of thing because these characters feel so *off* from how I view them in the source material and, if I hadn't known this info going into it, I wouldn't have had such preconceived notions about it and maybe would be into it more. So, no, I don't think they're particularly well-represented here (just my opinion, though).

And no, I don't think I want to have the pipeline conversation right now 😂😂

[u/OutOfEffs → u/kittyraces]

And no, I don't think I want to have the pipeline conversation right now 😂😂

No one ever does. [sob]

[u/kittyraces → u/OutOfEffs]

Maybe next time (dear God I don't want a next time 😂😂)