The Hound of Rowan: The Tapestry, Book 1 (by Henry H. Neff)

While the characters could be more clearly delineated, the setting and set-ups are vivid and fascinating. The author takes the time to explore the school: the bedrooms that change to suit their occupants; the Sanctuary, wherein live magical creatures, sometimes the last of their kinds, that the students are assigned to care for and bond with; and the Smithy, where the students undergo combat training in holodeck-like simulations of increasing difficulty. One could spend a great deal of time finding both favorable and unfavorable comparisons between the Tapestry and Harry Potter series, but it's a pointless exercise: on its own merits, this is an exciting and clever story, and a promising debut of both a new author and a new fantasy series.