Here is the promotional poster for Tom Thorneval. I feel it captures to mood well enough, with Tom facing away from the light that is spilling out of the storyworld behind him.

There is a bit of light magic that Tom is yet to discover and doesn't even believe exists. Much of the story concerns the paths Tom takes to discover that magic, with a special plot device that even allows readers to send Tom down a path to discover the identity of his nemesis, or down another so that both reader and he carry on the story unaware of the real trouble maker behind all his woes.