The Innocent Mage by Karen Miller
Kingmaker Kingbreaker #1
Enter the kingdom of Lur, where to use magic unlawfully means death. The Doranen have ruled Lur with magic since arriving as refugees centuries ago. Theirs was a desperate flight to escape the wrath of a powerful mage who started a bitter war in their homeland. To keep Lur safe, the native Olken inhabitants agreed to abandon their own magic. Magic is now forbidden them, and any who break this law are executed.
Asher left his coastal village to make his fortune. Employed in the royal stables, he soon finds himself befriended by Prince Gar and given more money and power than he'd ever dreamed possible. But the Olken have a secret; a prophecy. The Innocent Mage will save Lur from destruction and members of The Circle have dedicated themselves to preserving Olken magic until this day arrives. Unbeknownst to Asher, he has been watched closely. As the Final Days approach, his life takes a new and unexpected turn ...
The Innocent Mage was one of those books I'd heard a bit about over a long space of time, but never anything specific or anything that would make me move it to the top of my TBR list. Eventually though, while glancing through the list and ordering books home through the library web page (that'd be bibliotek.dk if there's any Dane reading this, who doesn't know that) I decided to give the books a go.
It's not half bad. It didn't catch me and hold me tight (ever) but it was well written and the characters fleshed out and sympathetic. It took me over half a book to realise that not much actually happens for over half a book other than relationship and character building. The big overshadowing plot has barely kicked off when the book ends - and with quite the cliffhanger. However rather than being a usual fantasy trilogy, the Kingmaker Kingbreaker series only holds two books and the second book The Awakened Mage was published in 2006, so you don't have to wait long to read on.
Main character Asher is an atypical main. He's no hero, nothing special in particular, just a plain man who does what's right. And who happens to befriend a prince, which would change any man's life. Even more atypically - the overshadowing plot, which I won't reveal here - some characters know about it, but Asher isn't one of them.
All in all it's a good read and I will definitely read the next, but I'm in no hurry. I'm not at the edge of my seat in anticipation, but I enjoy being well entertained by something that's obviously been thought through.
Asher left his coastal village to make his fortune. Employed in the royal stables, he soon finds himself befriended by Prince Gar and given more money and power than he'd ever dreamed possible. But the Olken have a secret; a prophecy. The Innocent Mage will save Lur from destruction and members of The Circle have dedicated themselves to preserving Olken magic until this day arrives. Unbeknownst to Asher, he has been watched closely. As the Final Days approach, his life takes a new and unexpected turn ...
The Innocent Mage was one of those books I'd heard a bit about over a long space of time, but never anything specific or anything that would make me move it to the top of my TBR list. Eventually though, while glancing through the list and ordering books home through the library web page (that'd be bibliotek.dk if there's any Dane reading this, who doesn't know that) I decided to give the books a go.
It's not half bad. It didn't catch me and hold me tight (ever) but it was well written and the characters fleshed out and sympathetic. It took me over half a book to realise that not much actually happens for over half a book other than relationship and character building. The big overshadowing plot has barely kicked off when the book ends - and with quite the cliffhanger. However rather than being a usual fantasy trilogy, the Kingmaker Kingbreaker series only holds two books and the second book The Awakened Mage was published in 2006, so you don't have to wait long to read on.
Main character Asher is an atypical main. He's no hero, nothing special in particular, just a plain man who does what's right. And who happens to befriend a prince, which would change any man's life. Even more atypically - the overshadowing plot, which I won't reveal here - some characters know about it, but Asher isn't one of them.
All in all it's a good read and I will definitely read the next, but I'm in no hurry. I'm not at the edge of my seat in anticipation, but I enjoy being well entertained by something that's obviously been thought through.
| The Innocent Mage ISBN13: 9781841496047 613 pages / published in 2005 |
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| Review by Iben Jakobsen, BoB, 2013 | |
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