Kingbreaker Book 1, The Innocent Mage: Kingmaker

The fantasy genre can be divided into three categories. 1 - Books that strive to be realistic, gritty, and different than anything else in the genre. 2 - Books that pile cliche upon cliche and are poorly executed 3 - Books that are standard fiction fare but basically enjoyable.

This tale easily falls into the third category. Strengths and weaknesses aside, few would argue that this story covers any new ground. The magic system is nothing new, the society segregated by race, the focus on the peasant boy who develops a relationship with royalty, the evil lord lurking on the other side of a magic wall...all straight out of the Grande Repository of Standard Fantasy Fare.

However, take it from one who knows, the fantasy bookshelves are filled with many, many books that fail to get wrong what Ms. Miller gets right.

The vernacular of the fishing folk, exemplified by the protagonist Asher, is quite good - and Ms. Miller succeeds in not tripping over a tricky dialect. Throughout, she is consistent, and makes what is virtually a different language come across as perfectly genuine. It is no mean feat to speak in a made-up tongue with all the conviction and sensibility one possesses in one's own tongue. Admittedly a little challenging to accomodate at first, it ultimately is one of the more successful and endearing qualities to the tale.

The character, Asher, is equally endearing. He may be a stock peasant boy, but the wit and character he is engendered with is Ms. Miller's own. I would also offer Kudos to Ms. Miller for effectively reflecting his character development in his language and behavior.

Few of the other characters in the book are as fully developed as real human beings. She does not, for example, create characters with the sorts of foibles and flaws you'll find in books like Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself. She does do a better job that others, however, and if her characters aren't all fully 3 dimensional, at least their language indicates enough intellectual presence behind each fictional mind to allow the suspension of disbelief required to enjoy any fantasy fare. Dialogue is one of Ms. Miller's strenghts.

Ms. Miller's prose is more than competent. She avoids the sort of florid claptrap and pretention so often embraced by fantasy authors who - as though they must compensate for the presumed lack of dignity in the genre by using ten dollar words when a nickel might have been better spent. This is a characteristic I appreciate and so too should readers that like to enjoy a story without the need to keep the OED by their side.

The overall plot isn't new. Largely, what you assume is going to happen will - but exactly how you might not guess, and you may yet miss some of the bigger pieces of the puzzle if you don't read all the way through. Ms. Miller isn't without a few tricks up her sleeve - enough to keep you guessing. She uses a simple device very early enough in the book to let you know a train wreck is coming. Sometimes this backfires. Here, I think it works because she retains just enough ambiguity about what might happen and creates likeable enough characters to make you care - once I got reading I didn't stop until I hit the final page.

Yes, cliffhanger it ends. Ms. Miller might even be laughing a little at our expense at how literally a cliffhanger it is.

You could call this book a good beach read, or a light genre snack for a slow afternoon. So be it. Pulitzer winning it's not, but workmanline it is, with sufficient craft that too many stones shouldn't be thrown Ms. Miller's way. I always feel grateful to authors that let me slip the surly bonds of reality for a few hours and enjoy a good ride with new characters and a new setting.

This book was such.

The youngest son of a fisherman twenty years old Asher dreams of being much more than someone without a room of his own. Asher does not look down at his father's vocation that has provided him with food and shelter; he just thinks he can make a fortune so he can buy his own fishing fleet if he takes the risk of sneaking away from home and traveling to Dorana, the capital of the Kingdom of Lur.

However, he arrives at a time of unrest as the native Olken populace object to the strict rule of the warrior mages who control the use of magic by executing anyone without their permission who yields it. Asher finds work, but is unaware that the preservers of the ancient magic, the Circle have been expecting him having seen him in a vision. He may have come to earn the money to purchase a fleet, but the first stage of an ancient prophecy has begun with his appearance; for the Circle believes he is THE INNOCENT MAGE who will turn the order of centuries upside down.

The story line is fast-paced yet filled with twists that will keep the readers' attention throughout, wondering what comes next. The worldbuilding (mostly inside the capital) is cleverly developed by the actions and reactions of the reluctant hero who is awed by the thriving market place, Prince Gar and his retinue and the Circle (especially enjoyed the "deference" by Dathne and Matt to "him" being here). Thus, the first entry of the Kingmaker, Kingbreaker series is driven by the changing relationships between the strong prime characters. Epic fantasy fans will appreciate this deep opening saga and look forward to the conclusion, THE AWAKENED MAGE.

Harriet Klausner

"The Innocent Mage" contains three novelas that occur sequentially. The first novela follows A--, a fisherman who leaves home to make it rich. A-- is delightfully blunt, and his adventures in the "big city" are really enjoyable. 5-stars! The second novela follows A-- and his employer (prince G--) to a festival. A--'s personality seems to all have disappeared, which is an enormous disapointment. The 2nd novela is a slow, borring progression of random events. 2-stars. In the third novela, G-- and his family fall under attack by an ancient enemy. Twists, surprises, and well rounded personalities make for fun reading. The action follows characters that were minor in the previous novelas, with A-- taking a bit-part. This novela ends too abruptly, mid-plot, in a cliffhanger. 3-stars, though I'd have given it 4-stars if this novela had been given an actual ending -- you know, a feeling of "I'm looking forward to the next book, but this book's plot ended, with all of the loose ends tied up".

This book is written from multiple points of view, however unlike 99% of such novels, the author actually (GASP!) does a good job of this! Instead of cobling together disparate plotlines in the same universe, the multi-viewpoints all follow a single, coherent plotline; and these viewpoints interact constantly. If you abhor multi-viewpoint books, give "Innocent Mage" a try anyway.

Overall, this book was enjoyable and worth reading, particularly the first novela. This book may appeal to readers who liked Devlin's Luck (Sword of Change, Book 1) or Forged Without Fire: A Champion for Catlover or The Curse of Chalion.

Karen Miller writes exceptionally good dialogue. The characters' voices are well-crafted, and their interactions and conversations are interesting, despite the conspicuous lack of fight scenes. It is a wonder that a fantasy novel with no actual battles can be this interesting, but that reflects how much conflict there is between and within the characters. The character development is strong, and Miller skillfully incorporates the voices of most of the major characters into the narration at various points. The novel is long, but it's a page-turner. Overall, a good, fun read.

I hate gotcha titles, and after drudging through this book, with for 600+ pages, I was totally disgusted at the end. The book was a long slow read, far worse than any Robert Jordan prose, and given the "small" scope of the universe we are talking about, it was hard getting through it all. I stumbled across the Kingmaker/Kingbreaker books about 5 months ago, and those books really motivated me to get this book, but I was seriously disappointed here. I strongly don't recommend it for anyone, unless you're a diehard Karen Miller fan, otherwise skip it skip it skip it.

I'm currently awaiting the next books in the Safehold series and the final books for the Wheel of Time series, and I stumbled upon this series, more so by the cover art than anything else. The first book was very good, but the ending left much to be desired, and if I had to wait for the second book, I would not have been pleased, but that wasn't the case. Overall, the writing is good, and emotionally, I'm very taken by the characters. The pacing of hte plot is solid, and overall, I'm definitely going to recommend this series, and I've found another writer's who work I can look forward to.

No question that Mrs. Miller is an adept writer. She deftly shifted location, illuminated with gusto all settings catering to practically each sense, created interesting characters while providing an appealing if unoriginal plot.

That said, after the first several hundred pages passed, I found myself waiting for something grander which foreshadowed events disappointingly proved to be unsustainable. It finally occurred to me that her appreciable writing was in fact what was hindering the story! Several episodes involving the royal family and Asher, the grand and winded setup of the initial trip to Justice Hall with Gar presiding and Asher accompanying as witness, excerpts between Dathne and Matt, the Sea Harvest Festival ... these lagged noticibly - structurally they were perfect but they lacked pop, punch. I found myself thinking, "Alright I see where this is headed," midway through section after section. What had propped the storyline up and garnered admiration began bogging it down like a rottening, bottomed-out boat. I counted and what took 640 pages to accomplish in the world of Lur could`ve been told in roughly half that. Unfortunately I began skimming later chapters to get to the meat of events to the detrement of her well applied desriptions.

Better editing would`ve seen this a better read. Perhaps it was too challenging for the editor to cut - dunno. But as the end approached and with it Morg`s marginalized arrival (expected so much more of/from his introduction into the realm) even the blind could seen the writing on the wall involving the horses. Twelve pages to render a good end which became very tedious at the last!

I am delivering 3 stars in the end not because of her profiency but because of the wonderful protagonist, Gar. He proved to be a far more compelling and likable character than Asher - which makes me very concerned for him in the next book.

If you like books where a character speaks with an accent, then this one is for you. Asher is a fisherman and country Olken who moves to the city seeking fortune. There, he is hired as a stable hand by the Magicless Doranen Prince Gar. Gar is the only known Doranen to lack magic, so his job in the kingdom is solving disputes between the Doranen and Olken peoples. Eventually the prince hires Asher to help him in this and the two become good friends.

This is supposedly a two-book series, but is actually one long book that wouldn't physically fit in one book. The end of "innocent mage" just drops off mid scene. There was no building of conflict or closure of any tiny problems, just 400 pages of character building, and then, bam, something happens... and you have to buy the second book to find out who died and who didn't in that one instant of action.

The character building and setup of the situation lasts literally the entire book. But then it continues in the next book for several hundred more pages.

This started off interesting and then died and then picked up again and then died and then picked up and ended. There was nothing going on until page 500 and then at page 550 it sort of died again. I was so bored throughout the first part of the book that it took me weeks to get through it. The characters were the quality of a teenager and the plot was not there until the end of the book when the book just ended. I can't say anything good about the book except that for 50 pages or so at a time I was pretty into the book. After that the book was just plain boring.

This was an enjoyable read but not exceptional in any way. The main character was interesting but at times acted inconsistently and his rapid adaptation to royal society was unrealistic. There are some large plot holes that came apparent during and after the sea harvest festival. One has to do with the use of magic and the other is how this society remained stable for as long as it had.

This was an enjoyable read but not exceptional in any way. The main character was interesting but at times acted inconsistently and his rapid adaptation to royal society was unrealistic. There are some large plot holes that came apparent during and after the sea harvest festival. One has to do with the use of magic and the other is how this society remained stable for as long as it had.

A fantasy story extremely light on the fantasy, a political piece extremely light on the politics, an adventure extremely light on adventure.
Karen Miller offers us a story more or less devoid of an original setting, decidedly sparse in character detail, and deviously unimpressive in wording. Everything is more or less stock fantasy, you've visited better versions of this world already, and with better characters to inhabit them.
It's a fun bedside/beach book at best, and I've managed to finish the duology without too much discomfort, but no part of this story strikes me as inspiring or original.
Rather than draw us through a sequence of events that teach us about the true nature of her characters and this created world, Miller seems content to spell it out for us... bluntly and repeatedly over the course of over a thousand pages. We're given a cast of characters whose intentions are painfully clear to the reader, or, if they are dishonest, excruciatingly elaborated upon to hammer in the fact that they are as such. It's political fantasy without the cleverness and credibility, combined with the pop fantasy aspect, only without the charm and voice. George R. R. Martin meets Terry Brooks, minus the positive aspects of either author.

My rating was based upon the story, but if I were to be entirely honest, this duology would be demoted to a single star for the multitude of typographical errors commited in the final print by Orbit. Among other things, Orbit seems to have a severe issue with its staff understanding the difference between apostrophes and quotations, and in these books they frequently abuse both devices.

One of my favorite series was published by ORBIT, so when I saw the similar cover art, I immediately grabbed this book. Unfortunately I looked up the reviews after buying and was disappointed with how few liked this book. I decided to give it a chance anyway.
It is well written by an author with a large imagination. Like most fantasy series, the first book starts out a little slow and the world can seem large and confusing. Miller slowly emerges the reader into her world, revealing the religion and the history little by little so as not to overwhelm. The characters have their own charm and personalities. (I'll admit that at first I didn't like the main hero, but learned to love him as his personality was better revealed)
Granted the back cover does not give an accurate synopsis of what the book is truly about. While the plot does revolve around Asher and his destiny, there is much more to it.
It was an entertaining read and I will eventually pick up the sequel. I just felt that the poor reviews of the book were unfair. Give it a chance.

Asher is a fisherman's son, the youngest of seven brothers who doesn't have anything but whatever left from their brothers, which is virtually nothing. He runs away from his home hoping to earn some money in the city to come back one year later and buy a boat for his dad and himself. There is indeed a lot of money waiting for him along with a big adventure, big power and the destiny of the whole country in his hands.
It is enjoyable read, make you turn the pages. The reason of cutting 1 star is because the story is a little too slow and much less magic happening than I expect to see in this first book. Lets hope it get better for the second one.

Two words that sum up this book. Slow. Boring. The characters and environment are well thought out, but there is just not enough going on for a fantasy title that includes magic. There are numerous things hinted at, and going on in the background but very little that will hold you in the book.

The only up side to the book i can give is that the series gets better. Each book afterward adds a little more action to spice things up.

I would recommend this book ONLY to people who have excess time and money to get to the others in the series. Otherwise your buying a paper sleeping aid.

I must agree with other reviewers in that the story that Miller is telling isn't altogether original. So, you might ask, why the five stars? Much of fantasy is considered unoriginal because the genre does draw on similar aspects that resonate throughout. This being the case what separates a work of fantasy is not always the storyline, but on how the story is told. This is what Miller has done exceedingly well and the reason I look so highly on this book.

The story flows from beginning to end with not even a hiccup to make the reader snort in derision or shake their head in disbelief. The character interactions are real. The dialogue is real. Everything seems so real, which is a breath of fresh air in a genre that oftentimes glosses over this aspect of writing in order to insert their flare or describe awesome scenes of magic.

Miller has this element present, allowing the reader to immerse themselves in the magic of Lur, but she also weaves a story that allows your emotions to become enveloped and involved. Many a time I was caught up in my emotions as I read about Asher and Gar.

On the flip side the story didn't really go anywhere. You expect at least to see an Innocent Mage, but you are left wondering when that mage will make an appearance. The book also ended abruptly. I was getting to the last 40 pages thinking, okay here comes some action... Then 20 pages and so on. To me it felt as though this book was not intended to be a stand alone book 1 but is rather the first half of a long book, one of which the publisher thought would be better to split into two books.

My reserves aside I am very happy to have accidentally stumbled upon this book and given it a try. I had virtually written off fantasy as being able to produce books that are not parts of long drawn out series and also couldn't make the reader personally involved. Bravo to Miller for showing me that there are some authors still worth reading in fantasy.

5 stars.

I decided to come onto the store to read what others thought of The Innocent Mage. I must say I was extremely surprised by all of the negative criticism. This book was nearly impossible for me to put down, and that does not happen very often. I absolutely loved this book, and am now onto the second, The Awakened Mage.

The character development is indeed outstanding, something which is often missing in modern fiction, with our instant gratification culture. I am quite relieved that this book was not nonstop action from cover to cover. I find that this creates anticipation. We know something is coming, we know Asher cannot be told the truth of things until the very end; by the time you-know-what hits the fan, the reader feels connected to the characters.

This isn't to say there is no conflict. There is, and well before page 400. It just doesn't come in the form of cataclysmic battles.

By the end of the first book, Asher and Gar's world has changed considerably, although not in ways one would expect. I get a sense that the author's message here is, "It's the little things, over time, that add up to make a large impact. We often don't see the conflict coming because the signs are so mundane."

If you are looking for the end of the world to happen on page ten, look elsewhere. For those who are patient, however, and appreciate that the characters of a story are more intriguing that battles, I highly recommend this book to you. It's one of the best I've read in quite some time.

Karen Miller has been getting a lot of good press for her novel The Innocent Mage and its sequel. I haven't read the sequel yet, but it's on the list. Regardless, I understand why she's getting good press. This book is all kinds of awesome. The story is about Asher, a small-time Olken (non-magic) fisherman from the coast who sneaks away from his wicked brothers to the city of Dorana. His hope is to earn enough money to buy him and his father a new ship so they can spend the rest of their lives fishing. When he arrives at Dorana, however, he finds himself in the service of the Prince, quickly moving up the ranks and earning more money than he could have dreamed of.
But not all is well in Dorana. There the Doranens live, a people not all that different from the Olken except that they rule the land with magic. There is a prophecy that an innocent mage will come to save the Kingdom of Lur from the terrors that lie beyond the Wall, a magical barrier that keeps out the evils from six hundred years ago when some Doranen played too loosely with the darker side of magic. Some believe that Asher is this mage and they'll do whatever they can to make sure he fulfills his prophecy, even if it means he won't find out about it until it's too late.
Miller has done something with this story that I didn't think was done effectively in fantasy--tell a story that is an epic tale, but doesn't involve any of the typical tropes of swords and sorcery. Magic is used sparingly, much like Tolkien. The Doranen are hardly ever seen doing it. The King of Lur (Borne) and the Princess (Fane) are probably the only characters that use their magic in any frequency, yet we rarely ever see it. They control the weather magic, which allows the Kingdom of Lur to have almost perfect weather all year round. But we don't get to see this very often, which I find to be a good thing. There is very little of the flashy fireballs and sparkling goodies here (not to say such things are bad, but it's nice to have a non-magic-filled story that doesn't go to the Conan style adventurous warrior stuff). This is a story about politics, personal sacrifice, and personal integrity, told through the eyes of a series of characters that should know a thing or two about it.
There is also no war in this book. There's mention of war, and certainly plenty of talk about a violent past, but the Kingdom of Lur is actually at peace, from a certain point of view. We're presented with a world where social and political pressures are the issues of the day. The intrigue lies in what is going on behind the scenes. Tensions between family and tensions between the Olken and the Doranen are probably the biggest issues from the start and up through until the last quarter of the book, where the breaking of sacred law overrides family tension. Miller has done a fine job building up this world. She's made it feel like a real magical little kingdom, populated by real people with real personalities.
As if that isn't enough praise for the novel, Miller has also done a fantastic job making Asher's accent (a rather interesting one I might add) feel real. She never breaks from character. Asher always speaks the way he's supposed to and it is developed so that it's readable. Accents are notoriously difficult to implement in fiction. You either do it well, or you mess up and the entire book turns to garbage. Miller, obviously, did such a good job that she avoided the garbage bin instantly. I was hooked on Asher as soon as I got to know him. Her characterization, while not perfect, certainly deserves some credit. Fane is every bit the spoiled rich brat that everyone loves to hate. Her selfish, often mean and downright vile behavior had me gritting my teeth hoping someone would just slap some sense into her. Asher is rough around the edges, though a softy inside, and Miller certainly makes sure this gets out. The secondary characters lack some characterization, but with a second book to the series it shouldn't be hard to develop them a little more and give a more fulfilling cast. That's not to say that the cast isn't fulfilling, only to say that some characters feel like there should be a tad bit more, which will be brought up, most likely, in the second book.
The only problems I can see with this novel are a couple of stylistic things and the ending. The Innocent Mage is one half of a duology. The problem with the ending is that we're left with a cliff-hanger, one hell of a cliff-hanger to boot. The story doesn't just end with a simple 'to be continued', but right at the climax of a major event, leaving us to wonder what exactly happened. This doesn't ruin the book, provided you intend to read the second, but it must have been something that Miller mulled over for a while. How exactly could you have ended The Innocent Mage and keep readers interested enough to pick up the next book? Stylistically Miller uses a lot of fragmented sentences rather than using commas. At first they bothered me, but I got used to them.
Still, those flaws are not enough to take away from the fact that this is a wonderful, truly powerful story. I was engaged from page one and all the way until the end, and I look forward to reading the next book.

What Miller has especially done well is create a character in Asher that could be the boy next door. The reader identifies with him, and admires him for his brutal honesty, and unwavering loyalty (all qualities we wish we had in more abundance ourselves). We want to be Asher, and the three-dimensional quality of the character makes us believe we are him and that we too are residents of Lur. None of the characters in this novel are perfect, and Miller has done especially well in making sure we understand that. Each character makes good and bad decisions, even the hero. Such ability to truly round out a character is rare, and Miller does it to perfection, with a slow subtlety, so that it creeps up on the reader.

Some folks will find the plot slow moving, or the lack of "action" dull. But those people who enjoyed the dramatic social interactions of Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell will enjoy this story. As well, those who have enjoyed David Eddings' ability to bring humor from the interaction of family will find The Innocent Mage a fun read. Not since Garion have I enjoyed the farm boy/fisherman comes to power story as much as I enjoyed Asher in The Innocent Mage.

No one who enjoys good fantasy should miss out on this novel, one of the debut novels of Orbit's US release. In particular, those fans of the high fantasy of David Eddings, Robert Jordan, George R. R. Martin, and Terry Brooks should buy this novel and its sequel. Although it lacks some of the grittiness of Jordan or Martin, it does have their appeal, and it captures the humorous nature of Eddings and the creativity of Brooks in a unique blend that readers will find enjoyable. The Innocent Mage will ensure that Karen Miller's name is found in private libraries next other masters of high fantasy.

After 300+ pages, absolutely nothing happens worth mentioning and characters are boring and unlikeable. What is written is as completely far fetched story and dull. I could not bear to waste any more time of my life on this book when there is so much good fantasy out there. Flavor text and synopsis on back cover is very enticing, and it is the only entertaining part of this book. I will never buy a book on impulse again without reading reviews first.

I absolutely LOVED this book! The carachters are indeed real flesh and blood and I found myself getting completely wound up in their stories, dying to find out how things would go. The dialogue is splendid, catchy and fluent and the story moves on, never letting you lose momentum.

As opposed to some other authors I have read lately, Ms Miller does not have a problem with overwriting. Her style is tight and to the point, and the depth and emotion makes everything very real. I was totally caught up, could not put this book down. For me it's a five star without a doubt.

Do get book two right away though, becasue this one ends with a major cliffhanger.

Karen Miller is a popular fantasy author from Australia. Apparently she has written quite a few novel down under but only a few, more recent ones have made past our borders. The Prodigal Mage is the first book in one of her new series and I thought it was quite good.

But I'm not really sure whether or not it was much better than just `quite good'. There are a few things that I really liked, mostly about the writing style, and other things that weren't so exciting.

Here's what I really liked:

- The speech that is used for each character and the development through that speech. This is quite an impressive feat. The story follows a few different characters, but the main ones start out as children and develop into adults by the end of the book. She not only makes this happen through descriptions and good character development, but also by starting the voice of the children appropriately to the age. They mess up sentences, they have a hard time pronouncing everything, and they are meek and compliant to their parents and other adults. As the story develops and they get older, their language grows with them. The childish aspects of how they act and how they think become more and more acute and intelligent. The process by which Karen does this is actually very impressive. High props to her for that.

- The relationship between characters is deep, passionate and real. This book is about family. People may not really catch that as they read through it, but that's an aspect that I picked up right away and it made me happy when I read about those things. Yes, I said happy...for lack of a better, more descriptive word. Of course, this isn't a perfect family and a large part of the story deals with the values of trust that come along with family. Values that might not seem so common to all individuals these days. There are times when we are ready to give up on loved ones, but even through the secrets and the mistakes we tag along on the journey of life and do our best. This was very well depicted in The Prodigal Mage.

-There was never really a villain. I mean sure, there are annoying people and there are taints left from an old villain. But for the longest time, there is no Sauron...no Darth Vader...it's man vs a collapsing world. Even though this might seem at times to take away from the entertaining aspect of the world that Karen has created, I believe that it has set the stage for a different type of character development from what we are use to seeing in other novels of the genre. If you read this book, I think you might agree that it has set a good stage for the upcoming volumes of the series.

A couple downers:

-It is pretty slow. A lot of internal character development in this book and that means that not as much is happening in outer world events. It's a sacrifice she had to make for the characters and I think that in the long run it will pay off. The downside is that you actually need to get through this book to keep interest for the next ones. If her readers are bored with volume one, she might lose potential fans before the second one is out.

-The magical elements of the world she created were really interesting, but she didn't play with them enough. I was hoping she would find ways to put more of the different powers into play, but she never did. That was a bummer and only added to the overall slow pace of the entire work.

The Prodigal Mage is a fun read. It's pretty simple and the language is very well put together. Despite the couple swear words here and there, it is a fairly mild book compared to some of her others, but I'm getting the impression that this will change in the following volumes. I'd recommend this one to anybody who is in the mood for a bit more of a psychological fantasy novel (if there is such a thing)...if you're looking for fights and dragons and wars, you'll have to look somewhere else.

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Very boring. No magic AT ALL. Not much plot. Author faking this genre. Thinly disguised liberal ideology moralizing as plot: the shallow, selfish, materialist race that can do magic has colonized the good, simple working people. Since it is the selfish, upper class, domineering people who do magic, the author doesn't like it or them and has none in the book. the main character and his friend have a nicely written relationship - I guess this the only thing that interests this author, who is trying to cash in on the fantasy genre with no interest or enjoyment of it. I kept waiting for something to happen and finally gave up and stopped reading.

Ten years have passed since the INNOCENT MAGE Asher defeated the evil Morg and the Kingdom of Lur (see The Kingmaker, Kingbreaker duo). The land overall has been peaceful due mostly to Asher who as the AWAKENED MAGE has magical roots with both the Doranen and the Olken. However below the surface calm a hostile racial divide remains between the blond haired immigrant Doranen and the black haired native Olken.

Asher just wants to raise his two children (Rafel and Deenie) with his wife Dathne in peace. Just because he wishes for peace does not mean he will get it as Lur has begun to plot anew plots to conquer its neighbor at a time when something bad seems to be happening to the Olken earth magic. Besides fears for the nation, Asher also worries about his feisty children who are beginning to discover their mage talents. Once again Asher will have to try to save the land from the foolishness of its own people as some of them are trying to infiltrate the "natural" boundaries, which means if successful those kept on the other side also will have passage. However; this time he has his family to help him if he can keep them in line and focus on the bigger issues beyond keeping them safe especially the chip off the old block, THE PRODIGAL MAGE offspring.

The first of a duet, THE PRODIGAL MAGE is an intriguing high fantasy as the quest has not begun though the anticipation of learning what is on the other side of the mountains, etc will fascinate readers. The "Fisherman's Children" story line focuses mostly on Rafel as the title character coming into his own as a mage and the concerns of Asher and Dathne; Deenie's role is more of an observer. Fans of the first saga will enjoy THE PRODIGAL MAGE as the family that practices magic together stays together.

Harriet Klausner

Too much angst between son and parents. It just goes on and on. Also the fight between good and evil is repeated 3 times in almost the exact same way. Sometimes you just don't need to beat the horse to death to get the point across! Other books by this author were great, so maybe she was just in a really bad place when she wrote this.

As many other reviewers have mentioned, the plot line takes far too long to unfold. I read both books and didn't get even a little bit interested until halfway through the second book. By that time, the plot line turns predictable and thus remains boring. The ending is anticlimactic and leaves you wondering why you wasted hours reading the story.

Another problem I have is the dialogue. While she does well differentiating the different styles of dialogue between characters, they all talk like girls. I realize that it was written by a woman, but the feminine tones and word selections bothered me. There were too many instances where I would read a certain piece of dialogue and shake my head because the rough, sea-bred, "manly-man" Asher would say things that could only come from a woman's mouth. I would cite instances, but that would require me to open the book and i'm just not willing to do so again.

Don't pay for this book. If you're bored and searching for something to read before Scott Lynch's "The Republic of Thieves" comes out, go to the library and check it out.

Like another reviewer, I was attracted to this book because of the cover - a really vibrant, eye-catching piece of work. I didn't expect too much out of the story itself; at most, maybe a day or three of mild entertainment. I'm glad to say that I was wrong.

Most of the characters of _The Innocent Mage_ are very well-developed and complement each other nicely. Especially great was the relationship and interaction between Asher and Prince Gar - Miller really got across in a plausible and enjoyable way how a bond of friendship might form between two vastly different men from totally different ends of the social spectrum.

I found the chapters told from Asher's point of view very amusing and especially entertaining. His dialect, no-nonsense attitude, and sarcastic humor were a joy to read.

However. The plot was a bit... shallow. I scarcely noticed while I was reading since the characterizations were so amazing, but after I got done reading I sat back and thought, "Y'know, there wasn't really too much that happened, except in the last 80 or so pages..." It would have been nice to see some more back-story on exactly how and why the Doranen came to be in Lur, apart from "Oh, there was a civil war and we had to run and found this shiny new kingdom here."

The main villain of the story, Morg, is another disappointment, at least in this first book. He's a caricature of the stock Dark Lord, complete with Dark Dominion, Other-Worldly Slaves and Assorted Monsters, and Unending Hatred of the Good Guys. I will say that he was a sneaky evil, rather than an over-the-top evil, which was a nice change.

If the characters hadn't been so strong, this would have been a three-star or possibly only a two-star book. But Asher and his friends and enemies were great, the plot as set up in the last few chapters looks set to take off like a rocket in the second and final book, and Miller's style of writing is just so accessible that I've got to give this four stars.

Best of all, it seems book two is being released next month, so I don't have to wait years to finish the story.

This book was kind of your stereotypical fantasy novell, but missing depth. I didn't really get a good depiction of the land and the country. The concept of Barls wall and the battle between Barl and Morg was kind of boring. I really liked the charecters of Asher and Gar. They were funny well written, but didn't have a strong story line to back them up. This author does have a great sense of comedy and I appreciated that during my read. Although somewhat lacking, the innocent mage series is a fun and easy read, but definetely not one of the classics.

Inexplicably, this book is selling like hotcakes. Given the flood of great, modern fantasy currently hitting the shelves, I find this both perplexing and depressing.

Our hero's childhood as a fisherman proves the gateway to court etiquette, public speaking, an instinctive knowledge of the justice system, javelin-throwing and, ironically, horseback riding (two chapters after the sequence above, Miller points out that Asher was actually pretty bad with horses - at least, until he put his bait-hooking mind to it).

Appropriately, the only skill that Asher has yet to learn through the successful application of his fishing talents is the practice of magic. That, however, is more to do with the fact that Asher has nothing at all to do with magic in this book. Presumably, in the sequel, The Awakened Mage, Asher learns that moving things with his mind really isn't all that different from tieing a half-hitch.

Asher is surrounded by a cast of characters that run the gamut of high fantasy stereotypes. Upon his arrival in the Big City (presumably hoping to convert his mastery of the maritime world into something more profitable, like hedge fund management), Asher immediately befriends the Royal Outcast Who Can't Inherit and the Stableman With a Heart of Gold. These two help keep Asher on the straight and narrow (of plot progression) - between a cryptic and uninteresting Prophecy and Asher's handy use of fishing to solve local political problems - our young hero is clearly destined for greatness.

A third friend, Dathne, has flaws uniquely her own. Confusingly, as everything in this book pretty much rolls on the treadmill of plot, she initially avoids the pitfalls of stereotype. (Although Bookseller that Secretly Practices Forbidden But Benevolent Magic isn't really pushing any creative boundaries.) However, as the book progresses, her role becomes clear. Conflicted outsider, escaping to books? Burden to bear? The cleverest person in the room? Finding it difficult to love? "Dathne" soon evolves into a Mary Sue. Although Asher finds Mary Sue unattractive initially (scared off her by ferocious intellect, in fact), this soon changes. While Mary Sue is torn by her duty to the inexplicably menacing Prophecy, she's also drawn to Asher (presumably he's an undisputed master of the rod as well).

The Mary Sue complex takes place on a larger level as well. The simplistic and uninteresting kingdom of Lur is populated by two species. The tall, graceful, mystical Doranen, or "Elves", and the nature-respecting, blue-collar, hard-drinking, honest Olkenen, or "Australians". The former write in mystical, Tolkienistic sigils and are fleeing the land of the Morg (or "Mordor", wow). The latter keep sensible heads on their shoulders and a few practice a druidic, healing magic (or "Reiki"). Unsurprisingly, the key conflict of the story takes place when Elrond refuses to return his surfboard rental.

If planes had windows that opened, I never would have finished this book.

The plot has huge holes, and the characters are huge stereotypes. Not much depth behind any of them.

The dialog I found myself skipping a lot, because it was so predictable. Someone disagrees with someone else, then they argue for a bit then resolution with the person disagree compromising. Over and over.

An ok read.

The main character is horribly unlikable. As far as I can tell, he is supposed to be charming in his bullheaded disregard for authority, but he just insults everyone he meets and, in response, they offer him money and jobs. The supposedly sympathetic prince comes off as soft and not particularly bright. The carefully guarded conspiracy seems incompetent and its members constantly telegraph their involvement. The villain might as well be a cartoon for all the subtlety with which he is written.
This isn't a terrible book, but it seems to have been written for dim children.

I liked this book. Ms. Miller does a fantastic job of developing her characters, and keeping the plot line easy to follow. And, oh what a cliffhanger! I thank goodness that my husband gave me the next installment to read. Some of the reviews are negative in that there isn't enough action. While I agree that the majority of the action takes place in the last 100 or so pages, this shouldn't discourage you from reading this book. It is a nicely paced story.

First off let me start off by saying this series (Kingmaker, Kingbreaker) is a duology (two-book series).

Anywho, to get to the point. I was truly amazed and shocked with the depth of this book. The depth of the characters is just awe inspiring and makes you feel like you really know them in real life. I really enjoyed the unique story too. It's nothing like what I'd expected and really easy to get used to.

Side note: The story abruptly ends so make sure you have a copy of the Awakened Mage to continue reading!

Whatever you do...READ THIS BOOK. I promise you'll love it.

Other of my favorite books:
Eragon (Inheritance), Harry Potter

this book was terrible. it's basically the first half of an absurdly long book, and you have to buy the second one to finish a story that really shouldn't be split. On top of that, the entire story is slow, anticlimactic and boring.

A reasonably enjoyable story. The action revolves around personal conflicts such as father/son, brother/sister, boy/girl, etc. The fantasy elements are neither new nor compelling and action is at a mimimum. This is a romance novel slipped into the SciFi/Fantasy section of the book store, unfortunately this is not a new idea either.

I don't usually write reviews for USA-the store. But since it is these critics that a relied upon when I bought this book I feel the need for saying that the so far impression of this book being exceptionally good - is really misleading. [...]- This is one of the worst books I have ever read. Although it does start promising, a bit Monette-like, with a very distinctive voice of the character of Ashen it soon shows that this one accomplishment is to be the only one in this book. This story is really a horrible collection of clichés und done-to-death ideas und can only be enjoyed if you have never read a fantasy book before (or any other book for that matter).

Forefront surely the ridiculous plot which is the one - oh, you know - of the prophesised-young-mage-that-is-to-rescue-the-world-from-some-horrible-and- -undiscribable-evil-but-first-must-find-out-about-his-remarkable-talents. Meanwhile befriending a prince because said is bored by all the bootlickers in his court and getting into a "Princess Diaries"-like position with lots of clothes and pretty things and influence with the Highest of the High. Well, if this can be called a plot at all since nothing ever happens. At page 180 all that has occurred is that Ashen has met the prince and has been appointed by him to some sort of advisor post. Now you might think that between their first meeting and this proposition the author created a big struggle for Ashen to come to his notice and convince the prince that he is indeed worthy, that at least they get to know each other well for the prince to make such a risky offer. No such thing. The prince drags him to a ridiculously opaque lawsuit, where Ashen gives the painfully obvious advice (maybe this is really a book for kids??), then, convinced that this mind has to have great stores of wisdom, the prince pops the question.

What follows is something I would like to call truly exceptional writing: Ashen has this discussion with the prince why he cannot possibly-but-he-will-think-about-it, and then he has the same discussion with Matt that-he-cannot-possibly-ect., and at last we get another go with Dathne that-he-cannot-possibly. After that the prince has a discussion with his other advisor Darran why-he-would-do-such-an-outrageous-thing, then he has the discussion with his family/father why-he-would-ect., then he has the discussion with the council/Conroyd Jarralt why--You get the point. I have never read so empty a book. It is quite an achievement really.

OK then, plot is weak - but what about the great characters, their relationship and interactions? I don't know - what about them? All I see are characters that somehow feel like I have met them before. Several times. But not in real life. Ashen first comes across as a refreshingly real character but soon degrades to nothing more than the outspoken-and-down-to-earth-if-ruff-but-good-at-heart commoner who shows all these fine lords the value of his worldly wisdom. Than we have the almost perfect prince, being smart and funny and handsome and nice and well-dressed at that - were it not for his one weakness that makes him flawed and therefore human and likeable after all. I was also quite appalled at the ridiculous (again, this word - but I cannot help it!) reasons behind a lot of the conflict (Ashen: but if I accept this position than I would have to wear lace ...; Prince: you don't know the first thing about horses but since you have been so brave I will appoint you stable hand of my priceless beast nonetheless and even pay you a ridiculous high wage on top of that). Then as I already said - people have endless and pointless discussions that recur frequently (see above), are not deep or meaningful even the first time and somehow rather feel like they have been copied from other books (just the meeting with the council makes me shudder with its formulaic arguments and twists).

I could list another score of things but will stop here and hope that you get the impression. Maybe I would have liked this book in my teens, probably - I read Eddings then and enjoyed him. But since that time I have come across so many other fantasy novels that are just like this one that it really astounds me that this kind of story gets published again and again and again. Just like there's always the hope of a new, freshly matured (or not) audience who will not notice anyway. Maybe that is so. It worked once, it will work again ... Well, just not with me.

There's something about the cover of this book that just stood out on the bookshelf, I read the back and wasn't entirely convinced but the back cover had a small rip in it and I have this thing about ripped things that are suppose to be new, it's almost like a good luck charm so I bought it. I'm a college kid so sitting down to read is hard, but I have found every possible moment to read even a sentence if I could, that's how into this book I got. It sort of gives you these bread crumbs of plot at the beginning and spends so much time making you totally fall into the world and relationships of these characters and then the plot really starts to pick up and I can not wait to read the next one, I'm actually sad I didn't buy both that day. I completely suggest it to any one who like fantasy story. Karen Miller writes beautifully because if she didn't the bread crumb thing would have driven me mad.

If you can tolerate 400 pages of inaction and conversation, you might like The Innocent Mage by Karen Miller. On the other hand, if you are like me and expect action and conflict in a novel, you would be wise to skip over it on the bookshelf. Seriously, nothing significant, suspenseful, or exciting happens until page 400.

So what does happen in the first 400 pages? We meet the protagonists, Asher and Gar, and they bicker like a same sex couple. They talk, talk, and talk. I suppose that Miller strives for character development in these pages, but the characters never develop beyond their introductions: Asher starts as a blunt, stubborn, good-natured country boy, and that is how he remains throughout the novel. He is the titular character yet does nothing to demonstrate it. Doesn't that make the title superficial?

I am surprised that this novel was even published. In my opinion, it adds nothing to the genre and resembles a patchwork of fantasy clichés. There is a Wall that protects the world from nameless, faceless evil, and there is a Prophecy that foretells the collapse of the Wall. Magic exists, but only in the hands of the Doranen, but since we encounter no Doranen besides royalty, we never learn what they do with their magic, besides controlling the weather. Using Weather magic somehow maintains the Wall, although the connection is never explained. It would make sense if the Weatherworker was draining the good weather from the realms beyond the wall, leaving that land eternally dark, stormy, and harsh, but that does not seem to be the case. There is a predictable romance, and a predictable friendship, and a predictable villain, once Miller decides to include one. What's missing: How about subtlety and originality?

Some of Miller's choices befuddle me. Asher's folksy dialect and country bumpkin act irritated me after a few hundred pages. Miller also switches viewpoints to supporting characters such as Fane, Willer, and Darran, but to no real purpose, since it never happens consistently enough to matter. Miller also inserts chapter breaks in the middle of dialogue, which seems strange. I do not understand why the king is also the Weather mage; you would think that the demands of one job would make performing the other job impossible. Some events also occur off page in the interludes between chapters, such as Asher's realization of love. Miller should show Asher falling in love, not tell us.

To be fair, the novel has a few bright spots. The Prophecy seems to be a force capable of acting, and not just words scrawled on a dusty scroll; I wish that Miller had explored this idea further. The symmetry between Asher and Gar--how they both try to satisfy their fathers while battling their siblings--is interesting, although we should have seen more interaction between Asher and his family for this dynamic to be effective. Miller does a good job of staying in character, and I like how she uses fishing and ocean expressions and metaphors when writing in Asher's perspective.

Miller is a decent writer who could use a better editor. Someone should have told her to get to the story already. Stories need action and conflict; they do not need pages and pages of setup and dialogue.

This is a long book about nothing. Not much goes on in the book, they walk from here to there having political issues. The main character never achieves anything. I think there was a total of 3 chapters where something interesting happened. I'm not even going to bother purchasing the 2nd book. It's a shame as the writing is good, just no story line.

A solid work of fiction that was very enjoyable to read. Karen Miller creates a new world that provides a back drop for a good story. The story is well crafted and develops along well established lines. She does an exceptional job in character development including using language enhancement for the main character. One of the few negatives with this book is the "cliffhanger" end. I am uncertain if she wrote a single book and was forced to make it two, or if she planned on two all along, but the abrupt end felt choppy and empty.