This review was crossposted from Goodreads.
But it did more than simply appeal to me when I read it. I actually really, really enjoyed this book.
When I originally bought The Innocent Mage at a second-hand book store, I didn't think much of it other than the fact that I had seen it on my recommended list for awhile now.
And to be honest, I had bought it under some duress because I needed a second book purchase in order to up the cost of my actual desired purchase to a point when I could pay for my items with a debit card.
I could not even tell you why I would later pick up to read this book over the many, many others that I still needed to read on my bookshelf at the time. But I did, and when I finished, I'm glad I did. But it certainly didn't feel that way when I started.
I found the beginnings to be a bit odious as far as how it seemed to rely heavily on overused and tired fantasy tropes. "The young adventurer leaves home to find glory elsewhere, but little does he know he's actually a special snowflake." Something along those lines. Add in the somewhat juvenile and annoyingly emphasized accent and it certainly didn't do much to win me over in its first few chapters.
And then... I don't know, something changed the deeper into the story I got. I think it was the point that it moved away from the tropes and became less a story about an adventure and more a story about the people in the story, particularly the main characters and especially Asher. Miller did a great job demonstrating personal growth, growing relationships both in love and in hate and the decisions that leads to actions and how actions leads to various consequences. And somehow kept all that from feeling overly wrought and painfully dramatic (well... most of the time).
With that said, this story is heavily dependent on the reader engaging with the characters of whom you interact with the most, whether it is Asher, Prince Gar, Dathne or Matt, but most especially Asher. It is easy to see how people will not enjoy the book if they don't enjoy Asher, and I can certainly see some people finding his personality a little bit arrogant.
But such wasn't the case for me. I really really enjoyed his up-front and sometimes abrasive personality nearly to a fault and as a result, the story soared by rather quickly for me.
Which brings me to my final point, one that is a matter of major annoyance with me when I finished and also one that involves a bit of a spoiler so let this be your warning if you have not yet read this book and are exploring it as an option.
It is not so much that the book ended in a massive cliffhanger (literally) that bothered me at the end, but we never quite got to the point where the title of the book "The Innocent Mage" was explained or revealed at all. Sure there were hints in the form of a prophecy, such that I will allow, but the main character remains in the dark of said prophesy still!
Basically you read this whole novel about a character's personal growth - while hinting at a huge moment where he does more than just grow, he becomes a hero - and... nope. No big moment for you!
I mean, really?
Oh and as for the big bad, it took the author nearly the whole book to introduce him and ultimately while the plot can be called compelling, the big bad remains highly underwhelming in the early parts.
With that said, I should also allow that maybe Miller was hit with the same syndrome as J.R.R. Tolkien and was made to split what was supposed to be a single tome into separate parts - Tolkien into a trilogy, Miller's into a duology. Which in this case, I retract all the criticism above as it's hardly her fault.
Regardless, I still enjoyed the book. Actually, I enjoyed the book a lot. And I certainly do look forward to eventually reading the second part of this duology and discover how this book finally resolves itself. The anticipation and the enjoyment therefore is enough for me to give this fun read four stars.
Oh and the fifth? Well... let's just say, like my teachers in high school, I'm deducting marks for what felt like an incomplete piece.
And then... I don't know, something changed the deeper into the story I got. I think it was the point that it moved away from the tropes and became less a story about an adventure and more a story about the people in the story, particularly the main characters and especially Asher. Miller did a great job demonstrating personal growth, growing relationships both in love and in hate and the decisions that leads to actions and how actions leads to various consequences. And somehow kept all that from feeling overly wrought and painfully dramatic (well... most of the time).
With that said, this story is heavily dependent on the reader engaging with the characters of whom you interact with the most, whether it is Asher, Prince Gar, Dathne or Matt, but most especially Asher. It is easy to see how people will not enjoy the book if they don't enjoy Asher, and I can certainly see some people finding his personality a little bit arrogant.
But such wasn't the case for me. I really really enjoyed his up-front and sometimes abrasive personality nearly to a fault and as a result, the story soared by rather quickly for me.
Which brings me to my final point, one that is a matter of major annoyance with me when I finished and also one that involves a bit of a spoiler so let this be your warning if you have not yet read this book and are exploring it as an option.
It is not so much that the book ended in a massive cliffhanger (literally) that bothered me at the end, but we never quite got to the point where the title of the book "The Innocent Mage" was explained or revealed at all. Sure there were hints in the form of a prophecy, such that I will allow, but the main character remains in the dark of said prophesy still!
Basically you read this whole novel about a character's personal growth - while hinting at a huge moment where he does more than just grow, he becomes a hero - and... nope. No big moment for you!
I mean, really?
Oh and as for the big bad, it took the author nearly the whole book to introduce him and ultimately while the plot can be called compelling, the big bad remains highly underwhelming in the early parts.
With that said, I should also allow that maybe Miller was hit with the same syndrome as J.R.R. Tolkien and was made to split what was supposed to be a single tome into separate parts - Tolkien into a trilogy, Miller's into a duology. Which in this case, I retract all the criticism above as it's hardly her fault.
Regardless, I still enjoyed the book. Actually, I enjoyed the book a lot. And I certainly do look forward to eventually reading the second part of this duology and discover how this book finally resolves itself. The anticipation and the enjoyment therefore is enough for me to give this fun read four stars.
Oh and the fifth? Well... let's just say, like my teachers in high school, I'm deducting marks for what felt like an incomplete piece.
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