I have heaped praise on Karen Miller and her many works (THE INNOCENT MAGE, EMPRESS, etc.) before. She writes big fantasy — sprawling tales hundreds of pages long, filled with mysterious magics, grumpy and powerful politicians, good simple folk who act as the salt of the earth, all involved in tremendous plots involving the deaths of thousands or the destruction of kingdoms and cultures. They’re usually very well-written with well-conceived and deeply thought-out characters, fighting heroic struggles against often hopeless odds.
THE PRODIGAL MAGE, book one in the “Fisherman’s Children” series, is no different. The children in this case are Rafel and Deenie, the children of the Innocent Mage himself, Asher, and his wife, Dathne, whom we met in the “Kingmaker, Kingbreaker” series. This first book concentrates on Rafel as he grows from tiny sprat to young man, discovering the significant power of the magic within him.
Unlike his father, Rafel loves his magical powers and bristles when his parents limit their use. Both Rafel and Deenie have the magic in them, and this afflicts Asher, who believes his magic is more curse than blessing. But when the land of Lur starts to feel pain, it passes that pain on to the earth-loving Olken kind. The land is dying, and Asher’s vaunted Weather Magic cannot save it.
Indeed, the saving of Lur may come down to the prodigal mage, Asher’s son, who seems more powerful than anyone could have imagined. Unfortunately, he has also made a powerful enemy in an equally strong mage of the Doranen ilk, and of course, these two headstrong young men are headed for great conflict.
Conflict. Interminable conflict. That seems to be really what this book is about. Conflict between father and son. Between father and City Council. Between father and the Doranen. Between father and magic. Page after page after page of arguing and fighting, but very little doing. Asher seems to have turned into an arrogant, imperious, closed-minded lout, and his tirades become quickly tedious.
Sadly, PRODIGAL MAGE is not nearly as successful as some of Miller’s earlier work. It eventually does take off when Rafel and his most hated colleague, Lord Garrick, are sent over Barl’s Mountains to find a cure for the land of Lur. This takes place fairly late in the novel, but does set up the next title in the series, which will hopefully prove more exciting. —Mark Rose
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• THE ACCIDENTAL SORCERER by K.E. Mills
• EMPRESS: GODSPEAKER — BOOK ONE by Karen Miller
• THE RIVEN KINGDOM: GODSPEAKER — BOOK TWO by Karen Miller
