Imager: Book One of the Imager Portfolio

This book is my first contact with this author, so there won't be any comparisons with the author's other stories. This book attracted me initially by the reader, William Dufris, and by the story line. As I'm a sci/fi - fantasy junkie I'm always looking for a new series and this one looked interesting. I'm very glad I did. Exellent story telling and world creating. The male lead is Rhennthyl D'Culthyn(Rhenn), a somewhat gifted young artist, just graduating from grade school, and has absolutely no interest in moving into his father's business so he aprentices to a master portraitist instead. Rhenn's artistic talent shines and he quickly becomes a journeyman who is better than many of the so called "master" portraitists. Unfortunately, Rhenn's chances of getting to be a "master" anytime in the near future are slim and none, as the masters are not likely to advance a journeyman who is better than they are and will go into competition with them as soon as he makes master. (Welcome to the real world Rhenn). In this frustrated state, one evening Rhenn suddenly realizes he has the ability to "image" when his master and the master's son are burned alive in their home in a fire Rhenn believes he started by accident with his newly discovered "imageing" power. After that discovery Rhenn leaves his journeyman portatist position and goes to the Collegium, where "Imagers" go both to be trained and to separate them from the general public so they can't accidentally harm people. Imagers dreams are just as real and deadly as their wakeing thoughts only they have no more control over their dreams than regular people - they are not even allowed to sleep with their spouse (those who have them) and must sleep in protected cubicals in their protected rooms). Imagers who don't go to the Collegium end up either killing themselves with their power, are killed in various countries, or are killed by trained higher level Imagers in order to keep them from harming people. It is critical for Imagers to keep the good will of the people because there are so few of them that if the people ever began to fear them instead of respect them, the people could kill them all. Rhenn is a very strong Imager and advances quickly in the Collegium, and learns some disturbing facts: First he finds out that someone is trying to kill him; and Second, and more importantly, is killing many of the more talented newly arriving Imagers. As strong as Rhenn is, he is a very valuable asset both to the Collegium and the government as a sort of secret agent kind of character to foil the threat, without letting the people or the bad guys know that both the Collegium and the Government are involved in bringing down the threat. There is a also strong female lead -- Seliora, who besides being a gifted and beautiful woman herself, is part of a quite wealthy family that is reminiscent of a Mafia type family of the era, who have in-roads into both the political and social inner circles and wield c

Imager (2009) is the first novel in the Imager Portfolio series. It is set on the world of Terahnar, where some people have the ability to rearrange matter into imagined shapes and properties. The various societies range from autocracies to republics. The technology is about equal to that of the late nineteenth century AD. Solidar is the most powerful nation on Terahnar. It is the only country that has organized Imagers into a Collegium Imago. Other nations either destroy imagers as evil workers or do not provide any standing to such talents. In this novel, Rhennthyl D'Culthyn is the eldest child in the family of a rich wool and cloth merchant. Rhenn is nearing his graduation from the grammaire, but definitely does not want to be part of his father's business. Luckily, Rousel -- Rhenn's younger brother -- wants to take on this responsibility, so Rhenn can follow his desire to become an artist. In this story, Rhenn becomes an apprentice of Master Caliostrus, a respected Portraitist. He gets only room and board for his labors. Master Caliostrus has recently acquired another apprentice, but Rhenn continues to do the most menial jobs. Ostrius -- son of Master Caliostrus -- is a lazy journeyman, so Rhenn also does the chores that Ostrius neglects. Rhenn is learning from his master, but very slowly. The wife of Caliostrus doesn't cook all that well and Rhenn misses his mother's meals. After five years, Rhenn becomes a journeyman. He is still doing the menial chores that require a precise hand, such as preparing the pigments. Ostrius is too sloppy and lazy to do them himself. Rhenn also notices that his imagination can cause changes in his paintings. Recently, Caliostrus has allowed Rhenn to take some commissions for portraits. He does some excellent work on young girls with cats. Then he gets a commission on a portrait of a junior factor. During a Guild affair, Seliora -- a young upholsterer -- asks Rhenn to dance. She is an excellent dancer -- much better than he -- and Rhenn thoroughly enjoys dancing with her. He looks forward to meeting her again. One day Rhenn is preparing red ochre in a workshed despite harassment from Ostrius. He is thinking some very unkind thoughts about the man. Then the upper story of the house explodes into flames, killing Caliostrus and Ostrius. Rhenn manages to rescue others from the blazing house. Now Rhenn is a journeyman without a master. He tries to get a position with other Portraitist masters in the city, but without success. So Rhenn finally applies at the Collegium Imago. They take him on as a first level Imager. This tale lets Rhenn discover his talents as an Imager. It also confronts him with a secret threat to the Collegium and Solidar. He is attacked and injured several times as he advances through the ranks of the Collegium. The story has the characteristic feel of the author's works. For example, Rhenn has strong talents as an Imager. He also enjoys fine dining and ment

This is the first of a new series, and as such needs to take some time to introduce you to the hero. Those familiar with the author's work will recognize the hero's type: a talented, hard-working guy who comes to realize he also has a strong talent for magic. In this series, that magic is the ability to visualize, or "image," things, and make them happen. He starts training at the Collegium, and by being a nice guy makes powerful enemies, and becomes involved in affairs that reveal to him the way the world works. Along the way, there is a good bit of introspection and reflection on the nature of government and power. Although this follows the general theme of many of Modesitt's books, you are soon swept into the world of intrigue and magic, and the journey is a good one. Even without the note that this is the first book of the "Imager Portolio," it would be obvious that this is the first in a series, and I look forward to the next one.

A thoroughly enjoyable book - the first time (and the second). Modesitt spins a good yarn and I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series. The one quibble I have is that, as usual in a Modesitt story, the principal character works far harder and is more dedicated to his work by far than the "normal" person. But then, the "normal" person is usually content to float through life trying to stay within a "comfort" zone and that just wouldn't make much of a story, would it?

L.E. Modesitt, Jr., begins a new series in the same vein as Recluse. The parallels with Recluse are undeniable and formulaic, but they're also the reason that the Recluse series is successful. Remember, when we first read The Magic of Recluse back in 1991, a primary point of interest was introducing a system of magic without actually detailing how it worked, first. We discover, along with the protagonist, how it works, oh, so very slowly. The same thing happens, here. We have a protagonist in a coming-of-age story. He doesn't fit in where he is, and his adventures consist of his finding his own way. I won't explain the magic, because that would spoil the book for those who are interested. Suffice it to say that it's very subtle, and the plot is suitably more subtle than those of the Recluse books. Another large part of the fun in a new series such as this is gaining the flavor of a new imaginary world. This is almost-France in the Renaissance. A keen reader will recognize famous names, slightly modified, such as Descartes and Poincare. A strength of the author's approach is the detail with which he describes the environment, the food, the art, etc., giving the reader sufficient detail to imagine what the world is "really like." Of course, while such is a strength in the eyes of some readers, others will find this approach to be tedious and boring. If you like reading fantasy novels in order to explore a new world, this is right up your alley. If you prefer your fantasy to be more like Indiana Jones or Star Wars (the movies, not the mishmash of the extended universe), with fast-paced action without requiring much background detail, then you'll not appreciate this story. Another forte of Modesitt's is the combination of magic and philosophy. In this universe, the philosophy is more separate (Recluse's order vs. chaos had very moralistic overtones, in which chaos-wielders tended to be evil, for example). The philosophy here is an exploration of people, principles, and social interaction in general. Modesitt's primary weakness is also evident, here: the character development isn't as good as one might wish, for a novel that introduces a new world. With good character development (e.g., David Eddings' Belgariad), a reader will quickly get a sense of liking and disliking certain characters, and after time, will feel as if one actually knows these very real people. Modesitt's characters, while not undeveloped, still feel like abstractions, slightly too perfect, with no real sense of humor or jocular interaction taking place between them. In all physical, philosphical and artistic aspects, Modesitt's creations feel real and alive - but the people feel a bit more "animatronic". I give the book 5 stars, however, because my standards for character development are very high, and I am -so- relieved to read a fantasy story without vampires, without werewolves, and without having it turn into a "romance novel" for a few pages, I can forg