The Prodigal Mage (Fisherman's Children, Book 1) (Fisherman's Children, 1)

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. I

As most have already written there is a lot of set up and redundancy in the relationships in this book. I was not happy with Asher through this entire book, needs to step it up. But the last hundred pages brought a bright light to the story line and I am ready for more. Karen Miller is a fantastic story teller and I'm hoping she gets back into her groove in the next book of this series. I gave it 4 stars because if you are a fan of the King Maker/King Breaker books you will like this but want more from her in the next.

I love nearly all of Karen Miller's books -- they definitely always have surprises and are a pleasure to read. The prodigal mage was somewhat subpar in that it continues a storyline that is worn out and not much happens for most of the novel. On the other hand, it is finely crafted and the ending makes it all flow together. When I finished, I immediately wanted to order the next. I was even somewhat upset that the author had stopped the story where she had and hadn't just extended the book for a few more hundred pages....

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

Karen Miller is truly one of today's most under appreciated Fantasy authors. She has shown to be more than able to pull off books large in scope while keeping the reader connected to every character and never making the actions appear trite. Miller is also capable of keeping amazing pacing mostly through dialogue, which few authors seem able to do. I was surprisingly impressed with the Kingmaker, Kingbreaker duology upon first reading, which consists of The Innocent Mage and The Awakened Mage, so it is a tall order to continue on in this world but her fans have been calling for it. All of Miller's strengths have made The Prodigal Mage another of my most anticipated reads for the year and her hardcover debut to boot. If you haven't read Kingmaker, Kingbreaker do so before reading The Prodigal Mage as you cannot appreciate the characters or the world much without the knowledge. Also, you may want to skip the rest of this review as it does make references to major events the happened in earlier books. The Prodigal Mage opens 10 years after the invader Morg was defeated by Asher. Life for the Olken and Doranen alike has been good, but trying as racial prejudice still very much exists between the two. Although they have reached a very uneasy understanding for the most part and have been put on more even ground as Asher is still a prominent and respected political figure. Dathne and Asher are back to their same argumentative ways although they now have two children in tow with son Rafel and daughter Deenie. It was wonderful getting to revisit the quaint language used by Asher, which makes him all the more endearing. However, at times Asher and Dathne and Asher and some of the other characters kept having the same arguments again and again, which grated on me a tad. Yet what Miller does better than most every Fantasy author today is make you care for the characters at every turn. She wants you to understand and empathize with why her characters do and say what they do even if they aren't doing or saying what they necessarily should. Asher still has a tendency to speak his mind, yet now it affects not only himself, but also his family and how they are perceived. Much of the book centers on Rafel and Asher's relationship and how people expect so much out of Rafel because of his lineage. Rafel and Deenie are showing signs of being able to wield Doranen magic like their father. Rafel especially has the potential to be as strong as Asher, yet Deenie's power is more like an affliction since she is hypersensitive to the land and magic. Asher and some other Olken describe a wrongness in the land of Lur with a great change underway. Asher is able to help with the problem with what power he has left and Lur gets a respite for another 10 years, which leads into the other 3/4's of the book. The majority of which is Rafel's coming of age story as he drives to understand and grow his power in ways his father never dared or allowed. Miller clearly has big plans fo