[Review] Guild Mage: Apprentice by David Niemitz (M0rph3u5)

Blurb

There are a lot of things wrong with Liv Brodbeck.

She’s too small, for one thing. When she works in the castle kitchens with her mother, she can’t carry a sack of flour or roll a keg of ale.

Baron Summerset’s chirurgeon says that she has brittle bones, so she isn’t allowed to wrestle or sword fight with the other children. Even sledding downhill in the winter brings the risk of breaking an arm or a leg if she falls.

Everyone says that she ruined her mother’s life when she was born. Not when they think Liv is in the room, of course, but she overhears all the same. In the kitchen of a less kind lord, a cook bearing a bastard child would have been more than cause enough for both of them to be out on the street.

No, a child like Liv doesn’t have much hope. But when she accidentally unleashes a surge of wild magic, she takes her first step on a journey which will lead her from the kitchens of Castle Whitehill, to the cold palaces of the Eld, and beyond, to the graves of gods...

Why you may like this series: * Intelligent, likeable MC that maximizes her talent through hard work * Immersive world building; unique language based casting * Wonderful early character dynamics

Why you may NOT like this series: * Powerful magic heavily focused on hereditary based system * Aristocratic setting with strong elitism * Slow burn epic fantasy

Spoiler Free Review: I normally don’t read slow burn stories, and I initially struggled to continue reading after the first two chapters. I was drawn in by Liv, the MC of this story, as she slowly displayed her kind spirit and curiosity which led her to take a very active role in events. From a progression perspective, I thoroughly enjoyed all the chapters detailing Liv’s various lessons while having concrete examples of her periodic growth (mana increase, total number of spells). The worldbuilding was phenomenal and I loved the detail provided in the language based magic system. This is a coming of age story, as Liv is exploring who she wants to become in the future, while managing the complexities of her humble upbringing as a non-human in a society governed by nobles. While at some points in the latest arc character interactions have felt forced for plot considerations, as a whole I’ve loved the development Liv has with all of the various characters introduced. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this read and look forward to keeping up with weekly chapter updates!

Reviewer Note: My New Year’s resolution was to read more series on Royal Road, and write reviews on any that I enjoyed! If you would find any other information helpful to include for future reviews, please let me know in the comments!

Current Read: Path of the Last Champion by TheWanderingWind