Mage Initiate

Ordained Magic #1

by D.L. Harrison

Maya Castro has worked long and hard through college and med school, and she was now doing her residency in her home city of San Antonio. She had plans, her whole life mapped out, including the man she wanted to spend it with.

Her life was about to change drastically, as one tenth of one percent, one out of every thousand humans on the planet, over seven million people worldwide, received magic and are taught nine spells. In that second, the world is irrevocably changed, and Maya’s whole life changes drastically.

She’s just one of many new mages, but she’s far from an ordinary one, if ordinary could ever apply to any of them. She’s no heroine, but she’ll need to adjust, plan, deal with unforeseen dangers, and just maybe, save her city and so much more.

This Urban Fantasy is told from the first person and Maya’s point of view.

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Fantasy

189 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 16, 2024

About the author

I've been an avid book reader since I was a teenager in the 1980's. My preferred genre's are science fiction and fantasy.

I wrote some short stories and was encouraged to try writing and self publishing by some friends. I work in computers and writing is an obsessive hobby I have been trying to hone for a couple of years now. I'll let you judge if I have succeeded or not.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable!

[Trey richardson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a bad start

I like the concept and the writing isn’t bad but the MC decisions make no sense. 1. Why would you but all the glyphs in a digital formats when you didn’t even feel comfortable sending out emails that could be traced back to you. She acknowledges that she isn’t tech savvy and yet put the spells on a cyber platform without any regard. 2. Why would you give every mage all your spells (except a select few)? If you’re worried about empowering the wrong people she could have been judicious and only handed out spells as needed. Looking past those annoying facts it wasn’t bad.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good concept

I liked the concept for this story, but I felt there was too much 'tell' and not enough 'show'. Also, there were a number of things that weren't explained, such as the vague 'protection spell' that was commonly used, which apparently protected the story from being more exciting. The protagonist barely had anything to worry about, and she just solved all her weaknesses before any enemies could be bothered to find them. Despite all her worries about the government, at any level, they never even made the attempt to approach her directly, which i thought was a bit unbelievable.

All that said, it was still entertaining enough to read through, and I had lots of thoughts about what I would do differently, when I run a similar idea for a tabletop rpg campaign.

[John Hulet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't read if you need logic and are not a teenage girl

Harrison had a setting for this story that was pretty interesting. Her introduction of magic and some of the second order effects was plausible.

Then she turned Maya loose and rapidly turned her into a super hero with next to no effort. Snooze.... Throw in the complete disconnect between her being mentally scarred for life by seeing her lover with another woman until 3 days later she's fantasizing about how she could get back together with him.

Full stop. I stopped reading at that point...just stupid and such a waste of potential with the story.

[Tendo Kayiira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story

I am not sure about this story. I liked it because it showed what an average person would do when given power, more or less. I am not sure if I want to continue because it felt like not much happened. The book went thru the mage changes, but not much about the magic itself. I will check out the next book because the frame of the story was good. There were things that could be done in a good way. I do trust this author because I have enjoyed a lot of their other series. So, here is to hoping the next book has more to it.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good but basic.

This book is a magic apocalypse of sorts. The world doesn't end with monsters however magic comes to town. this story is about how humans deal with this new powers morally. Some get the power some don't and some abuse it while others don't. Very slice of life and from the perspective of a "good" MC. No stats and not crunch at all plus no magic mechanics just spells that are nebulously obtained and powered.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Optimistic Urban Fantasy!!! Enjoy!!!

This is a pretty realistic examination of what might very well happen if magic just showed up in a very small percentage of humans worldwide.

The Author shows an excellent command of the human condition and how varied our behavior would be.

The Author is a skilled story teller.

I don't give anyone but Hugo/Nebula nominated/winners 5 stars. There are a LOT of excellent 4 star Authors out there.

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit different, but it doesn't (quite) move over into super hero storytelling, which is good, since I really tend to dislike super hero versions of these kinds of stories. This one skirts around the edges, but never degenerates into a smash everything in sight, overpower everything, then flee from justice so many of those kinds of stories have. I don't know if I'll read more in this series or not just yet, but given time, I probably will, it has an interesting premise.

[Justin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the premise, but I don't feel the author explored it very well. In general, it is poorly written and poorly thought out. Characters lack depth and don't develop. The protagonist makes some odd choices and some of her reactions feel unrealistic.

It's a pity, because I feel that an interesting story could have been written for the situation the author created.

[Darlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great start to a series

I see this series becoming one of my favorites. Can’t wait to read the next book and hopefully the many more after. This is an urban fantasy/ begging of dystopia society maybe. Great character growth and world building, see many posibilites for the direction the series can go. Again I am happy I won’t have to wait long for the next one.

[Frank Bertino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining Read

Maya is a doctor in residency. She comes into magic which changes her options and goals. A reluctant hero, she organizes the new mages in her City to protect the mage-less from rogue mages and moral mages from the government. Fights, training, and romance ensue. I look forward to the next book.

[Donald Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story, good characterization and a good MC (there is a difference and double entendre intended).
Be interesting to see how the follow on will develop given the really high power level here at the start.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

Good clean book. I would re-read this again and again. A refreshing look on magic and the questions of what you would do, and what would it do to us all if it was given out of the blue. Very thought provoking and stimulating read with out angst and over drama.

[Miss Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

great idea for a story

This wasn’t the most gripping book I’ve read but will appeal to a lot of people , I did finish it though . A great idea for a story set in a realistic , down to earth setting .

[Alyrica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun But I Wanted More Character Development

This was a fun read though it only skimmed the surface, which is the reason I only rated it 3 stars. I hope that subsequent books will delve a bit deeper into the characters. I will be reading book 2.

[Bruce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoy

Good book decent writing plot line is a little simple but decent I enjoyed the book interested in a second

[Mr. M Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good read

Once again a book I couldn’t put down. The author is ruining my sleep patterns as i cannot put the books he writes down.

[Stacy B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting

This is a good first book of a series. I like the concept and the characters. I really enjoy this authors writing style.

[James Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun, quick read

First off, this book is on the short side (at least by my tastes). That being said, it is very good.

Highly recommended

[Jan Gable · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read

If you like James Haddock or TD Wilson books you will love this book. Great start to a good series.

[Johnie C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good one sitting read

I enjoyed reading this book very much and I recommend this book to anyone who likes magic and good heroin type theme.

[Robert Dill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

An interesting premise. I might have made different choices in some instances but the story was compelling and I enjoyed it very much.

[Shelta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book!

I’m looking forward to reading the whole series, and seeing what else the author has and/or will write!
Highly recommend!

[Dantegideon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maya is a very dull, unambitious person to have as a main character, and she drags the story down.

[charles clayson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a bold adventure that is set in our time. The concept of it is set by the anomaly that effects individuals that were exposed due to their location during the epic event.
I enjoying my experience in this thrilling series so far🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟❗

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A different take on the original of magical abilities.
It will be interesting to see where the series goes.