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Devon Wills #1
Mage Catalyst
Devon had always just assumed that he was normal, just like everyone else. It wasn't until he met Renee that he realized that he was something different - something dangerous. He is a Mage. Led into a world of corruption and temptation Devon soon learns that there is always a price for power.
- GenresFantasy
488 pages, Paperback
Published August 25, 2015
24 people are currently reading
418 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 25, 2016
Devon is, in so many ways, a normal Australian teenager, like so many other teens
Until he runs into Renee in a nightclub and learns something awesome – and terrifying – about himself
He is a mage: a being of incredible potential power. But there are few things more corrupting than power.
The core of this book is that Devon is, ultimately, an ordinary person. He’s an ordinary teenager who discovers something surprising has happened to him. That’s the defining feature of how this book is laid out, starting from its very ominous beginning where we clearly expect something very unordinary and pretty horrifying to happen. This book is the origin story. This is where the vaguely mentioned ominous things find their beginning
This is where we have the ordinary man begin to become something so much more
So the very ordinariness of the book is the point. Devon is a teenager, an 18 year old with very 18 year old problems.
He has friends who aren’t always good people but who he cares about. He has romantic issues with Tina and lots of fumbling awkwardness. He’s not academically gifted and school is both a struggle and a trial. He has clashes with teachers but, unlike so many other narratives, it’s quickly clear that his teachers do actually care and aren’t just terribad awful people he has to navigate around. He has some concerns about the future but is largely ignoring it even as other people try to get him to take it more seriously. It’s a very normal reaction – he’s a kid trying to avoid hard questions he has no answers to.
He has a lot of very real world problems and it is excellently portrayed.
The problem is… I don’t really care.
And I feel kind of bad for saying that because it’s really well written and it feels so excellently and realistically portrayed. I really get the strong feeling of Devon as a teenager, a very ordinary teenager as well. I’m just really not interested – and that’s entirely a personal taste thing. I don’t really care about Devon and Tina or Devon’s school work, or Devon getting through school or Devon’s plans for the future or Devon’s friends or Devon’s family or Devon’s normal life. Even his interactions with magic and his friends seemed really drawn out. There was a scene with him playing pool with Tony and being sharked which seemed to go on for endless pages
I really feel kind of shallow for saying it, but I really don’t.
I do really like his interactions with Renee. I love the world building that goes into learning about mana. I love the development of it. I love the interactions and fun between Devon and Renee. I love how learning about mana changes Devon, I like how he wonders and worries about what he is becoming and is able to do. I like how it changes how he views things, I like how previously threatening people become so mundane to him because he has so much power. I like how he loses the thrill of extreme sports because he’s so powerful now there’s no threat any more. I love how you can see the seeds of this changing him as a person. I love how magic is portrayed, how it both has a coherent system but also how it is very different from how I’ve seen it before. I like how, just seeing how magic works and affects people, we can clearly see how it can lead to a mage’s corruption and inhumanity. I like how we can see the trap clearly without it being spelled out too simplistically to hit us over the head with it. It’s a nifty system with a terrible snare built into it.
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Until he runs into Renee in a nightclub and learns something awesome – and terrifying – about himself
He is a mage: a being of incredible potential power. But there are few things more corrupting than power.
The core of this book is that Devon is, ultimately, an ordinary person. He’s an ordinary teenager who discovers something surprising has happened to him. That’s the defining feature of how this book is laid out, starting from its very ominous beginning where we clearly expect something very unordinary and pretty horrifying to happen. This book is the origin story. This is where the vaguely mentioned ominous things find their beginning
This is where we have the ordinary man begin to become something so much more
So the very ordinariness of the book is the point. Devon is a teenager, an 18 year old with very 18 year old problems.
He has friends who aren’t always good people but who he cares about. He has romantic issues with Tina and lots of fumbling awkwardness. He’s not academically gifted and school is both a struggle and a trial. He has clashes with teachers but, unlike so many other narratives, it’s quickly clear that his teachers do actually care and aren’t just terribad awful people he has to navigate around. He has some concerns about the future but is largely ignoring it even as other people try to get him to take it more seriously. It’s a very normal reaction – he’s a kid trying to avoid hard questions he has no answers to.
He has a lot of very real world problems and it is excellently portrayed.
The problem is… I don’t really care.
And I feel kind of bad for saying that because it’s really well written and it feels so excellently and realistically portrayed. I really get the strong feeling of Devon as a teenager, a very ordinary teenager as well. I’m just really not interested – and that’s entirely a personal taste thing. I don’t really care about Devon and Tina or Devon’s school work, or Devon getting through school or Devon’s plans for the future or Devon’s friends or Devon’s family or Devon’s normal life. Even his interactions with magic and his friends seemed really drawn out. There was a scene with him playing pool with Tony and being sharked which seemed to go on for endless pages
I really feel kind of shallow for saying it, but I really don’t.
I do really like his interactions with Renee. I love the world building that goes into learning about mana. I love the development of it. I love the interactions and fun between Devon and Renee. I love how learning about mana changes Devon, I like how he wonders and worries about what he is becoming and is able to do. I like how it changes how he views things, I like how previously threatening people become so mundane to him because he has so much power. I like how he loses the thrill of extreme sports because he’s so powerful now there’s no threat any more. I love how you can see the seeds of this changing him as a person. I love how magic is portrayed, how it both has a coherent system but also how it is very different from how I’ve seen it before. I like how, just seeing how magic works and affects people, we can clearly see how it can lead to a mage’s corruption and inhumanity. I like how we can see the trap clearly without it being spelled out too simplistically to hit us over the head with it. It’s a nifty system with a terrible snare built into it.
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January 30, 2016
I've been reading a lot of young adult fantasy lately. But what I haven't read is a male point of view.
Mage Catalyst is that young adult fantasy with a male point of view.
It's set in a high school in Melbourne, Australia. It's an unlikely setting for magic. But it quickly becomes clear that there is something else going on...
Mage Catalyst creates an original system of magic. I have not seen one like it before in all my reading of young adult fantasy. The plot develops very quickly, with lots of intricate action and a touch of romance. And we love romance from a male point of view.
Devon finds the magic hard at first. But he gets there.
As he learns magic and falls in love, we watch him grow up. But its not all so simple - this is the first of a series, so you need to read the rest to find out what happens next!
A great achievement for a first time author!
Mage Catalyst is that young adult fantasy with a male point of view.
It's set in a high school in Melbourne, Australia. It's an unlikely setting for magic. But it quickly becomes clear that there is something else going on...
Mage Catalyst creates an original system of magic. I have not seen one like it before in all my reading of young adult fantasy. The plot develops very quickly, with lots of intricate action and a touch of romance. And we love romance from a male point of view.
Devon finds the magic hard at first. But he gets there.
As he learns magic and falls in love, we watch him grow up. But its not all so simple - this is the first of a series, so you need to read the rest to find out what happens next!
A great achievement for a first time author!
February 26, 2016
This novel is full of adventure and action. I love that the book is set in Melbourne. The book is of a current day and age. Being a 14 year old boy who lives in Melbourne, I was so engaged I felt part of the story.
The Author loves adding in some banter and jokes that really lights the book up and helps to bring it to life. The Author has done a great job making Devon relatable to teenagers and young adults with the dialogue that is used. The twists and turns in the book makes you never want to put it down. The ending really makes you want to keep reading to see what happens next.
The Author loves adding in some banter and jokes that really lights the book up and helps to bring it to life. The Author has done a great job making Devon relatable to teenagers and young adults with the dialogue that is used. The twists and turns in the book makes you never want to put it down. The ending really makes you want to keep reading to see what happens next.
January 27, 2016
I enjoyed this book so much that I signed up to Goodreads specifically to post a review and tell everyone how great it is!! The book moves along at a fast pace and there is plenty of cool magic and action to keep you interested. The main character Devon is both likeable and believeable (quite a feat considering his special abilities) and his relationships with his friends and family also seem very authentic. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but the final few chapters are really exciting and definitely have me eagerly awaiting the next installment. Highly recommended.
May 31, 2016
This is a very interesting young adult tale with an attractive mix of seriousness, developed magic system, introspective morally questionable events and bittersweet romance.
A lighthearted read with an occasional introspective question for the reader well worth it's amazon kindle edition price point and a good book to start as a writer with.
A book that makes you thirst to know more about the magic system, an emotionally engaging romance which makes you thirst for the development of their relationship and a plot which makes you look inwards, into yourself and evaluate what has happened.
As a book, it is a success and i give it a 4 star rating.
A lighthearted read with an occasional introspective question for the reader well worth it's amazon kindle edition price point and a good book to start as a writer with.
A book that makes you thirst to know more about the magic system, an emotionally engaging romance which makes you thirst for the development of their relationship and a plot which makes you look inwards, into yourself and evaluate what has happened.
As a book, it is a success and i give it a 4 star rating.
February 6, 2016
Great read with original themes and concepts in a genre which is oft accused of recycling content.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews