With a Single Spell

Ethshar #2

by Lawrence Watt-Evans

A SINGLE SPELL

Tobas had been lucky to find a wizard to take him on as apprentice. But then the wizard died suddenly and unexpectedly after teaching Tobas only a solitary spell, and the youth was too old to find a new master. How could he earn a living when all the magic he could do was light fires?

A DESTINY UNFOLDING

In the Small Kingdoms there were dragons to be slain, princesses and gold to be won, magic castles, witches who knew the secret of immortality, and other treasures. But how could a wizard with a single, simple spell hope to find them and win them?

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Magic, Science Fiction Fantasy, High Fantasy, Science Fiction

206 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Also publishes as Nathan Archer

Reviews

[Bookwraiths · Rating 3 out of 5]

Classic fantasy is the best label for this book. Young, apprentice wizard is forced to leave his home to discover his destiny, not to mention some more spells since one fire spell won't a career make. Along the way, he stumbles from one misadventure to another until finally being drawn into a quest to slay a dragon, so he can marry a princess and become wealthy beyond his dreams. However, the quest doesn't go exactly as intended, and more misadventures occur until finally our young wizard and a fellow adventure find their fortunes. The fun doesn't sop there, for our accident prone protagonist then stumbles into a magical world where he finds all that he has hoped for. Only one problem. He is now trapped with only one fire spell to help him return home. Of course, everything works out in the end. But isn't that how all good fairy tales work? In the eighties, when this was published, that is exactly how good fantasy books ended, which is why I liked. My age is showing I guess.

In any event, a very good read for anyone tired of the dark fantasy, which dominates the shelves these days.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good light fantasy-adventure -- after a slow start that had me wondering if it was worth going on. When the plot finally shifted into high gear, I had no further complaints. You'll get an idea of what to expect in the summary at the top of this page. The happy ending is sweet, and part of it a surprise.

3.3 stars for me. Good, but I doubt I'll seek out more of the Etshar stories. I'm only an occasional fantasy reader.

Be cautious with some of the other reviews here -- I saw a number of unlabelled spoilers in a brief trawl of a few of the higher-rated ones.

[Tyrone · Rating 3 out of 5]

I discovered Lawrence Watt-Evans when i picked up the The Misenchanted Sword. I read it fairly close to the time it was published and I didn't realise that there was to be a whole series of stories set in the same world.

As the time 'The Misenchanted Sword' was one of the most original, funny (without being a parody) and interesting fantasy novels i had read. That is probably becuase at the time i was reading lots of epic fantasy series which were Tolkein inspired so this was a real palete cleanser. I enjoyed it so much i have read it many time since.

I found out only recently that not only has Lawrence Watt-Evans written lots of novels but that he has written many more set in the same world (Ethshar). It took me a little while to track down one with a matching edition to my copy of The Misenchanted Sword becauase i'm anal that way.

I admit to having very high expectations and for the most part it delivered. I didn't enjoy this as much as The Misenchanted Sword but it did follow the same formula, an individual, somewhat ordinary in nature, who through luck or misjudgement, finds himself in an extraordinary position and has to overcome extraordinary odds to make their way in the world.

It is the contraints that LWE puts on his characters that make the stories work so well. In Sword it was the limitation to the times our hero could draw his powerful magical sword before it killed him. In Spell it was that our hero had to make his way in a dangerous and difficult world as a sorcerer who had only been taught one spell.

If you like your fantasy with a little more imagination than the standard, 'predestined hero, evil being, retrieve item and destroy/use item' variety then the Ethshar series may be just for you. Other books of LWE's that i have read which has a very similar feel to this series are the War Surplus series (2 books) which are a great sci-fi fantasy crossover. Check them out as well;
The Cyborg and the Sorcerers and The Wizard and the War Machine

[Neal Kristopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviews Of Unusual Size

Re: Tobas the wizard's apprentice knows one spell. He can light fires. That was all he learned before his master died, he accidentally blew up the house he lived in and he found himself wandering Ethshar. Without many options left, he joins up with a band headed to the Small Kingdoms to slay a dragon. If successful, he stands to gain a fat purse and a princess as his bride. Tobas is a clever young fellow, witty and fairly brave, but he's pretty unlucky. In the depths of the Small Kingdoms, however, Tobas finds that dragon and far more. He finds adventure, fortunes, strange magics, mysterious secrets and love! Maybe a single spell isn't that useless after all.

Outstanding: I love this book. It may be my favorite of the Ethshar novels (I say that about a lot of them though) The way Tobas wanders blindly into his adventures is smoothly plotted and full of a lot of humor and fun.

Unacceptable: Nothing. I know I say this a lot too, but I love everything about this story. Even the Wildside cover, which I normally hate, it pretty decent.

Summary: This is a quintessential light fantasy novel. It stars a boy without many skills or prospects that sets out to seek his fortunes. He battles dragons, flirts with princesses, explores strange lands and overcomes tremendous hurtles to make his way. What could be better than that?

5/5

[Curtiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one the Magic of Ethshar series of books. I recorded most of them, including this one, in 50-55 minute installments for my local Golden Hours radio service for blind or reading-impaired listeners. I also made CD copies for myself.

This one of the more lighthearted entries in the series, and I'm looking forward to the sequel The Spriggan Mirror; especially as the mischeiveous spriggan's appear in several other books in the series.

My favorite book in the series is The Missenchanted Sword, closely followed by The Blood of a Dragon.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a unique and creative take on a classic fantasy genre! I don't know if the book was supposed to be humorous, but I was constantly entertained by the misfortunate life experiences of this one wizard!

[Bridgina Molloy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was another one of my dads books, an oldie, but surprisingly ok one. The plot was ok in so much that it held my attention and I didn't want to throw it out the window which says a lot.

[Stefan Yates · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not quite as good as The Misenchanted Sword, With a Single Spell is still a well-written entertaining novel. Set in the same world, Ethshar, as the Misenchanted Sword, this tale takes the reader on an adventure with a young wizard-in-training whose master dies after he has only learned one spell. Considered too old for another wizard to concern themselves with taking him on as an apprentice, Tobas must figure out what to do with his life and his one spell. At least that spell is a fairly useful one, although even that manages to back-fire on him from time to time and cause even more angst to our young protagonist. As with the first book in the series, Watt-Evans manages to keep the action flowing while keeping the tone light and humorous. A good read for those who need a break from today's heavier fantasy offerings. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series soon. Also, the books in this series are all stand-alones, so you don’t have to read them in any particular order which is also refreshing.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although it took a while to really get into this (it seemed like Tobas was wandering all over the place for a long time), it finally got off the ground when the dragon showed up. The rest is delightful. I was really glad that Tobas didn't go the whole book with just a single spell and that his bad luck didn't last. After all, continued bad luck is just something one has if one is not willing to learn from one's mistakes. Another word for it might be experience, the hard way. Tobas does learn and as a result he grows as a character into someone the reader can appreciate. My favorite scene? The spriggans crawling out of the mirror. Tobas could tell the spell was going wrong but didn't know what to do at that point. Stop cold? Finish, even if incorrectly and not knowing the results? Cancel, cancel? Hit the Esc button? An interesting conundrum that had chills going up my spine.

[Filip · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this one was rather light on plot (remember kids: things happening are not plot), it was pretty charming. The setting was relatively generic and by the numbers but it took a couple of RPG tropes and brought them to their logical extreme which was enjoyable and interesting to read. The various magic systems and interactions are also quite well thought-out.

Apart from all that, it was just a charming book, with a good dose of humour.

[Aivo Ruttu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining story, but characters are so flat they're almost sterile.

[John Loyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

With a Single Spell (1987) 194 pages by Lawrence Watt-Evans

Tobas was lazy, he hadn't trained for anything when his father died and took all his wealth with him to the bottom of the sea. An old wizard took pity on him and started took him on as an apprentice, but died having only imparted one spell to him. He had nothing, no family, no prospects, and too old to apprentice for anything else. He left the pirate town, Telven, and needed to get far enough away where his accent wouldn't prejudice people against him.

He made it to Ethsbar of the Spices and found that none of the wizards there would teach him any spells. He signed up with a recruiter. This was to hunt a dragon that had been killing people and livestock in the Small Kingdom of Dwomor. He was one of many recruits, he didn't expect to win the reward, but it got him further from Telven.

The plot started with just a focus on Tobas. When the dragon hunting parties formed other characters got explored. The plot didn't feel contrived, but flowed naturally from events. Quick, fun read. More excitement in the second half. 4.75/5 stars.

[Cornelia Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve never read a book that I would classify as “cozy” until now. I’ve heard of “cozy mysteries” but this book is very much “cozy fantasy” in that the stakes are relatively low but it’s still interesting enough to read.
The plot is weak. Our main character is listless and has only the vaguest desires and drive. But he is one to quickly admit that he has nothing to do so he might as well go find some money and settle down. This, of course, does not work out for him and he ends up going on an adventure. Which exposes him as a liar. Because despite him feeling like he has no purpose or real end goal in his life, he does apply himself to study and problem solving when he needs to.
I would recommend this book to someone who is interested in the fantasy genre but who is intimidated by the huge volumes often found in the genre. The beginning is slow but the world is built up enough to keep you going and the sometimes absolute stupidity of the main character kick starts quite a few scenarios.
Overall, a solid 3 out of 5 stars for me.

[Kyo · Rating 3 out of 5]

More interesting than I expected it to be, but I found the ending to be very unsatisfying. It seemed to cut off at what would otherwise have been the most interesting part. Also, the author has a tendency to indulge in over-description of the setting - if you even halved the amount of description in each sentence, the book would be less than a third as long as it is. There's more description than plot. It kept me busy for a few hours, but I doubt I'd pick up anything else in this series.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Ethshar novel, this one about a wizard's apprentice whose master dies after teaching him only one spell. Unable to find another master, he sets off on a princess-saving/dragon slaying mission and discovers that one spell plus ingenuity can get you somewhere. Never quite what you expect.

[Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a lot of fun to read, I didn't realize it was part of a series until I was already reading it. Not having read the "first" book didn't seem to matter - I think they're all just set in the same world and not actually a continuous story. ALSO I really appreciated the "notes" at the end.

[Elynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite fantasy books.

[Danii Goldstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good simple yarn that kept me entertained the whole time. If you're looking for a good summer fantasy read that doesn't demand too much brainpower, this is a great place to start.

[Kolina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't mess with the dragons xD

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very funny fantasy story. Watt-Evans has a awesome writing style. Nice read, very recommended .

[Scott Shjefte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ethshar is an amazing place with many interesting people whose character is investigated by a talented author.

[Brian Rogers · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with my review of the first Ethshar novel, these are stories of young men striving tooth and claw to live ordinary, boring lives in a fantasy world that has lots of places for people to do just that, but our protagonists have to have some unusual things happen to them first.

This second volume is a little more cynical than the first (and I supposed I should have mentioned that lack of faith in humanity as being part of Watt-Evans' Mundane Fantasy tales), and not quite as pleasant, but it does provide some stronger internal mysteries for the reader to work out and all told gives a satisfying conclusion. Our hero in this one has slightly more of a character development arc - he's a nominally better person at the beginning than at the end - but that's a minor part of the tale.

It's an amusing enough way to kill an afternoon. It's not funny, or heroic, or gritty. it's quotidian, which is such a strange thing for fantasy that it deserves review.

[D.L. Morrese · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tobas, an apprentice wizard, is taught only a fire-starting spell before his master dies. Since a wizard with only one minor spell is likely to starve, Tobas attempts to look in his mentor's magic book after the funeral in order to learn more, but the book is magically trapped, and he ends up burning down the magician's hut. So, what's a young wizard with only one spell to do other than venture out into the world to make his fortune?

This an enjoyable, cozy kind of fantasy story. It gets a bit politically incorrect when Tobas encounters a kingdom with marital customs not unlike those of the original Mormons, but it remains a good read 36 years after its original publication.

[Viva · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had really enjoyed The Cyborg and the Sorcerers many years ago and had re-read it many times. I decided to try another one of his books. But I just really disliked this type of writing style and dnf'd at about 30%. Spoilers ahead.

First of all, most readers identify with the protagonist (Tobas) and I really disliked how everything sucked for him. I can understand how some writers want to start their protagonist at the very bottom but this took much, much too long. It was too repetitive and the writing was too amateurish.

In the end, the writing was just too slow and felt really dated. I stopped reading at about 10%, then tried it again and couldn't finish it at 30%.

[Kes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tobas starts off at a low point of his life - and wanders around, hoping to get a better position. He felt like a joe everyman down on his luck - the only thing promising for him being his ability with one spell as a wizard.

This is the second book in a series of standalone novels, and is set 200+ years after the first book. This book touches on the lack of a safety net available to Tobas - not that he complains about it.

I left feeling that Tobas was just lucky - although his level head did seem to help. It's a fun read, but not as good as the first.

2.5/5 stars

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes you dont want something epic . You don't want end of the world stakes but something more intimate then this is the perfect read for you. It focuses on the adventures of tobias , a down on his luck 'wizard' when his master dies and he cannot finish his apprentiship, leaving with a single spell to make it in the world. It does just enough to build the world but also keep it small and cozy and fun. Some danger but could be described as cozy in its approach to the adventure but again still fantasy.

[Sean Helms · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 and a half stars really.
Follows the mishap adventures of a mostly down-on-his-luck apprentice wizard who had been taught only a single spell before his master up and died on him. Without a clue, Tobas set out on a mission to earn his fortune with the least effort possible.
I remember reading this one when still in high school; it was worth the reread, though it did lose something since I'm far from the teenager I once was!

[George Shirer · Rating 2 out of 5]

A decent read. The main character, Tobas, is kind of unlikeable, but the more you read of his adventures, the more you come to empathize with him. I still can't say that I liked him by the end of the book, but I didn't actively dislike him either.
Altogether, I thought 'With a Single Spell' was an okay read. Not stellar. Just okay.

[Nicolas Knight · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's not the writing which was good.
It's not the premise which... was....
Oh wait. it was the premise.

Gods.

Jim Butcher school of writing once more.
Not so much a story as a laundry list of how to piss on a guys karma loosely stringed into a more or less (less) cohesive story.

Give it a wide berth.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pierwsza książka fantasy, jaką przeczytałam w życiu. Ponownie sięgnęłam po nią po 20 latach i spędziłam z nią wspaniałe dwa dni. Oczarował mnie wspaniale namalowany świat i niezwykle realistyczne (co bardzo niespotykane w klasykach fantastyki) wielowymiarowe interakcje między ludźmi.
Ocena 4, ponieważ postaci kobiece nie bronią się niestety w XXI wieku.