The Black Mage Complete Series Digital Boxed Set

The Black Mage #1-4

by Rachel E. Carter

The complete four-book The Black Mage series from USA TODAY bestselling author Rachel E. Carter.

Magic. Romance. War. Perfect for fans of Throne of Glass, Falling Kingdoms, and Tamora Pierce.

FIRST YEAR (book 1)

Before the age of seventeen, the young men and women of Jerar are given a choice —pursue a trade or enroll in a trial year in one of the realm’s three war schools to study as a soldier, knight, or mage…

For fifteen-year-old Ryiah, the choice has always been easy. Become a mage and train in Combat, the most prestigious faction of magic.

Yet when she arrives, Ry finds herself competing against friend and foe for one of the exalted apprenticeships. Everyone is rooting for her to fail—first and foremost among them is Prince Darren, the school prodigy who has done nothing but make life miserable since she arrived.

Will Ry survive, or will her dream go down in flames?

APPRENTICE (book 2)

She survived a trial year at the Academy of Magic, but that was the easy part…

Now sixteen-year-old Ryiah is an apprentice of Combat, her school’s most notorious faction. When she finishes, she will be a war mage, but in order to do so, she has to survive four years traveling across Jerar, training with a master she hates, her old nemesis, Priscilla, and Prince Darren, her sometimes-rival sometimes… more?

Ry’s new apprenticeship is nothing like what she prepared for. War is on the horizon and her lessons aren’t just for practice anymore.

It’s time to fight.

CANDIDATE (book 3)

Welcome to the Candidacy. Where dreams go to die.

Twenty-year-old Ryiah is a black mage of Combat, but she’s not the Black Mage. Yet. She’s had her eyes on the legendary robe for as long as she can remember, and in just one year, she will have a chance at her country’s prestigious—and only—tourney for war mages... Too bad she is going up against a certain prince—the one person she has yet to beat.

The Candidacy finally arrives and a winner is robed, but something dark is lurking in her kingdom’s midst. Rival nations are closing in, and it’s time to make an alliance.

Unfortunately for Ryiah, that’s only the beginning. The worst enemy resides in the palace.

LAST STAND (book 4)

He’s the Black Mage and she’s the traitor to the Crown.

Ryiah’s world was shattered the night she discovered King Blayne’s nefarious plans. Now, she has to betray the one she loves most in order to save the realm from war. Torn between love and duty, Ry finds herself on a perilous mission to help the rebels and convince the kingdom of Pythus not to honor its pact with the corrupt king of Jerar—all the while deceiving the most powerful mage in the realm, the very man sworn to protect the Crown and hunt the rebels at all costs: her husband.

She’s one step ahead, but sooner or later the curtain will fall.

Sooner or later, she’ll have to fight.

Witness the epic conclusion of The Black Mage series, and see just how far one girl will go to save her kingdom and the boy she loves—even when that boy has become the enemy.

Genres: Fantasy, Magic, Young Adult

1544 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2018

About the author

Rachel E. Carter is the USA Today bestselling author of The Black Mage, a YA fantasy series about magic, love, and war -with future projects to come. She hoards coffee and has a weakness for villains and Mr. Darcy love interests.

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Reviews

[Rachel E. Carter]

SERIES TEASER TRAILER: https://youtu.be/AJcWes2y__s

PINTEREST BOARDS FOR SERIES: https://www.pinterest.com/recarteraut...

LINKS TO BUY BOOK:
AMAZON: https://amzn.to/2HMZaS5
BOOK DEPOSITORY: (see individual books page, no paperback boxset edition)
AUDIBLE: (see individual books page, no audio boxset edition)

*** Please note: The ebook editions of this series are only available through Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited program for time being, however you can still purchase the paperback/hardcover/audiobooks at all retailers (below). If you previously purchased one of the ebooks through a non-Amazon retailer and would like to continue reading the sequels on that device, you can purchase the sequel through Amazon and then email me (rachelcarterauthor@gmail.com) a copy of the receipt and I’ll be happy to send you the ebook edition you need for your preferred non-Kindle device (ie ibook, kobo, nook readers, etc).

[L.R.W. Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book One started out a bit slow for my taste, but I kept thinking I’d give it a chance and see where the author took me. Obviously, I was not disappointed. I thought each book built nicely on the next and the storyline compelled me forward.

I loved the protagonist, Ryiah. She began as a regular girl of 15 and through her first year studies at the school, was torn down by a prejudiced instructor as well as her own insecurities as well as second guessing about a certain boy prince. But she grows stronger and in book two, we see her continue to evolve in her magic as well as personally. SPOILER ALERT – I absolutely loved Darren’s marriage proposal at the end of book 2. What a guy! Then in book 3, coming to understand the king, his expectations, and how he raised his sons, Ryiah grows stronger still. I can’t imagine fighting all out against the love of your life, regardless of the circumstance. It truly took a lot of courage on both her and the prince’s part.

[Kitty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I begin, I must acknowledge the fact that the covers are mind-numbingly ugly. So ugly, that when my kindle indicated that I about to begin the next book with its cover blasted on my screen–I couldn't look.
Just know that I'm self-aware.
As for the person who approved of this design?
Make better choices.

I read this series back in 8th grade and remembered how much I loved it. My sister only bought me the first book and had to rent out the last 3, so I never got the chance to revisit them until now. After getting the digital box set, it took me 3 days to reread the entire series. And because of that, I'll only count this set as one book for the 2022 challenge thingy.

My rating for the entire series: 4.5/5
First Year: 3/5
Apprentice: 3.8/5
Candidate: 4.5/5
Last stand: 5/5

Honestly, I was surprised that I enjoyed this so much despite reading this series 4 years ago because...ahem, some of the books I read at that age, I cannot stomach now...*cough ACOTAR.
Anyway, this series has nearly everything I love about the fantasy YA genre.

Stubborn, power-hungry, and reckless protagonist
Magic Academy??? YES
Slow-burn, angsty, rivals to lovers romance
Betrayals, plot twists, and light politics

ok, I shall be frank, I revisited this series for the romance because AHHHHHH I WAS IN THE MOOD. SUE ME.
I've realised that smut doesn't cut it for me anymore, I don't feel anything reading it. And booktok books aren't really that great....
BUT
small pockets of intimacy speckled throughout this entire series with angsty buildup???? AND the fact that they're rivals??? literally had me silent screaming....until the self-awareness hit at least.

Darren and Ryiah's relationship was a tad toxic, not in an abusive sense but in a we're-both-too-prideful-and-raised-in-different-circumstances-not-to-mention-there-is-a-war-coming sense. Yet, the slow-burn and tension made me overlook it :)

Moving forward, for a YA series published between 2015-2017, there were some flaws like the wolf and lamb thingy, the fairytale girl and boy metaphor, and some cheesy lines. Carter's writing wasn't amazing, I didn't find any quote that made me in awe of her literary prowess however, I loved the way the plot was woven, no loose ends were left, and the story flowed really really well.

Call it nostalgia, call it post-readers high, or whatever. I think this series is underrated and I would recommend it to any avid YA readers out there.

JUST FIX THE COVER.

P.S. This book reminded me alot of the Poppy War series or rather when I read the Poppy War series it reminded me of this. Obviously, the Poppy War is more complex in it's politics which I really enjoy but both series have similar characters and an academy AND a rivals to something more relationship. So overall, if you like R.F. Khuang's The Poppy War think of this series as a more toned down, romantic, and YA version of it.

Also I won't be doing alot of long reviews but reading this entire thing within the span of 3 days, literally skipping out on study hours for my bio test, and overall sleep... it made me feel so happy, no regrets.

[Sristy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The series was ABSOLUTELY AWESOME.
Do you know when I first came across this book, I rejected this - a 15-year-old protagonist in a fantasy book-I'm sure you can speculate...But here I am confessing my MAJOR TRANSGRESSION so that you don't repeat this mistake.Yeah, I know I am so generous and.. good and ...not devious at allHeHe..Hehe.

Jokes aside, I really liked this series because it depicted a realistic scene-where the female protagonist has to actually work hard to gain cool powers and fighting skills and not just kiss a guy and surprise,surprise-the chick becomes the most powerful supernatural being in existence ever .

This series shows actual friendship, a bit of love triangle and actual trials, not the one in which you know the chick is going to win because we have seen that she has lost many times in her practice sessions and because of her O Mighty Strong Will power-She will win the final trials.*shudder*
This is absolutely not the case here.
In fact some times I was almost tempted to just wish for her to get a predictable win-you know in which first you get knocked around a lot but then you also win because you tried so-so-hard. Almost

Ryiah doesn't win the first position. She gets 4th, 3rd, 2nd but not 1st. Well, not till the near end of the series. Secondly, she is not a whiny self-righteous bitch -She actually thinks for her own and makes mistakes. Her character is not white neither is it Black- It's Grey ...and you know how I lurve Grey...

Now coming to Darren-he actually gives a new definition to the word complicated.

This book may have some flaws but I have read the series within 24 hours.Yes I am talking about the complete series and for me, the flaws were overshadowed. The book features a 15-year-old who is not a whiny-spoilt-self-righteous-chick. That in itself gave it brownie points. And since you know its 15 (ending with a teen)-the series gets an exemption card.

Actual Spoiler Ahead
Personally, I really liked that map-trap.
I really was in high spirits right till the end of the book but the end made me not-so-happy.I mean everything was good till the last stand part but Why did they have to lose their powers *sniff*.
That end was just more than a little anti-climatic to the gloriously written fantasy.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried to like it. I really did. Bloody, unnecessarily bloody. Way to many plot twists and character twists. Just a mess. I enjoyed the first book when I started and was excited for the series. But that opinion quickly changed. The lead female isn’t strong. She constantly gets help from
Others and doesn’t end up saving the day. She runs away. I was very disappointed. She often relies on male characters to help her along, tell her what to do. There are characters that are hard on her and make her grow but there was never a learning moment there. Missed opportunity.

[Sue Watts · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series had me reading into the small hours of the morning . The characters were so compelling that I felt that they were friends and the story was such that I could not stop until I had finished all the books . For once it was a complete ending and I could see that their lives would be a happy ever after. I was sorry to leave these characters but happy I had finished their story. THNK YOU FOR A WONDERFUL STORY.

[Sammie Rhubart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book. Will make you feel every emotion. Absolutely the most amazing book I have ever read.

[Dreamer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Carter’s book about mages is captivating and magical, mostly in character development and vivid descriptions of training and battle scenes. We follow the main character, Ryiah, through her first year at the realm’s most prestigious magic Academy where she trains hard with her twin brother Alex and friends they have picked up along the way. Clear your mind of all things Harry Potter; this is a very different depiction of magic school. Here, magic isn’t taught, it’s an innate ability one either has or does not have. While there are lessons at the Academy for geography, history, and math; there are training exercises for physical fitness, weapon wielding, and magical casting. Attendees at the Academy work their minds and bodies incredibly hard their first year in order to secure one of five spots in each category of Combat warriors, Alchemists, and healing Restoration mages.

Though witty, brave, hardworking and dedicated to beating the odds against her, Ryiah starts out insecure in her own abilities, performance, and chances at succeeding. As two of several low-born first years with enough potential to participate at the Academy, Ryiah and her twin Alex have considerably less schooling and training under their belt than most of their comrades when the year begins. This only motivates Ryiah to practice harder with weaponry and casting and to study longer hours in the library. Throughout her first year, we follow her progression of increasing skills and increasing confidence. This growth feels natural and watching her improve is satisfying.

Also satisfying is watching Ryiah’s usual realistic and sarcastic demeanor turn into fluttered heartbeats and speechlessness as the mysterious Prince’s behavior leaves her confused about both his intentions and her reactions. There is no insta-love or insta-crush or love triangles in the First Year; a welcome and refreshing change in the realm of magical YA stories.

Some things could have been expanded upon more, and likely will be in the three books to follow. While several characters had personalities and back stories of their own, the realm in which the school exists is not as well developed. Nor is the danger Ryiah faces on the road along the way to the Academy in the first chapter. Still, the book held my attention and I can’t wait to find out what happens next!

I received a review copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Epic fantasy drama

This series starts out as kind of a fantasy academy bully romance but evolves in to a much bigger plot with lots of drama and intrigue.

The world building and magical mechanics were great; well thought out. The characters were strong but definitely imperfect. - In fact, one of my favorite things about these books was how the characters kept failing, and failing, and failing again. It made the victories feel that much more important and well earned.

I read the complete series back to back, but I had to take break before the last book because I was starting to get annoyed with Ryiah’s lack of communication skills. Soooo many problems could have been avoided if she had just TALKED to Darren... but then, I suppose things would have been a lot less dramatic. The stuttering in the dialog also started to get old by the end of the books. - But overall I really enjoyed this series.

[Kris Fylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, if you haven't read this I highly recommend you do so immediately.

Unless, of course, you don't like fast-paced action, real, relatable characters, a captivating, new world, and the tension of a well-done love.

'Tension' is the right word. This whole series is fraught with tension.

But, I won't say anymore if you haven't read it.

If you have, then you will relate with the following:
> groaning at Riyah's antics
> hiding your face from those moments
> grinning at more moments
> flinching as they fight
> heart racing as more action ensues
> cringing at more of Riyah's actions
> loving her mind & determination
> becoming an utter mess as you finish the second book at 1:55 in the morning. A complete, and utter mess.

[Anitalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't expect such a thrill ride. The story grabbed me from start to finish. I'm glad all four books were completed because I hate having to be left hanging with having to wait until the next book in a series comes out to continue what happens next. Excellent writing of characters and storyline and it really pulled on my emotions. Especially, when I thought it was going to end in a heartbreaking moment, but it didn't. Thank you for such a great escape into an enthralling world of magic, dreams, goals, friendship, love, and more that kept me eager to continue turning every page.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a fun read. Couldn't put it down, until the last book. It seemed slower, more drawn out. I lost interest in the story and just wanted to get to the ending. I did like the ending though. It wasn't an abrupt stop or rushed ending. I thought it was nice complete package that left you at peace with their choices. Instead of wishing there was more book to read to explain away a possible solution to such an impossible situation. 3.5 stars...I liked it.

[amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series!

What can I even say? I devoured this series whole! Adulting was not a thing when I discovered these books.

The characters are relatable and realistic for a fantasy series. As the series goes you see the growth in the characters and even in the authors writing! That’s not something you can always say.

[Stephen Levesque · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this series as the original books were released. It was great revisiting the series again. I love the characters and story line so much. The trials the kids have to go through until they see what is really going on and o hell breaks lose. Great writing and story telling by the author will keep you glued to the books. Great Reading Everyone!

[Rebeca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a good read

The series starts a bit on the slow side for the first 2 books as characters and story line are developed. Then books 3&4 is where I really became enthralled with all the action and exciting story line. Also recommend reading the prequel before starting the series. Helps understand Darren.

[Pauline · Rating 5 out of 5]

YA fantasy series which is well worth reading! Strong characters, gripping drama, fast -paced adventure and romance.It's all there. They all had me on the edge of my seat.
Great for Harry Potter and Percy Jackson fans.

[Devin Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whenever i read a series, i have a favorite volume, like most people. The last book js my favorite of the series, which is rare for me. But i was literally racing through pages wanting to get to the end because i wanted to know!

[Dennis Lemmon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bloody soap opera.......

Thoughts and feelings of an idiot masochistic girl that spews the same story line as a mexican soap opera with a “ .... and they lived happily ever after “ thrown in for good measure. Ick

[Stormy Yancey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!!!!

I couldn’t stop reading. I read this whole series in 2 days. I was up till 2 in the morning. And couldn’t put it down. Warning... you will be addicted. I loved everything about this series.

[Laura Klocksieben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

I don’t write fancy reviews... but I really enjoyed this series! I was sorry to see it end. I’d love to see a sequel with the Queen’s son falling in love with Eve and reuniting the families!

[Juliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just can say, this story worth to be made into tv series like game of thrones or a movie like harry potter. On my opinion the love story is even better than edward - bella in twilight saga. I just wish there's a sequel their children become the next lead character if the author see fit to it.

[Suzanne Earley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apart from a myriad of painful typos & incorrect choices of homonyms, this series was fun to read. Some very unexpected aspects that threw light on murky decision-making, and a satisfying but non-clichéd ending. Just a boy and a girl. Doing their best.

[Christopher Fortner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it: Please

This book series is absolutely phenomenal. It’s hard to make me cry while reading a book, but this one did not even have to try! Yes, it can be slow paced at times, but the conflict makes up for it.

[Rayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

it became so endlessly convoluted

I liked it, didn’t love it. The first two books had me intrigued but the the rest was meh. It was so long and whiplash. I love you, I love you not, I love you…. I mean if any relationship should not have happened it’s her and Darren… I swear.

[Vinita Hemnani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written.

[Susan Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unexpected

Funny, frustrating, irritating,a really good read. hated to put it down. End I t was different than imagined ,but good.

[Terrye Benton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the whole series in4 days. Couldn’t put it down. I had read the series once before, but had to go back and read it again. Very action pack. Loved the series.

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love

Couldn’t put them down!! I loved all of the books! I highly recommend this series and can’t wait to read more from this author

[Jaime Hurlocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love love e

[kirsty alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series can't wait to read more of this author highly recommended