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Art of the Adept #3
Scholar of Magic
The looming war with Darrow has faded to a distant shadow, but Will’s continued studies at Wurthaven are disrupted by an unforeseen threat. Selene’s absence has raised suspicion among her friends and Will’s father-in-law, the king, who is now directing his ire at the obvious culprit, his daughter’s new husband. Meanwhile the citizens of Cerria have begun disappearing and a shadowy figure is stalking Will’s sister, Laina. With his power pushed to the limit, Will finds himself attempting to preserve a family that rejected him and trying to save a city whose king might rather see him dead. Desperate for help, he may not be able to trust the powers that have supported him in the past, for though the fae could be the source of the catastrophe; they only offer their assistance—for a price. Evil stalks the streets of Cerria at night, seeking the blood of his family, the destruction of the city, and the death of the king. Will may have to decide what is most important for preserving the people of its most prosperous city, or saving its questionable ruler?
660 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 27, 2020
638 people are currently reading
767 people want to read
About the author
Michael G. Manning
25 books2,095 followersMichael Manning was born in Cleveland, Texas and spent his formative years there, reading fantasy and science fiction, concocting home grown experiments in his backyard, and generally avoiding schoolwork.
Eventually he went to college, starting at Sam Houston State University, where his love of beer blossomed and his obsession with playing role-playing games led him to what he calls 'his best year ever' and what most of his family calls 'the lost year'.
Several years and a few crappy jobs later, he decided to pursue college again and was somehow accepted into the University of Houston Honors program (we won't get into the particulars of that miracle). This led to a degree in pharmacy and it followed from there that he wound up with a license to practice said profession.
Unfortunately, Michael was not a very good pharmacist. Being relatively lawless and free spirited were not particularly good traits to possess in a career focused on perfection, patient safety, and the letter-of-the-law. Nevertheless, he persisted and after a stint as a hospital pharmacy manager wound up as a pharmacist working in correctional managed care for the State of Texas.
He gave drugs to prisoners.
After a year or two at UTMB he became bored and taught himself entirely too much about networking, programming, and database design and administration. At first his supervisors warned him (repeatedly) to do his assigned tasks and stop designing programs to help his coworkers do theirs, but eventually they gave up and just let him do whatever he liked since it seemed to be generally working out well for them.
Ten or eleven years later and he got bored with that too. So he wrote a book. We won't talk about where he was when he wrote 'The Blacksmith's Son', but let's just assume he was probably supposed to be doing something else at the time.
Some people liked the book and told other people. Now they won't leave him alone.
After another year or two, he decided to just give up and stop pretending to be a pharmacist/programmer, much to the chagrin of his mother (who had only ever wanted him to grow up to be a doctor and had finally become content with the fact that he had settled on pharmacy instead).
Michael's wife supported his decision, even as she stubbornly refused to believe he would make any money at it. It turned out later that she was just telling him this because she knew that nothing made Michael more contrary than his never ending desire to prove her wrong. Once he was able to prove said fact she promptly admitted her tricky ruse and he has since given up on trying to win.
Today he lives at home with his stubborn wife, teenage twins, a giant moose-poodle, two yorkies, a green-cheeked conure, a massive prehistoric tortoise, and a head full of imaginary people. There are also some fish, but he refuses to talk about them.
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Eventually he went to college, starting at Sam Houston State University, where his love of beer blossomed and his obsession with playing role-playing games led him to what he calls 'his best year ever' and what most of his family calls 'the lost year'.
Several years and a few crappy jobs later, he decided to pursue college again and was somehow accepted into the University of Houston Honors program (we won't get into the particulars of that miracle). This led to a degree in pharmacy and it followed from there that he wound up with a license to practice said profession.
Unfortunately, Michael was not a very good pharmacist. Being relatively lawless and free spirited were not particularly good traits to possess in a career focused on perfection, patient safety, and the letter-of-the-law. Nevertheless, he persisted and after a stint as a hospital pharmacy manager wound up as a pharmacist working in correctional managed care for the State of Texas.
He gave drugs to prisoners.
After a year or two at UTMB he became bored and taught himself entirely too much about networking, programming, and database design and administration. At first his supervisors warned him (repeatedly) to do his assigned tasks and stop designing programs to help his coworkers do theirs, but eventually they gave up and just let him do whatever he liked since it seemed to be generally working out well for them.
Ten or eleven years later and he got bored with that too. So he wrote a book. We won't talk about where he was when he wrote 'The Blacksmith's Son', but let's just assume he was probably supposed to be doing something else at the time.
Some people liked the book and told other people. Now they won't leave him alone.
After another year or two, he decided to just give up and stop pretending to be a pharmacist/programmer, much to the chagrin of his mother (who had only ever wanted him to grow up to be a doctor and had finally become content with the fact that he had settled on pharmacy instead).
Michael's wife supported his decision, even as she stubbornly refused to believe he would make any money at it. It turned out later that she was just telling him this because she knew that nothing made Michael more contrary than his never ending desire to prove her wrong. Once he was able to prove said fact she promptly admitted her tricky ruse and he has since given up on trying to win.
Today he lives at home with his stubborn wife, teenage twins, a giant moose-poodle, two yorkies, a green-cheeked conure, a massive prehistoric tortoise, and a head full of imaginary people. There are also some fish, but he refuses to talk about them.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 147 reviews
September 29, 2020
Manning is back on form with his third instalment of the Art of the Adept and by that I mean kinda dumb. The second book really picked things up from the first and I went into this one with high hopes... only to see them dashed.
Not that it was bad, as like the others it was entertaining, action-packed, and well written, but like the first book suffers some pretty iffy issues.
Take, for example, the character of Laina who in the previous books was portrayed exclusively as a selfish spoiled brat who even held contempt for homeless women in wartime, retconned into the saviour of those very same (retroactively) for 'plot'.
How about Will, the main character who despite having only a few years of training is now not only able to go toe to toe with anyone in the 'modern' age (which made some sense as true wizardry had been lost) but has more potential than virtually any wizard that has ever lived. We learn in the first book that having his turyn compressed three times makes him rare, but in this book, it is revealed that only a few dozen wizards had EVER managed it, and even doing it twice was a 1 in a 100 thing.
Oh, and we also learn that he can now hold four spells at the same time, one more than his master, a wizard so powerful he waged a one-man war against all his peers for presumably hundreds of years, whose very name could inspire a king to raze an entire village centuries after his supposed death. This conveniently puts him on par with Aislinn... the literal goddess of magic, and the only other person who could ever do so.
On and on it goes with the ridiculous power creep where he just IS so much MORE than everyone else (he can now also astral project and stuff). At least him being better than the current generation of wizards made sense, the rest is just preposterous and lazy.
All in all, I enjoyed reading but the author just pours too much escalation into it to keep it grounded.
To top it all off, it was at this point that I realised this ISN'T a trilogy. Sure there are only 3 books listed on Goodreads and Amazon but looks like it's settling in for the long haul. I really wish authors would list how long a series they intend their works to be from the outset (and no, you can't just read the blurbs because they're always filled with spoilers for the previous books).
I will be reading the next book once it's released, but after this series, I'm not inclined to ever read anything else by this author again.
Not that it was bad, as like the others it was entertaining, action-packed, and well written, but like the first book suffers some pretty iffy issues.
Take, for example, the character of Laina who in the previous books was portrayed exclusively as a selfish spoiled brat who even held contempt for homeless women in wartime, retconned into the saviour of those very same (retroactively) for 'plot'.
How about Will, the main character who despite having only a few years of training is now not only able to go toe to toe with anyone in the 'modern' age (which made some sense as true wizardry had been lost) but has more potential than virtually any wizard that has ever lived. We learn in the first book that having his turyn compressed three times makes him rare, but in this book, it is revealed that only a few dozen wizards had EVER managed it, and even doing it twice was a 1 in a 100 thing.
Oh, and we also learn that he can now hold four spells at the same time, one more than his master, a wizard so powerful he waged a one-man war against all his peers for presumably hundreds of years, whose very name could inspire a king to raze an entire village centuries after his supposed death. This conveniently puts him on par with Aislinn... the literal goddess of magic, and the only other person who could ever do so.
On and on it goes with the ridiculous power creep where he just IS so much MORE than everyone else (he can now also astral project and stuff). At least him being better than the current generation of wizards made sense, the rest is just preposterous and lazy.
All in all, I enjoyed reading but the author just pours too much escalation into it to keep it grounded.
To top it all off, it was at this point that I realised this ISN'T a trilogy. Sure there are only 3 books listed on Goodreads and Amazon but looks like it's settling in for the long haul. I really wish authors would list how long a series they intend their works to be from the outset (and no, you can't just read the blurbs because they're always filled with spoilers for the previous books).
I will be reading the next book once it's released, but after this series, I'm not inclined to ever read anything else by this author again.
October 28, 2020
I'm trying to work out how the ratings have gone up over the three books in the series, in the opposite direction of mine, and I'm not sure how.
I really enjoyed the first book, it setup an interesting world with interesting characters, which is the reason I've keep reading the series.
Book two continued building on this, the main character did some silly things and "got away with them", but I sort of ignored them for the enjoyment of the world.
Book three though frustrated me, with a main character which made blatently stupid decisions, was protected purely by authors armor in most instances, that along with a power creep and a magical (hah) abilility to match any situation.
Don't get me wrong, I did still enjoy parts of book three, but those elements are diluted by the frustrating sides, and when book four comes out I'm really not sure I want to take the risk on it.
I really enjoyed the first book, it setup an interesting world with interesting characters, which is the reason I've keep reading the series.
Book two continued building on this, the main character did some silly things and "got away with them", but I sort of ignored them for the enjoyment of the world.
Book three though frustrated me, with a main character which made blatently stupid decisions, was protected purely by authors armor in most instances, that along with a power creep and a magical (hah) abilility to match any situation.
Don't get me wrong, I did still enjoy parts of book three, but those elements are diluted by the frustrating sides, and when book four comes out I'm really not sure I want to take the risk on it.
July 7, 2020
This series is great and I feel like the books just keep getting better. Manning knows how to find the right balance between fulfillment and agony. The interactions feel very real and I wish I had such friends. Another awesome thing is that the “hero” is never too powerful, he never wins just with his own strength or wit and is not perfect. We also get introduced to all the skills he has at hand, so solutions make sense instead of feeling like deus ex machina moments.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and have not taken more than 2 days with any in this series by now, even though I had tons of things to do. Waiting for the next one!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and have not taken more than 2 days with any in this series by now, even though I had tons of things to do. Waiting for the next one!
April 29, 2020
Honestly I couldn't rate it highly enough. I'm most likely going to read the whole thing all over again much slower this time so I have much more time to absorb every detail because I basically read it in 24hours I was so excited. Had been checking the store nearly every day for 2 months waiting for the release.
November 18, 2020
This series came back in a big way in this book, putting a lot of my worries to bed from the second book and delivering an awesome story in the process.
The key things I loved about this book include:
1 - Will's changes - Will is no longer an idiot who is making the worst possible decision at every opportunity. He has levelled up as a character, both mentally and in terms of power, and he is proving that he can learn from past mistakes. Does that mean he doesn't do anything stupid? No, he still does a lot of questionable things, but in this book, it is more in fitting with his character and you can see the logic path he took to arrive at the decisions he comes to.
2 - Will's Levelling up - I know, I already mentioned this one, but I really don't want to overlook it. One of the key elements of this series that I have loved is that the author has never shied away from the fact that this is Will's story. No matter how important anyone else is, the events revolve around Will, the plot is driven by his actions, and a big part of the story is him slowly turning into an absolute badass. As a sucker for overpowered protagonists, I am loving watching this unfold.
3 - Tiny is back! - I've always loved Tiny as a character and him not being in book 2 was a real shame. His simplistic wisdom, unshakeable loyalty, and his pure goodness just made him a great character to read about. He also has excellent chemistry with Will which is one of the better relationships in this whole series.
4 - Will's noble family - A lot of this book deals with Will's noble family and I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did. Family drama is normally a big turn off for me, especially one that follows the old fantasy trope of a bastard son and his noble father. However, this book changed up the formula a bit and made it work. I especially enjoyed reading about Will's relationship with Laina.
5 - No Selene - I get that this will be a controversial one for a lot of people, but the author hasn't sold me on Selene as a character, nor her relationship with Will. So many other characters in this series have more agency than her and have more chemistry with the protagonist. Her not being around much in this novel is a big boon in my mind.
Now onto a few things that I didn't like about this book, as not everything was great:
1 - The King's relationship with Will - Every time they interact, I am left wondering why the king doesn't just kill Will and get it over with. I don't buy their relationship at all and it stretches the realms of disbelief every time they interact.
2 - Turning Laina into something she's not - Laina is one of the real highlights in this book, and her relationship with Will is wonderful. I really enjoyed reading about her. However, the author tries to sell us on her being a really altruistic character and he paints a very different picture of her through the way people talk about her than what he has shown throughout three novels. We have never seen anything other than a spoiled princess type character, one who didn't know what was happening under her very nose and was self-entitled. It's a classic case of show don't tell, because the author is telling us one thing, but not backing it up with her actions and personality.
Overall Verdict
Despite a few niggles here and there, I loved this book and it has completely washed away any ill will the second book created in me for this series. It is an exciting story that moves quickly despite being a long book and I thoroughly enjoyed my time reading it. It's an easy 5-stars for this one, and I can't wait to see what comes next.
The key things I loved about this book include:
1 - Will's changes - Will is no longer an idiot who is making the worst possible decision at every opportunity. He has levelled up as a character, both mentally and in terms of power, and he is proving that he can learn from past mistakes. Does that mean he doesn't do anything stupid? No, he still does a lot of questionable things, but in this book, it is more in fitting with his character and you can see the logic path he took to arrive at the decisions he comes to.
2 - Will's Levelling up - I know, I already mentioned this one, but I really don't want to overlook it. One of the key elements of this series that I have loved is that the author has never shied away from the fact that this is Will's story. No matter how important anyone else is, the events revolve around Will, the plot is driven by his actions, and a big part of the story is him slowly turning into an absolute badass. As a sucker for overpowered protagonists, I am loving watching this unfold.
3 - Tiny is back! - I've always loved Tiny as a character and him not being in book 2 was a real shame. His simplistic wisdom, unshakeable loyalty, and his pure goodness just made him a great character to read about. He also has excellent chemistry with Will which is one of the better relationships in this whole series.
4 - Will's noble family - A lot of this book deals with Will's noble family and I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did. Family drama is normally a big turn off for me, especially one that follows the old fantasy trope of a bastard son and his noble father. However, this book changed up the formula a bit and made it work. I especially enjoyed reading about Will's relationship with Laina.
5 - No Selene - I get that this will be a controversial one for a lot of people, but the author hasn't sold me on Selene as a character, nor her relationship with Will. So many other characters in this series have more agency than her and have more chemistry with the protagonist. Her not being around much in this novel is a big boon in my mind.
Now onto a few things that I didn't like about this book, as not everything was great:
1 - The King's relationship with Will - Every time they interact, I am left wondering why the king doesn't just kill Will and get it over with. I don't buy their relationship at all and it stretches the realms of disbelief every time they interact.
2 - Turning Laina into something she's not - Laina is one of the real highlights in this book, and her relationship with Will is wonderful. I really enjoyed reading about her. However, the author tries to sell us on her being a really altruistic character and he paints a very different picture of her through the way people talk about her than what he has shown throughout three novels. We have never seen anything other than a spoiled princess type character, one who didn't know what was happening under her very nose and was self-entitled. It's a classic case of show don't tell, because the author is telling us one thing, but not backing it up with her actions and personality.
Overall Verdict
Despite a few niggles here and there, I loved this book and it has completely washed away any ill will the second book created in me for this series. It is an exciting story that moves quickly despite being a long book and I thoroughly enjoyed my time reading it. It's an easy 5-stars for this one, and I can't wait to see what comes next.
February 24, 2021
Review of book 1-3. Series dropped! Good start but end unfulling with loose ends. Its a road of misery, rape and cheating.
It starts with a pretty good story and alot is new and fun (this will get worse). The character develope nicely. As the story continues more and more plots and events makes a bigger sense of foreboding. You don't any satisfaction of solution or explanation to any of them. As the books change is looses the main plots in random events to a degree you could say that book 3 is mainly a filler (which i hate, even though the story still is ok).
What i hated the most is character development. Mostly because at first the characters starts great, but as the story goes just feel unrealistic and dull. To compensate the author drives the villains(evil king and fae) to be more evil. The king runs everybody like puppets and the fae is just evil and nothing else, which is more of the same as the king. Most evil and bad events are sexually, which gets old and too much. The MC teacher get his wife taken agains their wills a sex slave, friends gets prosituted and raped. For me personally that is almost over the top. But as its not the main story, not explained in details or set in the past. I can see past that. But the treats between to Selena (MC weekpoint) get more and more detail to the aburd (the king hint on inpregate her) its to much. Also the MC get pregnant with trolls and has a beginging of spirit threesome with his halfsister and her lesbian guard... enough said!
Book 2 ending send Selena away, which can be good so the story is not only about love. But nothing happends until the middle of book 3 where the MC gets a spirit dream to see her cheating. Nothing more is said until the end of book 3, where it turns out she sent to a place where there is an elf in heat. She did kiss him and she admits to being extremly horny. But she punches him. Nothing more is explained. The MC laugh and its done. The wait soured the rest of the book and the ending just unfulfilling and more... There is alot of these feeling and relationship or bonds between MC and relatives, friends, fae or his girlfriend is just missing and makes you feel and the story feels empty.
It starts with a pretty good story and alot is new and fun (this will get worse). The character develope nicely. As the story continues more and more plots and events makes a bigger sense of foreboding. You don't any satisfaction of solution or explanation to any of them. As the books change is looses the main plots in random events to a degree you could say that book 3 is mainly a filler (which i hate, even though the story still is ok).
What i hated the most is character development. Mostly because at first the characters starts great, but as the story goes just feel unrealistic and dull. To compensate the author drives the villains(evil king and fae) to be more evil. The king runs everybody like puppets and the fae is just evil and nothing else, which is more of the same as the king. Most evil and bad events are sexually, which gets old and too much. The MC teacher get his wife taken agains their wills a sex slave, friends gets prosituted and raped. For me personally that is almost over the top. But as its not the main story, not explained in details or set in the past. I can see past that. But the treats between to Selena (MC weekpoint) get more and more detail to the aburd (the king hint on inpregate her) its to much. Also the MC get pregnant with trolls and has a beginging of spirit threesome with his halfsister and her lesbian guard... enough said!
Book 2 ending send Selena away, which can be good so the story is not only about love. But nothing happends until the middle of book 3 where the MC gets a spirit dream to see her cheating. Nothing more is said until the end of book 3, where it turns out she sent to a place where there is an elf in heat. She did kiss him and she admits to being extremly horny. But she punches him. Nothing more is explained. The MC laugh and its done. The wait soured the rest of the book and the ending just unfulfilling and more... There is alot of these feeling and relationship or bonds between MC and relatives, friends, fae or his girlfriend is just missing and makes you feel and the story feels empty.
November 19, 2020
Originally 4 stars, downgraded to 3 after thinking about it for a bit. Story was good in general, but there's a lot of fixation on involving almost every major female character in this book with sex in some way, and usually in some kind of weird or creepy way.
For example:
For example:
June 30, 2020
❤❤❤❤
The third installment of Will's story is excellent. A word of caution--do not read while you're supposed to be doing something else (like working perhaps) because people will wonder what could possibly be so funny as you snigger, snort and guffaw.
The third installment of Will's story is excellent. A word of caution--do not read while you're supposed to be doing something else (like working perhaps) because people will wonder what could possibly be so funny as you snigger, snort and guffaw.
February 16, 2021
A bit superficial and trite. Simplistic, cheap sexy thrills, simple plot, lazy dialog and seemed to be just filling space to create another book, which just continues on and on as much as necessary to earn a bit more money from ...us
Simplistic , trite , lazy, looking to just fill space and earn some money by publishing a new book which is just a bit more than a few chapters. A shame as the earlier books were more interesting.
Simplistic , trite , lazy, looking to just fill space and earn some money by publishing a new book which is just a bit more than a few chapters. A shame as the earlier books were more interesting.
May 4, 2020
Another masterpiece by Michael. He has a way of blending just the right amount of humour with serious philosophical moral and ethical dilemmas which force you to reflect. The magic system is great and I love the characters. He continues to provide evidence of why he is one of my favourite authors.
May 29, 2020
Wonderful Conclusion
In these dark times, it’s nice to escape from the harsh realities we face. I read and love the Fantasy Genre for such reasons. And Michael Manning’s books always put a smile on my face.
Thanks MgM for another 5-Star series!
In these dark times, it’s nice to escape from the harsh realities we face. I read and love the Fantasy Genre for such reasons. And Michael Manning’s books always put a smile on my face.
Thanks MgM for another 5-Star series!
June 23, 2020
Loved the story
In a way a very standard plot line but loved the way the story built in all the books. Good characters with some development and a few unique ones as well. Looking forward to the next book.
In a way a very standard plot line but loved the way the story built in all the books. Good characters with some development and a few unique ones as well. Looking forward to the next book.
March 27, 2022
4 stars
Well all said and done it was a good book but I'm not gonna continue with the story, some revelations and characters that came into this book doesn't suit me and in going forward I'll be seeing a lot of that also so I'm going to put a fullstop here
Well all said and done it was a good book but I'm not gonna continue with the story, some revelations and characters that came into this book doesn't suit me and in going forward I'll be seeing a lot of that also so I'm going to put a fullstop here
October 27, 2021
This has been a genuinely interesting and entertaining fantasy series and I am looking forward keenly to reading the fourth in the series. Although presented primarily as a YA series, these are books which anyone interested in epic or magical fantasy can enjoy, the YA aspect being mainly a consequence of the main character, William Cartwright, being no more than 18 by this third installment. Developing magical powers, a hidden and powerful villian, vampires, the Fey, a cat demigod, trolls and a less than regally behaving monarch are just some of the elemetns in this thrill[acked third installment and the writing is excellent throughout, with a nice turn of humour laced throughout. The traditional epic battle encounter which concludes the book culminates in one of the more surprising outcomes, at least to my mind. All in all, a great romp which is thoroughly recommended.
December 19, 2020
Great series!
I love this series; the characters are fun, and interesting. The progression and growth is well done and the main character isn’t overpowered. Honestly I also like how he’s able to write characters that have depth and are young people with flaws and awkwardness at times.
Not gonna lie the last few pages of them talking over everything that happened are hilarious. This was my second read through and I can’t get enough of this series. I hope it never ends!
I love this series; the characters are fun, and interesting. The progression and growth is well done and the main character isn’t overpowered. Honestly I also like how he’s able to write characters that have depth and are young people with flaws and awkwardness at times.
Not gonna lie the last few pages of them talking over everything that happened are hilarious. This was my second read through and I can’t get enough of this series. I hope it never ends!
July 19, 2020
It's amazing how he just keeps caring for people who have nothing to do with him. Anyway I won't say thats bad writing since too many books portray some morally "perfect" hero. It really gets to me whenever he kills someone, TO SAVE SOMEONE, and they glare at him accusingly like "you killed him without hesitating!", whoever does that stare is already a poor written character. Fk this author rubs in me in all the wrong ways, this book is just not for me.
But seriously, why is Tiny there every fight, why do you keep trying to incorporate someone who IS USELESS and keep justifying him being useful. He has no magic. If the book followed even a bit of sense, he would have died dozens of times already, he is physically weaker than the vampires, and he has no magic. So how hasn't he died? Because plot armor supreme makes him seem relevant.
(TINY SPOILER ABOUT AN IRRELEVANT COUPLE)
And why is he and Janice so forced, how does she get love at first sight with a giant, I'm sry, but it doesn't happen. Being so big isn't attractive at all, and love at first sight can only happen with attractiveness, with those who are anything but, it only comes later when you get to know the person and like being with him. So yeah, Tiny is absolutely forced in both combat and love, just so to make up for Janice having a crush on Will.
A cliche.
Basically I only touched on things I disliked, not saying book is bad, but I really hate illogical things, and author had some dam bad ones too, lets not even get started about arrogan dying, this is up there with dumbledore being gay. An arrow gets him. An arrow. An arrow. It was fired early. Early. Let me bash my head in to this wall a bit.
Edit 20 mins later / SPOILER : Omg, how did he kill Androv? Because the man simply stopped and let him cast his spell. He waited. The most careful, clever vampire, just let him do whatever he wants. I really don't want to read the next book, I really don't, but all the time invested... UGHH
Edit n.2 another 20 mins later/SPOILER : okay I liked the ending and especially selene not cheating, so Ill probs read the next one.
But seriously, why is Tiny there every fight, why do you keep trying to incorporate someone who IS USELESS and keep justifying him being useful. He has no magic. If the book followed even a bit of sense, he would have died dozens of times already, he is physically weaker than the vampires, and he has no magic. So how hasn't he died? Because plot armor supreme makes him seem relevant.
(TINY SPOILER ABOUT AN IRRELEVANT COUPLE)
And why is he and Janice so forced, how does she get love at first sight with a giant, I'm sry, but it doesn't happen. Being so big isn't attractive at all, and love at first sight can only happen with attractiveness, with those who are anything but, it only comes later when you get to know the person and like being with him. So yeah, Tiny is absolutely forced in both combat and love, just so to make up for Janice having a crush on Will.
A cliche.
Basically I only touched on things I disliked, not saying book is bad, but I really hate illogical things, and author had some dam bad ones too, lets not even get started about arrogan dying, this is up there with dumbledore being gay. An arrow gets him. An arrow. An arrow. It was fired early. Early. Let me bash my head in to this wall a bit.
Edit 20 mins later / SPOILER : Omg, how did he kill Androv? Because the man simply stopped and let him cast his spell. He waited. The most careful, clever vampire, just let him do whatever he wants. I really don't want to read the next book, I really don't, but all the time invested... UGHH
Edit n.2 another 20 mins later/SPOILER : okay I liked the ending and especially selene not cheating, so Ill probs read the next one.
May 18, 2020
First I would like to state, that I love most of your books, not too heavy on worldbuilding (which can sometimes get too overbearing, at least for me), with meaningful and real conversations and interactions between characters and good, although somewhat predictable story and actions, mainly of the main character.
But hey, nowadays there are so many fiction stories floating around, that it's pretty hard creating something really unique. And although author often uses some well known stereotypes, the finished product is always a great read.
But I must say, I'am really not getting the motivation for the whole hero/savior routine of the MC in this particular story. I mean, ok so his Fey aunt gets kidnaped and suddenly he is all crazy about saving her.. why the hell is that?
First, he only knows about this particular relative for like what, 1/10th of his life? Second, several times now it was stated (and I get the feeling that Mc also internally understands this and made peace with it), that Fae don't give a f*** about others, they care only for themselves. His so called aunt would actually rip out his throat the first chance she got, if she knew there would be no ramifications for the act. And she repeatedly abuses him verbally. So why the hell would anybody go out of his way to help someone like that?
Even his hero/saviour complex in case of his half-sister was getting somewhat too much, although I can at least somewhat understand this one.
Well as I said, overall it's a good sequel to a great story and its really an enjoyable read, but sometimes I just can't not think to myself "Why the f*** are you trying to help that bit**? She is not worth it dumbass!" He is too good natured for his own good.
But hey, nowadays there are so many fiction stories floating around, that it's pretty hard creating something really unique. And although author often uses some well known stereotypes, the finished product is always a great read.
But I must say, I'am really not getting the motivation for the whole hero/savior routine of the MC in this particular story. I mean, ok so his Fey aunt gets kidnaped and suddenly he is all crazy about saving her.. why the hell is that?
First, he only knows about this particular relative for like what, 1/10th of his life? Second, several times now it was stated (and I get the feeling that Mc also internally understands this and made peace with it), that Fae don't give a f*** about others, they care only for themselves. His so called aunt would actually rip out his throat the first chance she got, if she knew there would be no ramifications for the act. And she repeatedly abuses him verbally. So why the hell would anybody go out of his way to help someone like that?
Even his hero/saviour complex in case of his half-sister was getting somewhat too much, although I can at least somewhat understand this one.
Well as I said, overall it's a good sequel to a great story and its really an enjoyable read, but sometimes I just can't not think to myself "Why the f*** are you trying to help that bit**? She is not worth it dumbass!" He is too good natured for his own good.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 10, 2024
Rating 4.0 stars
Much better than the previous books. Will has become something of a badass in this one. He isn't worried as much about what people think. He didn't do as many stupid things in this book, but he still acts out of emotion instead of using his head. In my opinion that makes him very easy to manipulate. It has been a year since Will's grandmother took Selene on as an apprentice and he hasn't seen her once. He doesn't know where she is. This creates a problem with hiding this fact from the King and all of Selene's friends. Especially Will's half sister. Probably the best book in the series so far since Will didn't act as stupid in this one. I am interested to see where this goes.
Much better than the previous books. Will has become something of a badass in this one. He isn't worried as much about what people think. He didn't do as many stupid things in this book, but he still acts out of emotion instead of using his head. In my opinion that makes him very easy to manipulate. It has been a year since Will's grandmother took Selene on as an apprentice and he hasn't seen her once. He doesn't know where she is. This creates a problem with hiding this fact from the King and all of Selene's friends. Especially Will's half sister. Probably the best book in the series so far since Will didn't act as stupid in this one. I am interested to see where this goes.
May 5, 2020
These books just keep getting better and better AND BETTER. I remember starting with Blacksmith's Son back in the day and falling in love with the world, the characters, the HUMOUR and WIT (which I believe are the key parts to Michael's books being amazing), the MAGIC(!), the romance, fun, sadness, agony; everything. Ugh. It's just so good 🤤
If you're a fan of fantasy/magic/wizards/boy coming into power stories, then literally ALL of Michael's books are for you. You'll fall in love, guaranteed. If you don't, I'll take your verbal beating 😉 I might as well guarantee a limb or an organ; I know I'm never going to need to fulfil this 😂😁
Steadily and surprisingly these books just keep improving. I always think I've figured out Michael's writing, then it just blows up every book with something else amazing. Scholar of Magic has made me laugh out loud the most in a while when reading. Literally screaming with delight and hilarity and awkwardness at all the different myriad of crazy adventures Will gets up to.
I love how Michael's writing is so him, and so current. It's not trying to be anything it's not, and that's gorgeous and beautiful. If you follow him on Facebook you'll know what I mean. His meme life and sense of humour translates perfectly into his writing: it feels so connected.
Anyway, please please please read this book: you will laugh so many times and it will make me happy 😁😂
If you're a fan of fantasy/magic/wizards/boy coming into power stories, then literally ALL of Michael's books are for you. You'll fall in love, guaranteed. If you don't, I'll take your verbal beating 😉 I might as well guarantee a limb or an organ; I know I'm never going to need to fulfil this 😂😁
Steadily and surprisingly these books just keep improving. I always think I've figured out Michael's writing, then it just blows up every book with something else amazing. Scholar of Magic has made me laugh out loud the most in a while when reading. Literally screaming with delight and hilarity and awkwardness at all the different myriad of crazy adventures Will gets up to.
I love how Michael's writing is so him, and so current. It's not trying to be anything it's not, and that's gorgeous and beautiful. If you follow him on Facebook you'll know what I mean. His meme life and sense of humour translates perfectly into his writing: it feels so connected.
Anyway, please please please read this book: you will laugh so many times and it will make me happy 😁😂
May 15, 2020
This was a series that I had really enjoyed and was looking forward to continuing. It took me a bit to remember where we were in the story, but once I did, things took off from there. The story arc continued with Selene being MIA (that was one of the things I had forgotten, that she was off "training" with the Fae) and with Will just being a trouble magnet. He is a great MC, likeable yet so clueless sometimes. Somehow, even with ALL of the chaos surrounding him, he is able to come out on top. There is lots and lots of action - a big bad king who is consistently awful, friends who risk everything to help him, a butler type helper who knows more than he admits, and an awful lot of bad guys trying to kill Will. So basically, what's new?
I enjoyed this. There is not yet an Audible version so I ended up reading this. I'm not sure if this is the end or will be continuing, but if it continues, I will be going along for the ride.
I enjoyed this. There is not yet an Audible version so I ended up reading this. I'm not sure if this is the end or will be continuing, but if it continues, I will be going along for the ride.
August 10, 2020
Character development for specific members of Will's group was fantastic in this book. They will remain unnamed for a spoiler-free review, but seriously fantastic reveals and interactions from the cast all around.
I think the pace of the plot can be a bit daunting at times, to where there's no down time in the action, but that was also the practical consequence of the problems that the cast were dealing with. It definitely kept me turning the pages. Can't wait for the release of the next volume!
I think the pace of the plot can be a bit daunting at times, to where there's no down time in the action, but that was also the practical consequence of the problems that the cast were dealing with. It definitely kept me turning the pages. Can't wait for the release of the next volume!
July 23, 2020
Pretty decent
So I like this the series has real female characters, and not all of them are simple archetypes, and the people have difficult family relationships that they still work through, and that each character is given something to show their humanity. The magic system is interesting, and even though I don’t fully understand it, it has some great underpinnings and explanations that help you understand where the author is coming from.
So I like this the series has real female characters, and not all of them are simple archetypes, and the people have difficult family relationships that they still work through, and that each character is given something to show their humanity. The magic system is interesting, and even though I don’t fully understand it, it has some great underpinnings and explanations that help you understand where the author is coming from.
June 1, 2020
Outstanding
Another amazing dive into a rich and fascinating world. Relatable and well-created characters are the hallmark of Mr Manning and one can’t help being drawn in by the comparisons to the previous series’ main (anti-)hero. If you like fantasy, you can’t afford to miss this author.
Another amazing dive into a rich and fascinating world. Relatable and well-created characters are the hallmark of Mr Manning and one can’t help being drawn in by the comparisons to the previous series’ main (anti-)hero. If you like fantasy, you can’t afford to miss this author.
August 29, 2020
MG Manning does it again!
Listen, if you’ve already finished books one and two why are you honestly bothering to read reviews for book 3! You know it’ll be just as brilliant and downright hilarious as the other two! Will’s journey just keeps getting better and better - bravo MG Manning 👏
Listen, if you’ve already finished books one and two why are you honestly bothering to read reviews for book 3! You know it’ll be just as brilliant and downright hilarious as the other two! Will’s journey just keeps getting better and better - bravo MG Manning 👏
October 28, 2020
The ending was abrupt. The loose endings were conveniently just tied up - it felt like just to end the series. If this was a Sarah Maas book, I felt like there would have been a separate book for Selene's story and more development of the relationship with his father. It was still a good easy read, but definitely felt rushed at the end.
May 18, 2020
My favorite in the series so far! A lot of unexpected twists and laughs. Also a lot of unanswered questions, but not an awful cliffhanger either. I'll gladly pre-purchase the next book when it's released!
June 8, 2020
It's always a little sad when i finish one of Michael's books, as i know it will be a while before the next one. If you are a fan of 'coming of age fantasy' then you must read Mr Manning's back catalogue. I would love to see a movies series adapted from these books.
July 24, 2020
Liked it
Not sure if the story is over or not but great book. Interesting new characters and further development of existing ones. New monsters, magic and plots. Defendantely worth reading!
Not sure if the story is over or not but great book. Interesting new characters and further development of existing ones. New monsters, magic and plots. Defendantely worth reading!
September 20, 2020
Great ending
So, the first book in this series I thought Will was a complete idiot and so wasn't really eager to read book two. When I finally did I was much happier, for that and this conclusion. Just read if a fan my thoughts aren't forming well this morning lol
So, the first book in this series I thought Will was a complete idiot and so wasn't really eager to read book two. When I finally did I was much happier, for that and this conclusion. Just read if a fan my thoughts aren't forming well this morning lol
June 28, 2021
Having several pages focusing on LGBTQ+ that is irrelevant to the story is disengaging and isn't doing us justice! It's pandering and makes me feel like an afterthought and MAKES FOR BAD WRITING!
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