Magelord by Terry Mancour

From the Amazon Description:

MINALAN GETS MEDIEVAL! When you defeat the invading goblin army, get knighted on the field of battle, gifted with lands and gold, usually your happily-ever-after is . . . happy. But now that Minalan the Spellmonger has been ennobled and enfiefed, Sire Minalan has a task cut out for him that makes defeating goblins seem like child’s play: moving his very pregnant bride and a few thousand refugees from Boval Vale into the remote, sparsely-peopled Domain of Sevendor. But when he arrives, he finds the land withered from neglect, filled with superstition and suspicion, a third of his domain has been conquered before he got there, and the castle he now owns hasn’t been maintained in decades. As Minalan manages the challenges of being a noble, being a mage knight, being the lord of the manor, being a landlord, and fending off a belligerent (and well-armed) neighbor, he also has to learn how to be a husband, father, and a leader of a people. Then the fateful night his son is finally born, Minalan learns the nature of fear, as he, his family, and his very realm are forever changed when the spell he casts to save their lives transforms the land. Minalan, his apprentices Sir Tyndal and Sir Rondal, his dour but efficacious castellan Sir Cei, and his moody wife struggle through the winter and defend their domain in his attempt to prove what a Magelord can do for his people when he puts magic in their service. But in the distance, the threat of a renewed war with the goblins looms as they approach the Riverlands, the Gilmoran baronies that are the heart of the Duchies. The contentious High Magi convene to constitute the new Arcane Orders, while the fanatical Royal Censorate of Magic plots defeat them and the thousands of hedgemagi, witches and footwizards they terrorized now see Minalan as a hero. The sinister Family schemes to promote Duke Rard II to become King Rard I of the newly-united Kingdom of Castalshar – over a pile of bodies, if necessary. And suddenly, out of the sky fall dragons in the service of the Dead God to strike at the strength of the nascent Kingdom. How can Sire Minalan fight goblins, plots, poverty and politics, all from his remote and rustic vale while keeping the peasants in line and the Warbird of West Fleria at bay? With wit, courage, determination, and a healthy dose of magic. And when the new King tasks him to find a way to slay a dragon, an ordinary knight might shy away from the quest. For Sire Minalan, it’s just another day on the job as a MAGELORD!

My thoughts

I do think this could be my favorite book in the series. I have read eight or nine so far, but I really love this book. I have been a succor for political intrigue. Battles can become old, and stale, and really what goes on behind the scenes is more important.

Warning,,,, there be spoiler afoot.

He shows up in a land that is crap. He picked it, with advice I am sure, but he picked a place that was defensible and something he thought he could make more. When he shows up, half the kingdom was illegally taken over by another duke, and the man the steward of the place is drunk and whoring. He inherits a land that has a fraction of the people, a fraction of the buildings, and a dump. On top of this he has gathered the Sevendori refugees, and they are heading here to make this area their new home.

He kicks out the steward, and has to start fixing the place and preparing it for the influx of people. He reclaims the other valley at yule from the kid whose father had illegally taken the land. Then defend, build the valley, give out witch stones, deal with rivals,

He magically transforms a mountain into a special stone that has never been seen before, and it draws the interest of other magical races. The goblins are invading, and they have dragons, DRAGONS.

He picks up apprentice number three, sees the Duke made King, creates the new magical orders, and basically spends a lot of time planning his land, protecting, and just trying to keep things together. Then at the heights of all this has to fight more and more, and is drawn into the fight with the goblins again, with their dragon. Where is 3rd apprentice, and Sire Kay become renown heroes.

I loved it. Loved it so much. I mean one of my favorite books in the last few years was The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison. It is just a book about politics, well not just about politics, however that behind the scenes stuff that keeps things going, and protecting from backstabbing neighbors is fantastic if it is done right, and terrible if it is done wrong.

I loved his thought, he can get annoying when he gets in the long discussions with other wizards about where things are going. I think a few times Terry Mancour can get rolling and just add in a bit too much.

Slowly we are starting to see the Magelord become comfortable with power, and leading. He has been pushed into this, and it is awkward for him. Having to be a judge disturbs him, but he also knows it has to be done. The characters growth is something that I enjoy. I look back now at too many books where the characters do not change, they stay the same. If the writer wrote them nervous and hesitant, they are that way for a dozen books. It is refreshing to see him get better.

I am getting used to the strange cursing. It is not as offensive or as prevalent as the last two books, but still there, and still not for smaller kids. It is just fun, and enjoyable.

4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Warmage by Terry Mancour

There are times that you grab the next book in a series without question. Kind of like binge watching on Netflix, you slide through a series about as fast as you can, moving from book to book. There are other times you realize that you can’t stomach the book and can’t continue with the series. This book had me on the edge. Sitting trying to decide.

The last book I loved in many ways, yet i found some sections offensive. Sexual innuendo and situations, violence that seemed excessive. Yet I really loved the story, I loved a story that was not meant for me as a 13 year old. Something for me as an adult and in adult situations.

So I decided to move onto the next book, Warmage. It did not disappoint, and it did.

The Good

Man the story is good. I do get tired of people that tell a story with two timelines. We start in the fall and in command of an army, and jump back to him months in the past trying convince the duke that he needs to form an army. I hate that kind of story writing, however, it works. Mostly because a lot of that is politics. It is the story behind the battles. That would take up a good portion of the book, and though it is interesting, it can be slow. The solution is breaking it up into two stories that come together later on.

So I will not complain too much. I love the story line where he is gaining power, he is needed. Slowly people start moving around him. There are spoilers ahead, so be aware.

I loved the battles, and the intrigue. There is so much about him becoming part of “The Family”. The family is the spy group that is working for the Duke. (there is no kink). The common argument is that there is no way to overthrow the bans against magic by a Duke. Only the king has that kind of power, and there has not been a king for centuries.

One of the five Dukes is maneuvering himself to be king. He is willing to call for an emergency, and waive the bans on magic. Why? The spellmonger tells him the magi will only help if they relax the bans on magic. Well, he is told that he will get what he wishes, if he saves the duchy. (that is the short story of the long many chapter discussion)

So off he goes, as the commander of 10-20,000 fast moving troops. He will lead the battles and proove he is worth the Dukes faith.

The Bad

He is whiny at times. That gets on my nerves. He is supposed to be smart, yet he seems to need others to tell him what to do. I do understand, the writer wants to explain political situations yet not really drag it out. Make the main character dumb, and you can explain a lot.

Yet dozens of people should trust him because he is smart and wise, or not. He is smart or not. So those sections seemed to get on my nerves.

The Disturbing

I have read a number of books, and one of the images is really disturbing. When he goes to investigate a destroyed villages Minalin casts a spell to find out what happened. It was bad. That section has haunted me along with some of the Terry Goodkind sections. Torture is rough to cover, and the need to declare how evil the group is that you are fighting was there. I think those images move into the shadow of horror, and it has stuck with me many books on. Well the village was killed in a horrible way. It works for the book, but it can disturb.

He does open with him having an affair. It is used heavily in future books, so there is a reason. He technically is not married, but he plans to marry, and his bride to be is far away and pregnant. He also has multiple dalliances. I am sure these things happened in the dark ages, lots. However it is disturbing to think of too much.

My Final Thoughts

I liked the book. Nearly as much as the first one. I think it is better than this book, so if you disliked that one, I am not sure you should go on. It is darker, grittier, and just more of the rough stuff around the edges.

However it is still a book that tells a better story. Most stories have battles and lives that are so clean. This is darker and rougher. Evil is incarnate. There is black and white, but this book shows more shades of grey in society.

I liked it. Though it is rough, it is a good book. I would recommend it to anyone.

3 1/2 out of 5 Stars

Spellmonger by Terry Mancour

I started reading this again after a few years. I have a love hate relationship with this book that I will go into later. Sometimes I do a lot of hunting for a book. i will be down to my last credit on Audible, and will be digging in the corners for something I like. I don’t want to pay for new credits so I will be picky in choosing. Sometimes I will dig for larger, longer books. You know, something to get my moneys worth. This was not one of those. i just grabbed the book.

Storyline

Minalan is a spellmonger. A village magician, and the son of a baker. He was found having magical talent and was sent away to train. After graduating he was drafted into the magical corp. A war was going to be waged upon the “Mad Mage”. After the battles and a few years of military service, he returns and picks a small village in the mountains to ply his trade. He wants to relax, take an apprentice, and lead a simple life.

The story opens at this point, introducing the character and his apprentice. Mages were defeated in wars centuries before, now they serve the people, no longer rule. When a large band of 100+ goblins attack the village, he defends it and defeats a goblin shamen. The goblin had an unusual amount of power. Upon searching the bodies he founds a small sliver of a rare mineral named irianite. Irianite is a crystal/stone that magnifies magical power. It is so feared that possession and use is a death sentence.

The story tells of his research on the stone, the invasion of the valley known as Bovale Vale. He visits the elves to get some knowledge, then is forced over the remainder of the book to defend the village, then resist the seige of the castle.

Review

I loved the book, and was disturbed in parts. I am not sure where I fit. I am a father of a few daughters, so perhaps I look at how people deal with women, and respect them as part of my thoughts. It is grittier than most books, and women are treated nearly as objects. Well, in the medevil times that is how they were treated.

I like the growth of the character, and the characters around him. He moves from a guy that was tired of war, and wanting peace, to being the leader in a bloody war. The part that throws my off is the dealing with sex in the book. Women are used, whores are common, the swearing is sexually related. I would not consider this a book for younger or middle age teens. He comments on the breasts and other body parts of the women regularly. The character describes himself as ‘lusty’.

In the end I liked the book, I felt it was not too much. I can see the simple man thrown into the deep end. He is trying to help others, and keep himself focused on what he needs to do next.

I recommend the book, though if sexual references are too much, then I would stay away. However it is nice to have a book for adults. Blood, gore, and horrible things people do in battle are part of the book. It makes it more real, for a fantasy book.

4 out of 5 stars