Reviews of The Unsuspecting Mage: The Morcyth Saga Book One

Great read and a great introduction to a new book series. May not have started reading if it were not free... reading drove me to get the next one! The attention to detail on the mechanics of how things work in the environment are not "inconsequential" but an enhancement to the experience. Look forward to reading more of Pratt's work.

I liked the book. The beginning caught my attention and I was able to ignore some of the issues I have with the author's writing style. The middle dragged on but the last part of the book was exciting and I fell into the story. I was bummed when the book ended and I found out I needed book two. If you keep in mind that the author is inexperienced (this is my opinion, not a fact) and you are looking for just a fun story then by all means read the book. I have yet to decide whether I am willing to buy the second book. It does make me want to write my own story!

This is a fun and exciting story following a teenager as he falls into a world of magic. My main problem is not with the cliche plot, but with the authors tendancy to get caught up in inconsequential details. I felt like yelling at my screen "who cares about money, get on with the story". But aside form a few flaws it was an extremly entertaining story.

Action, more action, and then add a bit more action, and that’s what you got here. From the getgo, about chapter 2, the action starts and other than a few minor interludes, never stops. James went for a job, but finds himself on another world, one in which magic works. Sounds like a dozen other books written along the same vein, yes?

But no. Pratt gave this one a new angle. You see, James is a role-player and fantasy reader. Once in this new world, he puts his experience d-ming and other stuff to good use. He’s a babe in the woods at first, knows nothing about nothing,

Upon first arriving, he’s told three things.
He can’t go home
Magic works on this world
And to make his way to Trendle, which turns out to be a village.

That’s it. From that point on, his life is in constant turmoil, first with pursuit by wolves, then even worse nasties. Every chapter has something going on, something interesting. The battle scenes were pretty good, though Pratt does like to describe some rather mundane details like eating at an inn and haggling, but I think it added to the ‘flavor’ of the book.

A few items of note that might put some people off. First off, it’s written in present tense. For me it took some getting used to, but after that, it went fine. Secondly, there are a few misspellings, improper syntax, that sort of thing. Thankfully, the story was sufficiently intriguing that after a while I stopped noticing.

If you come at this book as a fun, exciting adventure; a way to wile away the afternoon, you’ll love it. If you are after a dark, deeply convoluted story with a cast of thousands, you’ll not care. The story follows James throughout. Basically, what James knows, the reader knows.

Descriptions are at a minimum. For those burnt out by Jordan’s Wheel of Time, this might be a good alternative.

This really should have a four and a half star, but as I couldn’t give that, I’ll give it a five. He needs an editor to go through it before it gets a whole five. Liked the story, enjoyed it throughout, and am recommending it.

--Jonathan 'Terry' Craig