REVIEW: Magician: Apprentice by Raymond E. Feist

Magician: Apprentice by Raymond E. Feist
Publishing information: Paperback; 512 pages
Publisher: Spectra; 4th edition; 1 December 1993
ISBN 10: 0553564943
ISBN 13: 978-0553564945
Series: Book 1 (of 4) of the Riftwar Saga
Copy: Out of Pocket
Reviewer: Tyson

Back of the Book: "To the forest on the shore of the Kingdom of the Isles, the orphan Pug came to study with the master magician Kulgan. But though his courage won him a place at court and the heart of a lovely Princess, he was ill at ease with the normal ways of wizardry. Yet Pug's strange sort of magic would one day change forever the fates of two worlds. For dark beings from another world had opened a rift in the fabric of spacetime to being again the age-old battle between the forces of Order and Chaos."

I have a confession, before this book, I had never read Feist. It was for that reason that I got off my duff and decided to see if I would enjoy the author. Add to it that a lot of forums like to discuss just who the heck is the most powerful magician and Pugs name comes up time and time again.

The first thing you should know about Magician:Apprentice is that it is only half a book. The second half of the novel Magician:Master were meant to be one novel but, due to its length were split in twain. As you read Magician:Apprentice you may come to the end of the book and wonder just why it stops when most of the story is really getting good. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

Magician:Apprentice is a lot of fun and luckily I purchased both books at the same time so I could continue the series right after I finished the first part. While I enjoy learning about Pug, we also get a lot of rich supporting characters who I found I actually cared about. His best friend, Tomas is also well crafted. As are most of the royalty that surround our hero. Even the enemies that come from a separate plane are well thought out and are more than just 'EVIL,' they have a reason for being there and are built up just as well as the society we enter the story with.

Pug is your typical hero. He is an orphan and when chance comes around, Kulgan, the royal magician takes notice of him and in no time he is struggling with his new position and responsibilities. I have a lot of things I enjoyed with the development of Pug and his friend Tomas. In the beginning the book takes them slow and progress is steady. Later on, there are parts that seemed rushed. It seemed to make the read a little forced at times.

The concept of the book is entertaining as we have a basic medieval times and then a rift opens up and has a who new culture descend on the inhabitants. The reason that they are there is uncertain and their customs are even stranger. I found the enemies of the realm just as interesting as the main characters.

While Magician:Apprentice has less action then Magician:Master, I did not mind. I think the reason I enjoyed it so much is the fact that the dialogue seemed appropriate. There was a lot of times where I smiled at what I had read as I imagined the exchange taking place. It had a real feel to it and it made the read all that more enjoyable. While I am a huge reader and find myself reading whenever I have a free minute, I found myself creating more time to finish this book. As soon as I completed it I jumped right into the second book in the series and ordered the two remaining books in the saga. Magician:Apprentice is a great way to discover Feist.

Plot 8
Characters 8
Style 8

Overall 8/10