Vampires. Shifters. Fae. Mages. This ain’t the New York City you know… Aspen is a Norm. A non-magic. A human. And in the magically hidden boroughs of New York City, that’s a quick way to wind up dead. Or worse. So instead of magic, Aspen relies on her skills as a thief to stay alive.She didn’t plan on getting caught stealing from Lucien Dunadine, one of the strongest members on the Council of … getting caught stealing from Lucien Dunadine, one of the strongest members on the Council of Mages.
She really didn’t plan on him blackmailing her into being his apprentice.
But with the Council demanding Lucien present a candidate for a competition to become their newest Mage, neither one of them has much choice.
Now something sinister is going down in the magical boroughs. Supernaturals are winding up dead and mysteriously, impossibly, drained of magic. If Isak, Aspen’s handsome, aggravating opponent in the competition, doesn’t kill her first, the two of them just might be able to figure out who’s behind the murders before an ancient evil is unleashed.
Welcome to the boroughs. Let the magic begin.
Prepare for a gripping, action-packed, immersive young adult urban fantasy read in Mage’s Apprentice, the first book in the thrilling Mage’s of New York Trilogy full of mystery, breathtaking twists, and a slow-burn romance!
This is book one of the Mages of New York Trilogy
Book One: Mage’s Apprentice
Book Two: Mage’s Trial
Book Three: Mage’s End
more
Fantasy with a touch of reality. I love the raw edginess of this book. I thoroughly enjoyed this storyline from beginning to end and cannot wait to read more.
I’d give this book a 3,5/5, but I chose 4 after all.
For me this book is not bad nor good. When I’m looking or searching for a book I need action, drama, romance and much more.
In this book we got some of it, but only slightly.
At first I didn’t enjoy the book, but I was giving it a chance. There was nothing to hold me reading it…the characters weren’t as good as I wanted them to be and mostly I was really missing some action. I thought that since the book is about mages and supernatural that it will be packed.
I gave this book a chance, because I did it before with another book and it wouldn’t be fair.
After the first half of the book…I got some action and drama even heartbreak, so I continued reading it.
The ending of the book got me a bit confused at first until I figured what the author is writing is about.
After all I liked the book, I don’t think that this book is worth for me to reread, but might be for someone else! I would recommend if you love stories that have more of a story telling that fighting kind of.
This book was enjoyable. Growing up and dealing with crushes and broken illusions about friends or family is hard enough for anyone but for a non-magical person in a magical society? I enjoyed the trials and tribulations our heroine had to deal with; she deals with them with the same spirit, emotional angst and impulsiveness that Harry Potter demonstrated in his first and second year at Hogworts. This is the first of Sean Fletcher’s books I have read – it definitely will not be the last.
I received an ARC through Hidden Gem Books and voluntarily reviewed it.
This is the first book in a new YA urban fantasy series set in the same world as the Heir of Dragons series.
This time, we get to know all sorts of supernatural and magical races, and we learn that there is generally no love lost between “supes” and “Norms”. Enter Aspen, our Norm protagonist living in one of the magic boroughs of today’s New York.
While some aspects of the story might seem overly familiar (orphan whose parents got murdered by a powerful wizard, half-giant best friend, …), and there are many nods to other authors’ works (hello, Charlotte!), Sean Fletcher provides his own spin on common tropes and delivers an entertaining tale.
As always, I enjoy his blend of action and humor, and not to forget a hefty dose of teenage shenanigans, nicely summed up by Lucien (one of my favorite characters, by the way):
“Spoken like a true teenager. No understanding of the weight of your consequences.”
The book is the first of a new series and it is as good as other books by the author. The book has everything: a really strong female lead, a storyline full of action, a lot of magic and a nice love interest. You’ll love Brune, Aspen and Isak characters!! I hate spoilers therefore I just tell you this: This book is an amazing reading!!
Mage’s Apprentice is the first book in a new YA series by Sean Fletcher, and it’s a thrilling, fast-paced adventure that promises not to let go for a while.
In it, we follow the story of Aspen, a character who’s been through so much and has had a really tough upbringing, yet she doesn’t want your pity (I’m pretty sure she’d punch you if you dared). Rather, she knows how to take care of herself, and you’ll find yourself rooting for her while she goes through all the quests and then some. Does this mean that she makes all the right decisions? Far from it. But despite that, you’ll be hooked by all the action from the first chapter, and you’ll want to follow her journey to see how this all plays out.
I’d definitely recommend this new to me YA author who packs this story with a punch, but delivers it with a healthy dose of sass and sarcasm, a witty plus tough-as-nails heroine, side characters who you’ll either love or love to hate, and a light sprinkle of sweet romance (just enough to satisfy the fans who like it in a book, but not overly done so as to make others sick with it). 4.5 stars
PS: I honestly can’t wait for more Lucien, Isak, Tana, and Brune. Is Mage’s Trial out yet?
Oh, what a roller-coaster of a story this was! Fast-paced, action-packed, mind blowing adventure and a budding romance set in an urban setting of a New York within New York. Exceptional characters, vivid descriptions, wonderful world building and plenty of mythological references to satisfy my inner mythology geek. Loved the twists and turns of the storyline! I read it in one sitting and stayed up well into the night to finish it, but it was worth every second of it.
This is my first book by this author and it won’t be my last. This is the first book in the new series ‘Mages of New York’. I never wanted to put it down. The characters are well developed and the storyline is interesting.
The main character is a young girl called Aspen, who was brought up in the magical world of New York city. Aspen is a human with no magic. She survives by her thieving until she gets caught.
I highly recommend this book for lovers of YA and fantasy. I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.
It wasn’t totally my thing, but if you like action then it’ll probably be your thing
I’m gonna have to be honest. I thought I would LOVE this book, I thought it would be right up my alley, but I misjudged it. I never fully connected with Aspen, the main character. I felt there was too much action and I needed some softness, some breathing space in between all that action to balance it out, but that wasn’t there. Overall I can only give it an okay score.
On the plus side: There was never a boring moment. Action-filled! Action – attack – defend – action – more action!
On the minus side: It was all too tough, too hard, too serious. I missed some relief. Aspen is only tough, hardened, and while that’s understandable given the circumstances, I want some level of softness. She is loyal to Brune and I could appreciate that. She is skilled and I could admire those skills.
All in all, it turned out that this just wasn’t totally my thing. I guess I’m a bit overly sensitive. I’m telling you that, so you can see for yourself if this’d be your thing or not. Because I sincerely believe this will speak to readers who like action-filled stories. Who like their main characters to be tough.
This is an awesome start to a new series! It is fast paced, exciting and has very well developed and believable characters! I couldn’t put it down! The excitement of a magical NYC combined with the danger of a normal human living amongst the magical races was totally new and different. If you like the Harry Potter series, you’ll love this new series by Sean Fletcher!
Mage’s Apprentice is the first book in a new series. For me it started very slowly and I had trouble getting into the story. Once Aspen had met Lucian the book quickly picked up pace and I really started to enjoy it. Aspen is a complex character with a troubled past who evolves into a much better and nicer character as the story progresses. The other characters are interesting and add depth and colour. I recommend this book to all Urban Fantasy fans and am looking forward to finding out what happens next .. the epilogue paves the way for the next book in the series.
I received an advanced copy of this book and this is my honest and voluntary review.
Mage’s Apprentice is book 1 in The Mages of New York series. This is one of the best books I’ve read in awhile. It has it all — great world building, unique story line, and well developed interesting characters. Sean Fletcher has the unique ability of writing a story that draws you into it at the beginning and keeps you turning pages to the end as you find yourself needing to know what’s coming next. You will love both the good and bad characters. Aspen is an orphan who has become a thief and inventor in order to survive as a NORM in a magical world. Lucien is one of the 7 ruling mages who Aspen tries to steal from but is caught and blackmailed into being his apprentice. These are just two of the wonderfully developed characters. This story is action packed, has plenty of twists & turns, flows at a fast pace, has a little romance, and a lot of magical creatures. I am anxiously waiting for the next book in this series. If you want to truly experience a great book, I highly recommend this one. You will be happy you did. I received a copy and this is my voluntary and honest review.
OMG, This book kept you reading. I feel this book would be loved by teens to adults. WE have all kinds of magic people and norms that the Mage are to take care of. Aspen is a Norm that lives in the magic world, even thou they want them out and dead. Her parents die in a fire and now she has to rely on herself to survive. Lucien is a Mage and he catches her, now he is blackmailing her. She is over her head, and something evil and mysterious is going on. Can Aspen survive? Will the person that killed her parents kill her? Will she be able to make the Mage see what’s going on? Can she ever keep her mouth shut? I received a free copy for my honest review.
Aspen lives in a secretive magical world hidden in New York, after her parents are murdered; she becomes a thief. After trying to pickpocketing a Mage fails then turns interesting with a intriguing offer. She must earn a seat on the Mages’ council- complicated by her competitor and mysterious murders. A wonderful urban fantasy.
A “norm” (nonmagical) thief turned mage’s apprentice? A deadly competition? Impossible actions by an ancient evil? All this plus action, adventure, mystery, twists and turns and a great slow-burn romance to top things off. Sean Fletcher’s Mage’s Apprentice is a fantastic first book start for his Mages of New York series. Great world building, superbly crafted characters from Aspen, Isak and Lucien on down m, and a really well written plot that looks to be the start of s great story arc. Yup, definitely checks all the right boxes. But for the fact that I’m literally dictating this review to my husband from my hospital bed I could go on and on with praises. The book definitely deserves it. Since I can’t do that I will simply note that the book is most definitely one to read, and it is easy to highly recommend. I’m definitely looking forward to the next book in this series.
Wow this is a Fantastic Start to this series. Aspen has to use her skills that she has developed as a theif. This is what she relys on to keep her alive. If you love the Supernatural. And a fast paced read that really brings you into This world vicariously through reading a fantastic read. This Author brings it. I definitely recommend this read. This read pulls you in right from the start and keeps you intralled all the way through the book.
Shauna Joesten
ONE THRILLING EXPERIENCE!!!
Man, Talk about fireworks, this bad boy is hotter than an erupting volcano. Step back, take a breather and jump right in. You won’t know what hit you until your head snapps forward once again. This little jewel is definitely one riveting read. Sean draws us into her imagination and weaves a world around us so tight and consuming until everything else ceases to exist. A whirlwind of emotions and events really pulls those heartstrings and make for one incredible experience. All twists and turns, ups and downs, along with a few glitches and bumps here and there pull you deeper into this raging storyline and hard hitting plot. Throw in all the drama, intrigue, uncertainty, fear, danger and suspense and you have one intense, page turning bombshell that grabs your attention and holds it from start to finish. The characters are complex, believable and realistic with such depth it demands respect. The scenes are so graphically detailed and descriptive it’s easy to picture each scenario as they play off one another perfectly. Sean did a remarkable job bringing this read to life brilliantly. Remarkable job Sean, thanks for sharing this bad boy with us.