Cover Image: Servant Mage

Servant Mage

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Fellian is a Lamplighter, gifted with fire magic in a world that considers free mages so dangerous that all with magic are enslaved, unless they come from powerful families. When revolutionaries seeking to restore the monarchy demand her help, Fellian joins their quest to save a newborn member of the royal family, while discovering secrets that could undo the entire power structure of her world. Deep, thoughtful, and enjoyable, sparkling with originality and rage. Fellian's demand to be treated as a person, not a tool, falls on deaf ears both with the ruling government and the monarchists, so she finds a way to bring them both down.

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"In Kate Elliott's Servant Mage, a lowly fire mage finds herself entangled in an empire-spanning conspiracy on her way to discovering her true power.

They choose their laws to secure their power.

Fellian is a Lamplighter, able to provide illumination through magic. A group of rebel Monarchists free her from indentured servitude and take her on a journey to rescue trapped compatriots from an underground complex of mines.

Along the way they get caught up in a conspiracy to kill the latest royal child and wipe out the Monarchist movement for good.

But Fellian has more than just her Lamplighting skills up her sleeve..."

Dragons!!!

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Thank you NetGalley and publishers for providing me with this advance reader copy.

Description from NetGalley:
Fellian is a Lamplighter, able to provide illumination through magic. A group of rebel Monarchists free her from indentured servitude and take her on a journey to rescue trapped compatriots from an underground complex of mines.

Along the way they get caught up in a conspiracy to kill the latest royal child and wipe out the Monarchist movement for good.

But Fellian has more than just her Lamplighting skills up her sleeve…

I loved this. I wish there was more as I was quickly drawn into the world by the snippets of world building and by the main character, Fellian. Let’s start with Fellian, actually. She’s got a lot going on in her head. She’s got the tragic backstory with her mother and father, the re-education from the ruling government, a difficult set of choices to make, etc. She’s a fire mage that has been taught that only magic that is good for all is the proper magic, aka being a Lamplighter. She cannot move freely and is stuck working as a servant.

Because this is a novella and not a full length novel, Fellian’s adventure/story starts out from the get go and doesn’t slow down the pacing at all. I could see this being frustrating for some readers, but I enjoyed the quick pacing and decision making as Fellian traverses between two sides that are both trying to rule the land, affecting how she’ll live and be seen. This would be a good novella for someone who wanted to try out the fantasy genre.

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Fellion is an indentured slave called a servant mage who's affinity is fire. She is stolen from her owner to help rescue a bunch of refugees, but of course they are detoured on their quest. I don't want to say much else as we will get into spoiler territory for this novella.
I liked the magic system, atmosphere and the characters in here and I hope this isn't a standalone as I'd like to spend more time in this world.

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This was a well written novella about a Lamplighter who is on a journey to rescue compatriots from mines but get caught in a dangerous solution. I enjoyed this novella as it's super short and everything gets to the point. The world building is simple so it's easy to understand in a short amount of time. This book is very fast paced which I enjoyed and I enjoyed how the author didn't add all the extra imagery to the book as it was more conflicts and page turners then world building. The story line was well structured and wasn't messy at all.

This book is written in Fellion's pov who is a complex character but is brave and such a true character. In a short novel, I was shocked how good her character development was. There aren't many main side characters in this novella which I was disappointed about but at least the main character was amazing. There also isn't any romance which I was sad about but then again it makes sense since this book is less then 200 pages.

The ending was well done with no cliffhanger. Overall this was a great story but I wish it was longer because I think the author could have brought so much more plus some romance. I totally recommend reading this novella as it has great world building, a bada** MC and dragons!

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This was such an interesting story. It took a conflict with two obvious sides -- the Liberationists and the Monarchists -- and yet neither side came out of it looking very good.

The Liberationists are obviously corrupt and no-good from the start, in some ways cartoonishly so. And on the surface, the Monarchists *seem* to be better. But this story peels back some of the surface layers to show that at their heart, the two sides aren't all that different. They both have some serious class issues.

Fellian is an outcast in both groups and treated as a lower class of citizen, and clearly has no patience with either group. I like that she doesn't immediately fall in with the Monarchists as her saviors, and I like that they respect her enough to make her own choice.

This story overall was a tough read because a lot of information is left unsaid and readers are left trying to piece together what's going on for a lot of it. I like stories that don't give you all the information, but I could have used just a little more.

The magic system was very interesting and I feel like we barely scratched the surface. I'm definitely left intrigued.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for providing an e-arc for review.

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This was such a great read! First, I adore the cover. It sucked me in and told me that this was definitely a story I want to read. The book starts off quickly and grabs your attention immediately. It’s fast-paced with fantastic mage action. The story didn’t follow the path I expected, and I’m so glad it didn’t. I couldn’t put it down.

Fellian is an indentured servant mage in a world where mages are used for their powers but not respected. When she is freed by a group of rebels who need her help, she finds out there’s a lot more to the world than she ever knew.

The characters are interesting and so is the world the author created. I want to know more about it! While this works as a stand-alone novel, I’d love to read a sequel. Servant Mage comes out on January 18 so you don’t have to wait long to read it. Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan/Tor-Forge, and Tordotcom for my copy.

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FIRST IMPRESSION:

I read Kate Elliott’s 'Court of Fives' years back and I loved it. The world-building was great and I loved that her stories weren’t centred around romance. I was excited to hear that Elliott would be releasing a new fantasy standalone, so I grabbed a copy on NetGalley as soon as it went up!

THE STORY:

In a world where mages are looked down on because of the demon wraiths they house in themselves, Fellian is a Lamp, meaning she uses her power over the fire element to form lamps in the establishment she worked in.

Fellian gets recruited by rebel Monarchists who want to free fellow men who are trapped in a mine. However, they soon run across a scheme to murder the latest royal baby by the Liberationists and are soon caught up in a race against time.

THE GOOD BITS:

- The worldbuilding was absolutely intriguing! I was fascinated by the war-ridden history of Fellian’s world and the story behind the mages.
- The magic system gave me major 'Avatar The Last Airbender' vibes! Elemental magic and the fact that some people could sub-specialise was so cool! I was disappointed that we couldn’t see more of this magic system in 'Servant Mage'.
- I liked the political intrigue with its focus on power, class and choice in this novella. In addition to being believable, it echoed real-life issues we see in the world and in history.

THE NOT-SO-GOOD BITS:

- This novella is packed with way too many events and details. I honestly feel that 'Servant Mage' would have done a lot better as a full-length novel or even a series. I have no idea if the author intends to re-visit this universe in the future, but I would certainly be there if she does!
- The pace of the story was too rushed so I did not really have the time to relate to the characters or really see much development.
- Since the characters weren’t really delved into or developed enough, they were quite forgettable. I did not like that because these were major players in the Monarchists’ plan to take back their cities and I kept forgetting who was who.

FINAL VERDICT:

The worldbuilding and magic system in 'Servant Mage' was great to read about and showed so much potential. However, the rushed pace, the unnecessary details in the writing and the poor character development kept me from really falling in love with what the author was trying to achieve here.

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3⭐️

This is only a novella and although I enjoyed this I felt that I wanted a bit more from the story and characters at times.
The world building, magic system and characters were good and a full length story would have filled these out even more .and allowed for a more free flowing and even paced book.
Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan - Tor/Forge for the opportunity to read and advance copy of this novella

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Solidly written novella. It’s always nice to read a stand alone. It’s been a while since I’ve read anything else by this author but everything I had read by her in the past was also good! The main character of this book easy to feel for. She’s lived with years of abuse since watching her family executed. Of course she’s going to do whatever she has to do to escape! Despite the shortness of the book the setting feels well fleshed out too.

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I really liked Servant Mage. We get thrown in this fantasy world in which magic is divided in 5 categories, all linked to elements of the Earth. I enjoyed this concept of magic being linked to nature!

Fellio, the main character, wields fire and light. When she is rescued from her prison by a mysterious rebel group, she ends up on a quest to save other enslaved prisoners, as well as to put an end to the Monarchy currently ruling.

This book has massive green flags. Fellion is a fantastic character, and I enjoyed reading about a group that is put together because they need to, but without them being really friends or close to each other. They are cordial, but they are juste making do. I love a good found family trope, but this was so much more realistic, and I was here for it.

The magic was also super cool to read about. Linking it to the elements is something I like, and also enjoyed in Night Spinner. There were awesome moments in the story featuring magic, and Fellion's power, fire/light is soooooooo cool! Unfortunately, it also leads me to the biggest issue I had with the book.

WHY DOES IT NEED TO BE SO SHORT????? The book flew by way too fast. I mean, it's a compliment, but in this case, the book really is short : around 180 pages. It would be perfect for other books, but Servant Mage is so dense and captivating I think it deserved way more descriptions, details about the magic system, and how the action is developping. I remember liking the book a lot, but it lacked details so much that I struggle remembering a lot about the plot, about a month later.

It's still a really good read, that you can go through pretty fast, and that will make you go on a great magic journey!

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This novella has an amazing and unique premise, but it tries to do too many things in not enough pages. I love the idea of this magic system, but we never really understand it well enough. I love the idea of the characters, but we don't have enough time to care about them. I think it could make an awesome novel, or even trilogy, but as a novella it didn't make me care about the plot or characters.

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This universe is completely unique in how it treats mages. Mages are subservient, basically enslaved, instead of the powerful beings we typically see. Fellion's is indentured to a wealthy tavern owner, cleaning during the day and creating lamps with her fire mage abilities at night. Until one day a group of rebels frees her in exchange for helping save a group of trapped rebels from an underground mine. But the adventure doesn't go exactly to plan.

First off, after reading some reviews, I want to point out this is a novella and it feels like a novella. I personally like novellas but, apparently, a lot of people don't. This book feels like an introduction to an universe or a series, maybe something set 20 years prior to the events of a series, but definitely a book I'd love to read. The characters are fine, though not hugely fleshed out due to the length of the book. All this story really did was introduce us to the universe but I think it did that extremely well.

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Kate Elliott’s Servant Mage is an underdeveloped fantasy with interesting potential.
Servant Mage follows Lamplighter Fellion, who is recruited (under pressure) by rebels to help overthrow an oppressive regime. Although competent and shown to be a good person, Fellion failed to engage me as a reader—she felt like any other blandly ‘good’ magic-using protagonist. While many fantasy stories fall into the trap of over-explaining and excessive worldbuilding, Servant Mage errs in the other direction, with too little explanation given, so that the details that are provided feel like standard fantasy tropes cribbed from other novels. The title epitomizes what felt, to this reader, as a kind of disengaged lack of effort on the author’s part.
Recommended for dedicated readers of fantasy who prefer a female protagonist and short(er) books.

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When a young enslaved lamplighter (someone who can magically call fire) is freed by rebels against the current oppressive government to free a young dragon who could return the world to "rights" in their eyes, she grapples with who she can trust and where she belongs. Servant Mage is an adventurous, magical, and subversive take on the "found family/group of friends" trope. It has an ensemble cast of rebels who each have different magical and fighting abilities, large-canvas political intrigue and civil war, elemental style magics, and a twisty and perfect ending.

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I love this book so much. I am incredibly sad that it was so short and will be entirely a standalone because I enjoyed the world.

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I received an advance copy of this book on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is my first experience with Kate Elliot's work, and I'm considering checking out more of her fantasy. There were a lot of things to love about Servant Mage. First things first - this is a standalone work and a short one at that. I think fantasy readers tend to expect big, expansive series. Coming in at less than 200 pages, Servant Mage is an amuse bouche of a novella. The worldbuilding is tantalizing - glimpses of upheaval and turmoil, an interesting political environment, not to mention the magic - but ultimately leaves you wanting more. I don't see this as a problem. I got to the end of Servant Mage thinking "I'm impressed that the author told this much of a story in such a short time," and also "I would absolutely read a series set in this world, whether or not any of the characters carried over."

Fellian's character arc is the thing to pay attention to in this novel. Elliot uses Fellian's journey to explore the fantasy of liberation versus the reality of class oppression - that those who are oppressed within one regime are most likely to be oppressed in the next, regardless of the stated intentions of revolutionary leaders and the promises given in exchange for support. The end of the novella may come as a surprise to those expecting a certain kind of climax, but I found it to be satisfying in a different way than I expected. Of all my 2022 reads so far, this one has been the most pleasantly surprising.

I would recommend Servant Mage to fantasy readers who are able to appreciate a tantalizing glimpse into a fascinating world, as well as those who enjoy a little bit of social commentary with their swords and sorcery.

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You want a masterclass in worldbuilding? Look no further. Kate Elliott hasn't been in the game for this long for nothing, and it's clear from this brief novella that she has only grown in power. Servant Mage combines sharp insights, swift character work, and a magnificently complex world to make a story that feels both urgent and careful, a work of real thought and consideration.

We meet Fellian, the titular Servant Mage, as she heads to clean the outhouse, an unusual setup that immediately conveys her lowly position in the household she is indentured to. Ever since the revolution, mages are rounded up, minimally trained while indoctrinated, and then shipped off to serve in whatever capacity the government sees fit to assign. The veneer of “liberation” has worn very thin for most mages, but for Fellian it was never anything but a lie. She’s already been resisting the new order by teaching others to read and write, so when Monarchist rebels arrive at her doorstep, she’s willing enough to be drawn into their schemes.

The Monarchists want to rescue rebels trapped in a mine, for which they need her skills as a Lamp, a fire mage who can create stable knots of power to provide light and heat. But on the way, they learn of a very special child, an infant who can turn the tide of the rebellion. And the captain of their little band, a gruff but noble swordsman, is determined to seek out this little royal and keep them—and their powers—away from the other side.

If that sounds like some straightforward and 90s-esque fiction, think again. There may be just enough of the “lost heir” talk and noble underdog vibes to lull you into thinking you know the score, but you don't. This isn't a battle between Good and Evil, and this isn't about a band of plucky and diverse rebels overthrowing a faceless autocracy. For better or worse, our collective conversation has moved on from that into a far less comforting grey area, and Elliott knows it. The moral high ground is just the least boggy part of the swamp.

The Monarchists are just as problematic as the Liberationists, as Fellian soon learns. Though their systems benefit her personally, and would offer her a chance to do some amount of good as well as find some amount of respite and prosperity, Fellian can’t allow herself to excuse their failings. We’re able to see others romanticizing the Monarchist and Liberationist causes, but Fellian never lets us look away from both sides’ hypocrisies, which adds to the complexity of the setting.

Elliott understands the archetypes and never lets them devolve into stereotypes. The honorable general is allowed to be both a bastion of dignity and complicit in larger systems that undermine his credibility. “A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it,” as Oscar Wilde said, and Servant Mage stands as an excellent illustration of why we all could stand to have a heathy suspicion of causes. Both sides talk a good game about fairness, but how do they treat the lowest in their society? How willing are they to accept difference and dissent?

Fellian is repeatedly asked to choose her allegiance, and repeatedly focuses on helping people instead. Instead of compromising, Elliott is telling us that we can reject false dichotomies and work either within them or outside of them to find a third way, a way that might not be so flashy or grand but that actually puts people first. This choice seems obvious as I describe it, but the novella makes sure there are always real stakes for Fellian to face, natural consequences of this highly realized world.

I really want more of this world, and specifically of Fellian's home. We get glimpses, but it's enough to know that there could be just as much complexity and energy in just this one area as there is in the whole empire. I hope we get another novella about Fellian's further adventures, but for now I'm just glad we have this lovely, complicated little knot of a book.

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Definitely enjoyed this! It was a fun and interesting fantasy world and I liked the main character and her non-traditional choices. I could have stood with it being a little longer with a little more worldbuilding, but as a quick read to easy me back into reading books after a month or so off, I couldn't have asked for a nicer one.

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I was left wanting more, as is often the case with novellas. I wanted to know what different abilities the types of mages have, what kind of training and instruction is possible, what life actually looked like under the Monarchists. I think Elliott takes a clever approach to the lack of depth necessitated by a novella, by making Fellian confused and angry and brainwashed with limited exposure to the greater world.

However, all the characters make a very dramatic change all at once and I was left unmoored as we coasted through the denoument.

I will say, though, this is the first time I've read a book which includes a character with no pronouns, and that was definitely awesome to see. We also get casual queerness including a character with attraction to at least men and women as well as socially acceptable polyamory.

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