Lady Apprentice

Serving Magic: A Swords & Sorcery Romantic Fantasy, Book 1

De: Toni Cabell

Narrado por: Lisa Lynn Sandlin

Her homeland under siege. A dark sorcerer hot on her trail. All the prophecies say Linden can stop him. Who are they kidding?

**2021 B.R.A.G. Medallion Award**

**2022 First Place - YA Fantasy - Incipere Awards**

**2022 Finalist - The Wishing Shelf Book Awards**

**2022 Finalist - Indies Today Awards**

Linden is the worst mage apprentice at her school. Her latest disaster: accidentally destroying her classroom when a small hooded fay pops up inside the fireball she’s just conjured.

Linden is sent to the headmaster’s office to be formally expelled, when she is saved by the bell—quite literally. Someone is frantically ringing the bell inside the watchtower overlooking the western frontier. Raiders are coming, in broad daylight, wearing the uniforms of the enemy army.

In the days following the raid, rumors begin to fly about the invading commander, with dark powers and an even darker mission. And for some reason Linden has yet to fathom, he’s taken a personal interest in her and her unruly magic.

If you love warring kingdoms, strong, sassy heroines, and slow-burn clean romance, discover Serving Magic, a complete epic romantic fantasy series for fans of Shari L. Tapscott, Kenley Davidson, and Melanie Cellier.

©2021 Toni Cabell (P)2025 Toni Cabell

A Quick moving high steaks Fantasy.

Linden is the worst mage apprentice at school. And things only get worse when the school gets attacked by raiders, in broad daylight, wearing the uniforms of their enemy.
Things happen quickly after this…

“Who knew creating chaos could be a useful thing?”
Me Linden, I knew.

This was a fast paced war type fantasy story. The opposite to the other books by Toni Cabell that I’ve recently enjoyed, as I see the Door County books as calm and cozy. Lady Apprentice is about a magical world during a war that has broken out. As I am normally a fast paced type of reader this book was exactly what I knew it would be. It was engaging and entertaining throughout the story. I like that Linden, our MFC isn’t perceived as a girl who “doesn't need anyone” ; we see her receive and accept help from family and friends throughout the book; it doesn’t make her weak, it makes her stronger.

This book was full of family, friendship, enemies and secrets. The action started early and really didn’t end. I was at the edge of my seat, needing to know what was going to happen next. So much happened at the end of the book and while I can understand some listeners may feel like it was action heavy I feel like it was well throughout and paced well for my liking and expectation from an action fantasy. The only other books of Toni’s that I have listened to are the Door County books, please note this series is set up to be way more action packed than those books.

Lisa Lynn was again Toni’s narrator for this book. She did an amazing job drawing me in during the action scenes and keeping my attention during the “slower” parts. Lisa does an amazing job giving each character their own voice and feel, helping the story come alive.

I listened to this at 1.1x.

Great action

Follow along as Linden discovers her families past that they have never told her; as she learns about her powers & that they are nothing to be ashamed about.
This was fun adventure. I enjoyed riding along with the story. It is definitely more magical & fantasy with some touches of steampunk. You see the most inventions from this subgenre as you get closer to cities where it’s easier to use them.

Such a Great Story!

I listened to this one and loved the narrator. She is a joy to listen and does a great job on the voices. The story was well done and very intriguing. I loved Linden and her story as well as all the other characters. The world building was well done and I never felt lost in this world. I will definitely be reading or listening to the rest of the series!

Great fantasy story you will want to read through

I really enjoyed this book by Toni. It had some epic magic, a new storyline I don't think I've seen before, some great characters and character growth, and a romantic subplot I could get behind! The main female character has to overcome many of her feelings of inadequacy and frustration to really embrace the future ahead of her, and it adds growth along the way as she learns to do so. I liked that most the characters seemed to grow throughout the story and there were even a couple plot twists! I can't wait to see where the series goes though this story works well as its own novel so you're not left with a huge cliffhanger.

EPIC!!!

I absolutely loved this epic adventure following
Linden as she searches for where she belongs and
discovers just how brave she truly is. The writing is beautiful and engaging, and the story pulled me in immediately. The audiobook experience was incredible. The narration made it feel like was living inside this fantastical world, completely immersed in every moment. Toni Cabell is truly tops at writing YA fantasy, and paired with Lisa Lynn Sandlins narration, it played out like a powerful movie in my
head. I always love doing an audio and book read-along, and this one was especially enjoyable.
I cannot wait to start book two.