Knights Magi

The Spellmonger Series, Book 4

By: Terry Mancour

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 19 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

Opposites attack!

When the Magelord Minalan the Spellmonger’s two apprentices, Tyndal and Rondal, were knighted after the battle of Timberwatch, they were dubbed Knights Magi: A new class of nobility for distinguished High Magi. Designed to combine the pursuit of arcane knowledge with the noble aspirations of chivalry, it elevated them above common warmage...in theory. The problem was they had no idea how to be a Knight Mage...because no one had ever been one before. And as a couple of half-trained rustic apprentices from the Mindens they did not feel up to the task or the high ideals of their title.

But Master Minalan the Spellmonger decided to cure that ignorance. He arranges for Tyndal and Rondal to be tutored and trained together in their new vocation, learning the arts of magic, the craft of warfare, and the subtleties of chivalry from the finest masters in the kingdom.

If they didn’t kill each other, first.

The two young spellmonger’s apprentices from the Minden mountain domain of Boval Vale have much in common: Both had their homes destroyed, they were both sent into exile by the goblin invasion, and they both serve the same master. Yet they could not be more different.

Rondal is quiet, bookish, and introspective, dedicated to the disciplines of academic magic and anticipating a future of study, service, and, perhaps, romance. Tyndal is bold and brash: An extroverted over-achiever with dreams of glory, gold, and girls. Fate, circumstance, and the whims of the gods have forced them together, but the raw emotions of adolescence and the trauma of war put them at each others’ throats with depressing frequency. Master Minalan can’t have that, especially not in his fragile new domain with another baby on the way...so he sends them on the road.

Jealousy, anxiety, passion, and frustration conspire to make them rivals - but if they don’t figure out a way to learn to work together, and quickly, then their stubborn feud could end up affecting the fate of the entire war. Along the way they pick up some enemies, gain a few allies, master a few new skills, and attempt to learn the laws of love. But as they stumble through their lessons and learn to master their tempers they discover that the strongest bonds between men are forged by the most difficult of trials.

For after they become proficient at magic, war, and errantry they are put to the test in the field, the most difficult of circumstances...a mission where the strength of their friendship and the quality of their honor may be what defines them best as - Knights Magi!

©2017 Terry Mancour (P)2017 Podium Publishing

Fantastic

I loved it can't wait for book 5 to come out. I'm hoping we get to hear more of what the spellmonger is up too.

A refreshing and needed addition to the series!

Take the comments about skipping this one with a grain of salt. I have thought that this series will soon get repetitive, not because it ever had, but mainly due to the fact that this is the 4th book of a fantasy series but Terry Mancour did not disappoint. We are immersed to the different and refreshing perspectives of the two rivaling apprentices. Seeing their their adventures, growth, breaking,and eventual healing. Despite the quick timeline, the results of their experience felt rightly earned.

Sure, this could have easily been a sidestory instead of the 4th book of the series, but that would have led to a mediocre story and delay to the main one, in my opinion . At least in this way we get a refreshing tale of the growth of two of the most important characters of the series, while getting just the right amount of progress with the overarching story, which would otherwise have been dull if told through the main character's perspective like usual. As a bonus, we get a better sense of the scale of the world, the progress of the war, and the other main characters simply due to the different point of view. At least this book ended conclusively enough for me to be ready and excited to get back to Minalan's perspective.

Gotta read it before judging it

I read the reviews before listening to the book and it is clear many who have written did so before they actually finished the thing. Great book.

Continued Excellence

By now, I'm just a huge fan of the Spellmonger series and of the performer, John Lee. I've never heard a better audiobook performer than John Lee or a better audiobook performance than John Lee's in this series thus far. Magnificent job, he's an audiobook virtuoso. As for the story, again, already love the series, which I can best describe as a more adult, feadul, relatably human, and funnier LOTR like tale. At first, I didn't think I'd enjoy a book concentrated on the apprentices, and Rondal may frustrate you most of the book, but I liked the development of the apprentices and their relationship, and the story nudged the series forward, brought me laughs, moved me, and thoroughly entertained me. I disagree the book diminished Tyndall - in fact, I appreciated his maturation and I'm glad Rondal finally came along. I found the book relatable for reasons some disapproved of the book - a young knight has many adventures with comely maidens growing up in Miami. I understand some not liking the portrayal of women in this series but agree with a reviewer who is glad the author has not bowed to 21st century political correctness and has accurately portrayed the treatment of women in feudal times. Keep in mind that the deserved global enlightenment and uplifting of women as a whole in society is a rather novel cultural phenomenon in human history and not enjoyed in many countries even in this year of our Lord 2021. Keep up the great work, Mancour and Lee!

Might be the best in the Series, so far.

Spellmonger Menalin plays but a minor active part in this particular tale. Rather, his apprentices, the young (and, so far, only) Knights Magi Tyndal & Rondal share the starring roles. It takes place over the course of a year as Menalin seeks to help the boys become men. While the stories are simple, even routine, on the surface (such as learning how to march at infantry school), Mancour makes them quite interesting, even fascinating. With twists & turns that kept me both enthralled and smiling at each step.

Awesome

I love this series and can’t wait to see what happens. You come to love the apprentices in this book and get to know them.

Enjoyable!

A different perspective! Fresh and enjoyable. Relatable actually. I had fun listening to this. But I did miss Minalan.

my mage

I love this series. Adventurous, magical and lovely. I'm only 4 books in. starting number 5 now.

John lee is the man

Beyond the story, the delivery of it is awesome, really emphasizing the authors story. Love the series so far

Loved the story!

Great fun and excitement watching the boys become true knights, friends and young men. Love the writing style and the delivery through audible. Excellent.