Innocence Lost

By Karen Miller

the stunning conclusion to the Kingmaker, Kingbreaker series.Following the death of his family, Prince Gar is now King Gar, WeatherWorker of Lur, and his former assistant Asher has become the most powerful Olken in history, with the authority to sit in judgement at Justice Hall. But Gar's magic is unnatural, and his time as WeatherWorker is running out. time is also running out for the evil sorcerer mage Morg, trapped inside the shattered body of Lur's Master Magician, Durm. When Gar's magic fails at last, Asher unwittingly aids him - and so the Innocent Mage is revealed. Fearing civil war, Gar convinces his friend to risk his life by continuing his illegal magic working, promising to protect him should the truth be discovered. But some promises should never be asked for, or given. When the dangerous deception is revealed, enemies on all sides close in for blood and Gar is forced to make a terrible decision, not realising he's playing right into Morg's hands. Asher looks doomed ... and it seems that not even Dathne, the love of his life, and her Circle of secret Olken magicians can save him, or the kingdom.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Australia
• Release date: Feb 1, 2010
• ISBN: 9780730401278

Karen Miller

Karen Miller, who has over 25 years experience in the early childhood field, is well known as a keynote speaker and consultant. She has worked as a teacher for Head Start, as national education director for Children's World Inc. and as a national training director for Min-Skools Ltd.

Reviews for Innocence Lost

[jbrubacher_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Now that the royal family is dead but for Gar, the prince who only recently gained his magic, our hero Asher has a lot more responsibility. This would be great if he wanted it, which he doesn't. But it serves the Circle's ends, the group of people who believe he will fulfill a 600 year old prophecy. And as evil things find their way through Barl's wall, old magics will be required or everything good will be lost.I've read complaints that nothing happens in this book until the last 50 pages, but this isn't at all true. It starts slowly, but if you enjoyed the first book in the series you'll want to know how things progress, and time isn't wasted before much has changed. Asher continues to be his irritating self, as does the rest of the cast. This is a story about people and prophecy that seem very real. Every time I made an assumption it was either wrong, or dealt with so quickly it was irrelevant. Surprising and compelling, I had to read the last half in one sitting. Yes, nearly 400 pages in one sitting. Owch.I will read the next series, too.Small frustrations: the only two useful female characters are referred to as "bitches" too often, and (spoilers follow...) why must a young woman always end up pregnant? Anyway.

[alliebadger · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The second part was MUCH darker than the first. There was also a great deal of time spent where literally the only thing that happens is that things fall apart. For a 700-page epic fantasy, I was a little disappointed to find that the big ending battle took place in approximately the last 50 pages (and a massive number of gruesome deaths as well). Definitely worth plowing through if you enjoyed The Innocent Mage, but a rough second part.

[teharhynn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Together with the first book these were a great read. You'll grow to love Asher and Gar, and everyone else involved. The ending was sad, and I hated to see it end, but I'm glad that I had a chance to read the book. I would strongly recommend these books to everyone who likes Fantasy.

[shanaqui_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I give up I give up.I was still willing, at the end of The Innocent Mage, to see this through. I love Gar. I kind of loved some of the more minor characters too (Matt, who seemed about the only person with sense sometimes; Darran, because he's not always nice but he's so loyal to Gar). But god I can't stand Asher anymore, I don't care about Dathne, and if Morg launched into the greatest hits of EvilMcEvilPerson laughs, I wouldn't be surprised. And the pacing, aaarghhh. And I started being able to guess the entire plot, chapters and chapters ahead.So I got my girlfriend to tell me the whole plot, and then chucked The Innocent Mage, The Awakened Mage, A Blight of Mages, The Prodigal Mage and The Reluctant Mage off my shelves. I will still attempt the Godspeaker trilogy, but my patience will likely be quite short.So much potential, but it needed someone to say, and sternly, that changes needed to be made. In my opinion, anyway. Gar might've been the more typical choice for a hero for a book in this genre, but he almost always came out better than Asher, to me (except when he acted uncharacteristically), and I wish it had been all about him.

[lambada_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book follows in the style of it's companion, that makes you both want to keep reading, and to skip parts.Yet, I can safely say that as the climax nears it becomes much more fast-paced and gripping. One word of caution though: I found the true climax rushed. What could, nay should, have had a sizeable chapter, was instead over in a few pages. Thus it felt like more of an anti-climax than a climax.

[samuraibunny · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

WARNING: This review will contain spoilers for the first book in the series, The Innocent Mage. If you haven't read it yet, why are you even reading a review for the second book??Let's talk about feelings first. It's hard to rate a book that leaves you satisfied, but strangely emotionally detached. Perhaps it was because of the way the story was structured. I read the last half of the book in one day, not an easy feat for a slow reader like me, but throughout that section of the book, my heart was pounding with suspense. I wanted to, no needed, to read what was going to happen next, when Asher was going to save the day.Speaking of good and evil, the line between them is not as clear cut as it may sound in the novel. Sure, there is Morg, the absolute evil, and Barl, the supposed goddess. Sure, she saved a bunch of Doranen by migrating to and settling Lur, but she practically subjugated the already present Olken in the process. It stinks of the early English colonists and their quest for Native American lands... But I digress. Perhaps Miller wanted us to see that, perhaps not.On to the storyline. If you enjoyed the way the first book centered around politics, then you will be happy to know that this book will have much of the same. Getting to see what Morg is scheming just makes the slow downfall that much more unbearable and dreadful. Morg just plays on human faults and expands upon them, it was somewhat frightening to watch it helplessly unfold.All in all, it was an interesting series. I will be looking forward to putting my hands on the other books in the same universe, hoping against hope that they will contain more magic for my liking. It was an entertaining read, but it fell a little short for me. I don't regret reading it, but I'm glad to have satiated my curiosity and get it out of the way. Hey, if I sound a little meh about this book, remember that I rated this 4 stars! That means it had something going for it that made this book good but not great.

[mariahsidhe · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book took me forever! It was so worth it though!!! It took me so long because every time Asher met with a problem I was fraught with the need to fix his problems for him. I mean that I know he has to deal with his own problems but each setback and blow felt physical to me and I had to gather myself just to read the next bit. This was an awesome story, filled with adventure, wit, love, life, and friendship. Don't get me wrong, it had its fair share of problems but they were masterfully written. I can't say many books have brought me so many different emotions; longing, happiness, sadness, envy, fear, joy... I couldn't have asked for anything different. Although I do wish Morg had ended with more violence I know Asher was the good guy and all but when you are as invested as I felt you'll understand yourself! As for all my favorite characters I wish you well wherever you may be and may blessings be upon the heads who live to tell the tale of Asher of Restharven and the Circle!

[isamoor_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Oct11:Characters: Only a couple additional characters fleshed out. Those are done well and the prior characters continue strongly.Plot: Bleh. She really can't give me a satisfying conclusion. I'm done spending money on her books if this is how she keeps wrapping things up. Very close to deus ex machina with little logic.Style: Again, all about "the sky is falling" and less about ingenuity and problem solving. Still, the characters were great.

[shadiphoenix · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This second novel is a deeper, darker turn into this fantasy adventure world. Friendships and relationships are tested, more good characters die, but the ending seems to be pretty good; maybe another book to look at Lur and old Dorana a few hundred years later.

[reading_fox · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Stunning climax to that rare fantasy beast a duology. An ancient enemy has breached this guarded kingdom's defences, and unbeknown to all. However a profecy has lingered and a small number of people have gathered to help in times of trouble. Unfortunetly they are the underclass, nominally magicless, waiting for their Innocent Mage to save them. For the heros - Gar, Asher Matt and Daphne, it is a time of trouble and strife. The superb writing and wonderful characters continue from the previous book Ash's brusque dialog continues to charm and the other characters are well crafted. The only slightly discordent note is the length of plot it takes for Ash to be revealed and the very fast conclusion which feels somewhat rushed. Other than that a flawless epic of how fantasy should be written.

[lewispike · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The review on the back says it's a stunning conclusion. I disagree - the good guys largely win, the bad guys get beaten, and whilst there are some deaths en route, this isn't enough to make it "stunning" in my opinion.However, it is basically a good solid conclusion. There are twists and turns. There are places where you think the bad guys are going to win after all, and some of them occur in the last 50 pages.There are nice conflicts that arise out of the characters as well as arising out of the plots, and all in all it is quite deftly handled.Why only 4 stars then? Because too many stereotypes come through, you can probably guess who the characters that will die are without reading the book. Like a tragedy you can see the inevitable consequences of the characters' choices more clearly than they can, but they don't all get to pay the proper price that they would in a tragedy. It's side-steps the payment for the story form, and that's a shame because it could have made it truly stunning.

[lorune · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Good book, nothing ground breaking. Asher always felt to me as a bit of anti-hero overdone, shying away from his gift a bit to much for to really enjoy him as a character.

[reckshow · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really loved this book... a truly creative world, intriguing characters and plot twists galore. A fantastic read.

[graspingforthewind_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Whereas The Innocent Mage had a more lighthearted tone, The Awakened Mage is much darker. Things go from bad to worse; to even worse, and when redemption finally dawns, the reader will be glad of it. But this does make for some great reading as we wonder just how Gar and Asher will find their way out of this mess and ultimately defeat the evil magician Morg.Miller continues to write in an engaging style. Relying almost completely on characterization (there are no fight scenes in this one folks) to move the narrative forward, she makes the characters so arresting that we just have to find out what happens to them next. Several surprising plot twists occur in this novel. Miller jerked left when I would have jerked right, and I think that the novel is the better for it. Full review at Grasping for the Wind

[vanedow · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The 700+ pages of this book contain all the makings of a fantastic story. Daring adventures, intrigue, romance and excitement all mixed together with some great characters. The problem is, the good parts only take up about 350 pages. The remaining 350 are full of whining, self-indulgence, repetitive meanderings and other material that just screamed for editing.I know I’m having an unusually strong reaction to this book. You’re probably wondering why I didn’t just call it quits instead of struggling for almost a whole week with this book (unheard of for me). The problem was that this book really had some excellent material. I wanted to know what was going to happen to these characters, how the story was going to work itself out. I just hated having to plough through all the sludge to get to the story.I’m sorry to say this duology does not redeem itself in the second volume, as far as I’m concerned. Despite the bright spots, I can’t recommend it.