The Outcast Mage by Annabel Campbell

Book Review

Elloise Hopkins

In Amoria, the great glass city, Naila is a prospective mage of the Academy of Amoria. She passed the testing, but even after eight years at the academy, she still remains a mita, the lowest rank of all the mages. Her peers mock Naila and call her the hollow mage, because she has never been able to use magic. She knows her time is running out. Soon they will test her again, and if she has not mastered control, she faces exile or worse.

The city is in decline and the number of non-mages increasing. Mages are gathering from all over Amoria to hear Lieno Oriven, a mage of the highest order, speak. Naila knows she should not be there, but she has snuck out anyway, finding a concealed place from which to watch events unfold. Naila is about to find out she is not the only one watching from above. Unfortunately for her, she is sharing her hiding place with a wizard… and not just any wizard, Haelius Akana, the most powerful wizard of them all.

Entonin, an Ellathian Priest, finds himself extremely out of place in the magically formed city of Amoria. It was his people, after all, who drove out the mages. Now his arrival feels less than welcoming, to say the least. It seems his companion, Karameth, a Dahrani mercenary, may just prove to be worth his weight in gold.

The Outcast Mage is the debut we have been waiting for, and its release will set a mighty high bar for 2025’s fantasy. In the current, possibly cluttered landscape of magical academy based fantasy, and tales of romance, this story instead echoes the rich, high fantasy epics of the past. It puts us in mind of Trudi Canavan’s Black Magician Trilogy, delivering lavish detail, emotional turmoil, and moral complexity.

Naila is the classic protagonist, unaware of her own potential, looked down upon by her peers, and a pariah no matter which echelon of society she is in. The wizard, Akana, also outcast in his own way, plays her wise mentor. The cast of supporting characters is expertly crafted, and the magic system delivers just the right balance of exhilarating and terrifyingly dangerous potential.

This is a captivating read, with the playing pieces for the rest of the trilogy laid out perfectly as the story unfolds. Campbell leaves us with a breathtaking ending, ensuring the wait for book two of The Shattered Lands will be one of excitement and glorious impatience.