Scan barcode
bookish_withsky's review against another edition
4.0
This book was fun. Our main character is a psychopath with a need to learn dark magic. He seeks an apprentice ship with Medea, a cranky lady with a record for murdering all of her students. Do I necessarily love or even like Nikolai? No, not really. But I do enjoy reading from his perspective and seeing a lack of empathy or knowledge of any feeling that isn't anger. I enjoyed Medea. The writing was fun and lovely in certain places. I truly can't wait to see read more from this series and am so grateful to have had it gifted to me.
tibbarasden's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was such a great read. I loved the autism rep and how it was woven in. I really loved that the author included notes since it wasn't stated. I didn't like Nikolai, but since his character was a psychopath I wasn't expecting to. I was getting a little frustrated with him, but his choices seemed true to his character. I would have loved more from Medea's pov versus his. I really enjoyed the dark tones. It was the perfect amount, and didn't go over board (at least for my tastes). It was a bit crude at points, but again, it worked for the character. I am looking forward to the next one in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
laelyn's review against another edition
2.0
"Dark Apprentice" is a fun, quick read with interesting characters and an intriguing world. It does remind one a little of a more grown up Harry Potter, insofar that it takes place in our world with mages and "Mundanes" living right next to each other. The magic system consist of different schools of magic, of spells and spirits and skill that has to be honed over a long time. It was fun to read about, even though it did sometimes make me think of video game magic. Casting spells and using magic relies on the mana pool of the mage and magic cannot be performed if that mana pool is empty.
Both main characters, Medea and Nikolai, are interesting and complex. I personally much preferred Medea and wanted more chapters from her pov, but Nikolai is an entertaining protagonist too. I found it interesting that he's written as a psychopath, and while I can't say how realistic the portrayal is, it's definitely a kind of character I haven't seen as a protagonist so far (at least as far as I remember).
I did have some issues with the book, though. For one, there is really just... not much of a plot. I was waiting for something more to happen, for some big reveals or twists or anything, but there's just nothing. It's a novel about a guy who becomes the apprentice of the most powerful mage in the known world, and because he is who he is he constantly thinks she's out to get him. That is it, until the very end. I guess the overarching plotline might be the disappearance of magic in the world, but that's just noted by Medea a few times. I'm just not sure where this series is supposed to go, plotwise. The whole book seems to be more or less setting up the sequels, but I just can't really tell you what it's setting up exactly.
While Nikolai is an interesting character and definitely not supposed to be likeable, I just never really connected with him. He thinks himself extremely cunning and clever, but really, most of his decisions are very very stupid. And while he does realize that he has been acting and thinking in a destructive way by the end of the book, it doesn't really feel like character development, maybe because he doesn't figure it out himself (though he has ample opportunity to do so) but has to be told by another character. Most of the time, he is honestly just frustrating, though there is definitely potential to develop him into a more well-rounded character in the sequels. I had similar issues with Medea really, although I do like her a lot. She has all this knowledge and wisdom yet sometimes makes decisions that don't really make sense for someone like her. Both characters don't offer much emotional depth which makes them, in the end, a little forgettable.
There is also a lot of tell-don't-show in this novel. There are entire pages full of dialogue with nothing inbetween, just one statement after the other and the other and the other. It read a little... fanfictiony at times. Still, other than that the writing flows very nicely and is fun and entertaining at all times.
"Dark Apprentice" is an entertaining read with a lot of potential. but the lack of an actual overarching plot beyond Nikolai just being wrong about everything and the characters that felt shallow and inconcistent at times will probably keep me from picking up the sequels.
Many thanks to Living Relic Press and Netgalley for the arc!
Both main characters, Medea and Nikolai, are interesting and complex. I personally much preferred Medea and wanted more chapters from her pov, but Nikolai is an entertaining protagonist too. I found it interesting that he's written as a psychopath, and while I can't say how realistic the portrayal is, it's definitely a kind of character I haven't seen as a protagonist so far (at least as far as I remember).
I did have some issues with the book, though. For one, there is really just... not much of a plot. I was waiting for something more to happen, for some big reveals or twists or anything, but there's just nothing. It's a novel about a guy who becomes the apprentice of the most powerful mage in the known world, and because he is who he is he constantly thinks she's out to get him. That is it, until the very end. I guess the overarching plotline might be the disappearance of magic in the world, but that's just noted by Medea a few times. I'm just not sure where this series is supposed to go, plotwise. The whole book seems to be more or less setting up the sequels, but I just can't really tell you what it's setting up exactly.
While Nikolai is an interesting character and definitely not supposed to be likeable, I just never really connected with him. He thinks himself extremely cunning and clever, but really, most of his decisions are very very stupid. And while he does realize that he has been acting and thinking in a destructive way by the end of the book, it doesn't really feel like character development, maybe because he doesn't figure it out himself (though he has ample opportunity to do so) but has to be told by another character. Most of the time, he is honestly just frustrating, though there is definitely potential to develop him into a more well-rounded character in the sequels. I had similar issues with Medea really, although I do like her a lot. She has all this knowledge and wisdom yet sometimes makes decisions that don't really make sense for someone like her. Both characters don't offer much emotional depth which makes them, in the end, a little forgettable.
There is also a lot of tell-don't-show in this novel. There are entire pages full of dialogue with nothing inbetween, just one statement after the other and the other and the other. It read a little... fanfictiony at times. Still, other than that the writing flows very nicely and is fun and entertaining at all times.
"Dark Apprentice" is an entertaining read with a lot of potential. but the lack of an actual overarching plot beyond Nikolai just being wrong about everything and the characters that felt shallow and inconcistent at times will probably keep me from picking up the sequels.
Many thanks to Living Relic Press and Netgalley for the arc!
emtees's review
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book is half-character study, half (non-romantic) relationship development. There are hints at a larger plot that will be taken up in the next book, but the focus here is entirely on the two main characters and the interactions between them.
Nikolai dreams of being the greatest dark mage in the world. It would give him all the material comforts, sex and independence he craves, and the trade off - a willingness to kill - isn’t a problem. Nikolai doesn’t feel much emotion at all beyond occasional anger and jealousy, and killing is easy. But becoming a great dark mage is difficult when you live in a world controlled by the Collective, a mage government that keeps magic hidden from the Mundane population and encourages only the weakest and least useful forms. Nikolai has been looking for a mentor, but his options have been thin - until he meets Medea, an immortal mage known for defying the Collective. Though Medea seems mostly interested in healing magic, Nikolai is sure she can teach him what he wants to know. There’s only one problem - most of Medea’s previous apprentices have died at her own hands. So Nikolai will have to be exceptionally clever and suspicious if he’s going to come out on top in the inevitable battle between them.
Medea is lonely. That’s the trade-off for immortality. She was never someone who fit in well with the people around her, and the passing centuries haven’t helped. She’s aware that her beliefs and attitudes no longer come close to lining up with anyone else’s and she’s mostly fine with that - but she misses having someone to talk to. So the thought of taking an apprentice has its appeal. But those who want to study so-called “dark magic,” like Nikolai, always turn out the same - power-hungry, jealous, and wanting her dead. Medea likes a good duel, but she’s tired of investing herself in others only to have to kill them in the end. But Nikolai is unusually powerful, something Medea hasn’t seen in a long time, and she’s not sure she can give up the chance he represents.
The majority of this book is about Medea’s training of Nikolai and the twisted relationship that develops between them. Despite the title and plot description, it’s not that dark of a book; though both Nikolai and Medea have a unique approach to mortality, the book doesn’t dwell on their darker instincts. Instead, the focus is on the ways they think and how that impacts their interactions. Nikolai is a psychopath - literally, the author confirms he has Anti-Social Personality Disorder in the afterword - and he is a brilliant masker, able to project charm and emotion while feeling nothing underneath. Meanwhile, Medea is autistic; though on the surface she often seems flat and unemotional, she is an intensely feeling person with her own quirky code of honor, deeply insulted when it is violated. The fact that they appear similar on the surface while being so different beneath it leads to wild misunderstandings, and a lot of the fun and frustration of the book is seeing them attempt, and fail, to communicate.
Medea is a delightful character. Her behavior made so little sense to Nikolai but when you got into her head, she was such a distinct person with a clear sense of what she was doing and why. I loved all the inventive ways she used magic to build an environment and lifestyle that worked for her. Nikolai, on the other hand, frustrated me. I understood his lack of normal morality, his ambition, his rare moments of loyalty, and the underlying trauma of his childhood that he rarely faced, but his arrogance was irritating at times. Repeatedly Nikolai insisted that Medea was lying to him rather than accepting that she understood things he didn’t - despite the fact that her knowledge was the whole reason he was studying with her in the first place. The only thing that redeemed those plot lines for me was how often Medea got to shut him down and call him an idiot. The development of their relationship, the misunderstandings and revelations and the final show-down between them were all really great and set up the book to expand the story in the next volume.
Nikolai dreams of being the greatest dark mage in the world. It would give him all the material comforts, sex and independence he craves, and the trade off - a willingness to kill - isn’t a problem. Nikolai doesn’t feel much emotion at all beyond occasional anger and jealousy, and killing is easy. But becoming a great dark mage is difficult when you live in a world controlled by the Collective, a mage government that keeps magic hidden from the Mundane population and encourages only the weakest and least useful forms. Nikolai has been looking for a mentor, but his options have been thin - until he meets Medea, an immortal mage known for defying the Collective. Though Medea seems mostly interested in healing magic, Nikolai is sure she can teach him what he wants to know. There’s only one problem - most of Medea’s previous apprentices have died at her own hands. So Nikolai will have to be exceptionally clever and suspicious if he’s going to come out on top in the inevitable battle between them.
Medea is lonely. That’s the trade-off for immortality. She was never someone who fit in well with the people around her, and the passing centuries haven’t helped. She’s aware that her beliefs and attitudes no longer come close to lining up with anyone else’s and she’s mostly fine with that - but she misses having someone to talk to. So the thought of taking an apprentice has its appeal. But those who want to study so-called “dark magic,” like Nikolai, always turn out the same - power-hungry, jealous, and wanting her dead. Medea likes a good duel, but she’s tired of investing herself in others only to have to kill them in the end. But Nikolai is unusually powerful, something Medea hasn’t seen in a long time, and she’s not sure she can give up the chance he represents.
The majority of this book is about Medea’s training of Nikolai and the twisted relationship that develops between them. Despite the title and plot description, it’s not that dark of a book; though both Nikolai and Medea have a unique approach to mortality, the book doesn’t dwell on their darker instincts. Instead, the focus is on the ways they think and how that impacts their interactions. Nikolai is a psychopath - literally, the author confirms he has Anti-Social Personality Disorder in the afterword - and he is a brilliant masker, able to project charm and emotion while feeling nothing underneath. Meanwhile, Medea is autistic; though on the surface she often seems flat and unemotional, she is an intensely feeling person with her own quirky code of honor, deeply insulted when it is violated. The fact that they appear similar on the surface while being so different beneath it leads to wild misunderstandings, and a lot of the fun and frustration of the book is seeing them attempt, and fail, to communicate.
Medea is a delightful character. Her behavior made so little sense to Nikolai but when you got into her head, she was such a distinct person with a clear sense of what she was doing and why. I loved all the inventive ways she used magic to build an environment and lifestyle that worked for her. Nikolai, on the other hand, frustrated me. I understood his lack of normal morality, his ambition, his rare moments of loyalty, and the underlying trauma of his childhood that he rarely faced, but his arrogance was irritating at times. Repeatedly Nikolai insisted that Medea was lying to him rather than accepting that she understood things he didn’t - despite the fact that her knowledge was the whole reason he was studying with her in the first place. The only thing that redeemed those plot lines for me was how often Medea got to shut him down and call him an idiot. The development of their relationship, the misunderstandings and revelations and the final show-down between them were all really great and set up the book to expand the story in the next volume.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
Implied sexual assault in a character’s backstory and in a brief scene.m_onalisaa's review against another edition
dark
funny
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
amiraisas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
medea please let me move in and you can talk my ear off about healing magic ALL day.
also congratulations to nikolai for finally connecting the dots after very confidently coming to several wrong conclusions all book long - i guessed the petrov thing the moment you first exhibited symptoms but we got there eventually dawg, very proud of u
ruednv's review
dark
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
nikolai, my beloved
legalisedarson's review
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
yasssna's review
adventurous
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0