The Accidental Sorcerer (Rogue Agent, #1)

by K. E. Mills

Gerald Dunwoody is a wizard. Just not a particularly good one. He's blown up a factory, lost his job, and there's a chance that he's not really a Third Grade wizard after all. So it's off to New Ottosland to be the new Court Wizard for King Lional.

It's a shame that King Lional isn't the vain, self-centered young man he appeared to be. With a Princess in danger, a talking bird who can't stay out of trouble, and a kingdom to save, Gerald soon suspects that he might be out of his depth. And if he can't keep this job, how will he ever become the wizard he was destined to be. . .

The Accidental Sorcerer is the first novel in the Rogue Agent trilogy, from one of fantasy's newest stars.

• ISBN10: 0316035424
• ISBN13: 9780316035422
• Publish Date: 1 January 2009 (first published 25 December 2008)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Little, Brown & Company
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 560
• Language: English

Reviews

[wyvernfriend]

Gerald Dunwoody didn't ask to be in the job he's in, it was the best he could do, he's a government inspector of magical manufacturing companies. Stuttley's Superior Staff factory hasn't returned safety inspection paperwork in months and he's sent in to ensure that things are ok. It should be routine.

And then everything blows up, quite literally, he tries to rescue things but it all looks like his fault and he's out of a job. Little does he know that the explosion has changed his life forever, and it's possible that the assumption that he was a third grade wizard may be a little mistaken.

His friend Monk finds out about a posting in a far-off kingdom, Court Wizard for King Lional. However there are things that don't quite add up and his life is in serious danger.

It's a wry book with a self-mocking tone, I liked the characters and found it a good enough read that when I came across book 2 in a bookshop shortly after reading it I snapped it up.

Gerald is an interesting character, suddenly faced with the fact that he has more power he thinks about the ethics of using it. He is a man caught by his power and the knowledge that if he doesn't use it he will condemn others. It's written with a mostly light touch (you can't do a torture scene lightly) and with a slightly self-effacing apologetic main character that I completely empathised with.