I don’t publicly advertise that I’m a mage, but I don’t exactly hide it either, and one of the odd things I’ve learnt over the years is just how much you can get away with if you’re blatant enough. Hide something behind smoke and mirrors and make people work to find it, and they’ll tear the place down looking for what’s there.
Alex Verus is a diviner who can see probable futures—a talent that’s gotten him out of many a tough scrape. But this time, he may be in over his head. Alex was once apprenticed to a Dark mage, and in his service he did a lot of things he isn’t proud of.
As rumors swirl that his old master is coming back, Alex comes face to face with his misdeeds in the form of a young adept whose only goal is to get revenge. Alex has changed his life for the better, but he’s afraid of what his friends—including his apprentice, Luna—will think of his past. But if they’re going to put themselves at risk, they need to know exactly what kind of man they’re fighting for.
If you’ve been following Alex Verus from the start, this is the book you didn’t know you were waiting for. Chosen is the best in the series so far, and it earns that title by going somewhere the earlier books only hinted at: into Alex’s past, and into the darkness he’s been carrying with him all along.
Alex has done terrible things. He was involved in horrible events during his time under a Dark mage, and this book doesn’t let him forget it. When that past comes knocking, he’s forced to face it head-on, and to face the people he cares about with it too. Watching him struggle with who he was versus who he’s trying to be is genuinely compelling. He wants to handle things peacefully. He tries. But there’s never any doubt when it comes down to it, he plans to be the one walking away. That tension never goes away, and it shouldn’t.
What makes this work so well is it’s not just Alex who grows here. His friends are tested too. Learning about his past, watching how he operates, deciding what that means for them. The bonds this series has been quietly building get real weight put on them, and whether they hold is genuinely uncertain. The found family dynamic has always been one of this series’ strengths, and here it finally gets the pressure test it deserves. The outcome is not guaranteed.
The action is as sharp as ever. Alex can’t blast his way through problems like some mages. He plans, he outmaneuvers, he uses his foresight and his wits, and watching that all come together never gets old. The banter and sarcasm are still here too, which keeps things from getting too heavy.
If you’ve read the first three, don’t wait. This is where the series really hits its stride.
Jennie Ivins
Tom Joyce
Colleen McMillan