The Prodigal Mage

Name: The Prodigal Mage
Author: Karen Miller

expanded novel 2009 Kingmaker, Kingbreaker

Record

First published	2009
Original language	EN
Work type	novel
Canon status	expanded
Reader rating	3.79 (5,342 ratings, collected 2026-09-11)
Internal chronology	3

Synopsis

The Prodigal Mage returns to the land of Lur, first seen in The Innocent Mage, where the kingdom's weather-controlling magic is failing as the ancient map governing the seasons breaks down. Asher, the fisherman who once saved the realm, is the only one with the skill to try to repair it, but the effort proves ruinous and leaves him near death. His son Rafel has inherited real magical talent but has been forbidden from using it because of the destruction caused by the Mage Wars of the past. When Asher's last attempt to mend the magic fails, Rafel is forced to weigh that prohibition against a land now sliding into famine and ruin, as his people's world begins to fracture around them and only his suppressed power may be able to help.

Where it sits

Universe: Kingmaker, Kingbreaker
Series: Fisherman's Children expanded; position 1 of 2 in the series' recorded order
Author: Karen Miller

Notes

From the series record (Fisherman's Children): Sequel duology continuing the story a generation later through Asher's children; classified Expanded, since the original Kingmaker, Kingbreaker duology (Asher's own story) is a complete, self-contained arc on its own.

Neighbouring works

Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.

Publication order, within the series Fisherman's Children: position 1 of 2: next The Reluctant Mage (2010)
Internal chronology, within Kingmaker, Kingbreaker: position 4 of 5: previous The Awakened Mage (2005) · next The Reluctant Mage (2010)

Sources

← Kingmaker, Kingbreaker dossier · All universes

Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.