Antimage

As of the time of writing this review, I’ve read the published book.

Blurb

A scientist from another world. A mage seeking deadly knowledge. A power that could topple an empire.

Nathan’s life was defined by labs and lectures until an Archmage yanked him into Davrar and made him a tantalizing offer: master magic in exchange for Earth’s scientific secrets. Yet, Nathan can’t shake off the feeling that darker truths lurk beneath such promises.

The world of Davrar is a dangerous place teeming with dungeons and monsters – ruled by levels, Talents, and a near-infinite progression of power. Nathan will need to rely on himself to survive, forging alliances and taking every advantage he can get against those that seek to control him.

His unique capacity to counteract magic gives him an unprecedented edge, making him a beacon of resistance against those who wield magic as a weapon of control.

Armed with intellect and an emerging power that could dismantle the very foundations of Davrar’s society, Nathan emerges not as a mere student of magic, but as its ultimate adversary: the Antimage.

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Thoughts

I’ve read a few books where a scientific MC gets isekai’d or reincarnated into a fantasy world, and (as a physicist myself) I am generally left feeling like the author missed a lot of things, be it facts or outlook, that a career scientist should possess. I am ecstatic to report that, after years of searching, I am finally happy!

Few MC’s have resonated as hard with me as Nathan. His angst when the system and circumstances force him into suboptimal positions. His techniques for drawing out the maximum value from his Earth knowledge. And his sheer frustration with stupid people and traditions.

Now, the blurb doesn’t give away any plot secrets, so I’ll keep this spoiler free as well. Yes, there are some darker truths. Yes, it’s about power and politics and parallels closely with increasingly prevalent modern issues, and no, it’s not a smack-in-you-face reductionalist agenda—it’s human nature that’s repeated a thousand times over history. The global plot, and Nathan’s conviction to make a difference is strong motivation for his quest to grow stronger.

The main cast—the ‘Heirs’ squad he is put with—all have their own motivations too and realistic aspirations, family dynamics, and good characterisation. Some of that characterisation was unfortunately lost on me due to the diverse cast. There’s the four other people in the squad, rivals, secondary characters, the family of each of the Heirs, guild staff, other adventuring parties, and I got very overwhelmed with trying to remember who is who and what their relationship was with everyone else.

I really wish I had Nathan’s mind palace memory skill, because this is a common issue I have in general. Names mean little to me, and I have a terrible memory at the best of times!

In terms of pacing, the start is nice and action dense, there’s a lot of training and experimentation, but also plenty of slice-of-life and downtime with the wider cast. Book one finishes with a relatively small fight after many chapters of different characters honing their skills, so I assume we’re building to some larger conflict at the start of book two. Things are teased, but there’s no massive cliffhanger at the end of book one to frustrate, which is nice.

Anwyay, just a big “thank you” to Alexander for writing this. I really, truly, enjoyed the scientist in a fantasy world take given it was executed so well.