Author: Rhonda Denise Johnson
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy
Year Published: 2020
Nerdection Rating:
“Nerdection Must Read”
Spoiler-free Plot Mage of the Black Hole
This is Book 3 of the Nanosia series, and it tells the story of a kid named Peanut, who is bound to take the place of prince of the kingdom of Romatica once his uncle Pyck marries Queen Quila. However, there is a lot of political tension because Pyck and Peanut hailed from a land that the people of Romatica tried to conquer and failed at, leading to a lot of complications with the wedding and the relationship between both sides.
Also, Peanut discovers that he can do magic like his Uncle Pyck and is looking forward to learning and growing in that field. He is then sent to practice with the queen’s physician, but then things start taking a turn for the worst, and the plot ensues.
My take on Mage of the Black Hole
At this point of reviewing this book series, I have come to fully appreciate and understand the way that author Rhonda Denise Johnson does things. There are a lot of elements that become ever-present in her books, and some of them are good and some of them are bad, but overall I would say that she is a very capable writer, often pushing very unconventional concepts in fantasy in a way that happens to work.
For example, she is quite good at writing main characters. Peanut might not be my favorite out of the three that I have read so far, but he has a clear motivation of wanting to learn magic and to be with his uncle Pyck, thus giving a clear indication of where he wants to go and the relationships he has built, even from the get-go. This is good stuff.
There is also the running conflict they have with the people of Romatica. This is important because it adds to the experience and it makes the story feel a lot more real. In fact, that was one of my favorite parts of the book because it was interesting to see how they interacted with one another, the history behind both kingdoms and so on. That is part of what makes a book so good: the interactions between the characters and the motivations behind them.
The worldbuilding of the series continues to improve, and one of the best parts of the story was the queen’s physician. I enjoyed this because the combination of science with a fantasy setting is one of Johnson’s biggest selling points, making the entire thing feel a lot more complex, vast, and rich. Not a lot of writers can juggle all these different elements and make it work, but she makes it look effortless.
It’s also worth pointing out that the pacing of the book might be a bit too quick at times when it would be better to allow some sections to breathe and make room for greater exploration, but I wouldn’t say that the book as a whole was ruined because of it. This series is fairly easy to read and finish in a couple of weeks if the reader is consistent, so that wasn’t that big of a deal, all things considered.
And above all else, the book is very fun to read. If you are someone that comes from the previous two books (and you should because it helps to understand a variety of elements of the worldbuilding), then you are bound to enjoy this one as it has everything that those had while improving in some key areas. This, as a whole, makes this book feel like a very rewarding journey, which is, of course, the whole point of fantasy.
Rhonda Denise Johnson is a very capable writer with a lot to offer, and I hope that this book series gets a lot more exposure because there is a lot to like in this.
About The Author Of Nanosia series
When the writer in Rhonda Denise Johnson meets the reader in you, there is magic. An idea percolates in her head telling her a story is there, and she must write it. Rhonda imagines you, the reader, smiling, laughing, hollering at her characters, or remembering something in your life, and she gets a good feeling. It’s like when you know your purpose in life, and it’s something that affects people in a good way.
As a reader, Rhonda is fascinated by well-written fantasy novels. As a writer, She finds that magic naturally works its way into her stories.
