Thank you NetGalley for the eARC. I tried to get into this book. It just didnt grab me. The cover made me think it was similar to another author I love with a similar subject but it was not close. sorry

The Wayward Mage is the third book in the YA/NA fantasy series by Sara Hanover. Released 8th June 2021 by Penguin Random House on their DAW imprint, it's 336 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is an epic coming of age adventure with an ensemble cast including a young female protagonist who is brash, sarcastic, independent, and self-sacrificing. Her support crew and found family include a battle harpy, a clan of taciturn dwarves, a not-quite-garden-variety golden retriever, and her mom, who is a would-be academic working on her doctoral dissertation. Her dad's a ghost, her mentor is missing in action, and her boyfriend is off working on a secret mission with the potential to get them all murdered or worse. She's also juggling classes at her local community college and training on the field hockey team in her spare time.

The plotting and action/romance balance is par for the genre and the narrative arc is better than average. There's a fair bit of angsty drama, but I never found Tessa overly whiny or helpless and her relationships are healthy, if often outside the normal human realm. The denouement and resolution are exciting and suitably gruesome, but not extremely graphic or too gore filled. Although it's the third book in the series, it works well enough as a standalone to pick up the necessary backstory during reading.

This would be a good choice for public or school library acquisition, as well as for fans of the genre. Eminently readable and engaging.

Three and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Did not realize this was the third book in a series, so I've stopped reading it until I can complete the first two. This does NOT stand alone well, but I like the premise enough to go back and read the others first!

Things are rapidly coming to a head for Tessa and her friends as it becomes obvious a completely evil presence is watching the house. With the Professor still MIA in any form and her father’s ghost fading rapidly there is little time to waste in learning how to uses the Maelstrom stone to rescue her father and protect herself and her friends from those who want it. When that evil presence starts tainting those around her the stakes become even higher as Tessa’s mother’s dissertation risks exposing the magically realm to the mundane world.

The action is fast in this entry in the series and the side of good suffers some heartbreaking losses. While there is a satisfying conclusion here the door is left cracked open for more follow-up entries as Tessa grows more into her powers. This is a highly recommended series

The Wayward Mage, which is the third installment in author Sara Hanover's urban fantasy series, follows Tessa Andrews as she becomes embroiled in magical mysteries in her quest to help save her father who is an interdimensional ghost living in her basement. Once upon a time, Tessa's father vanished under suspicious circumstances and her old life was destroyed because almost everyone blamed Tessa and her mother for his disappearance. John Andrews disappeared after apparently draining the families money to pay off gambling debts, leaving Tessa and her mother pretty much at the mercy of a great-Aunt.

Since learning about the magical world after Professor Brandard came back to life as the Phoenix wizard, Tessa's life has been anything but boring. An ancient artifact known as the maelstrom stone has embedded itself in Tessa's left palm. The stone itself tends to absorb other relics increasing its powers. The stone has absorbed the Eye of Nimora shards, as well as a cursed ring, and a book on the dark arts which has turned Tessa into a sorceress. On top of everything else, Tessa is a student at a Virginia community college where she plays on the school's field hockey team.

Tessa doesn't have any non-magical friends outside of Evelyn Statler because of what happened to her father. Evelyn really stands out not because of anything she does, but because she seems to have the ability to see prophecies which come in handy whenever trouble and Tessa are around each other. Some positives in her life are her own mother Mary Andrews who is a professor writing her dissertation and has not abandoned her despite everything that has happened over the course of this series. Tessa also has a 1/2 elven, 1/2 lab retriever which seems to have supernatural inclinations.

Even though he pulled a vanishing act, she still has Professor Brandard. Carter Phillips is a cop who belongs to a group called the Society which Carter has warned her to stay away from. She has an Iron Dwarf named Mortimer as a friend, and Simon Steptoe, a reformed demon, has taken up residence in Tessa's home. While the Professor was gone, Tessa accepts an invitation from the Society to help her learn about her magical abilities. My only non spoiler comment is that there are only two characters who stand out, the rest are background noise.

There are those outside of her circle who would love nothing more to get their hands on what Tessa holds; the maelstrom stone. The mysterious Malender shows up with a flaming whip handle advising Tessa that she is about to be judged for her actions since she became aware of the magical world. There is also the appearance of a nasty piece of work who just happens to be a vampire. Nicolo has been around so long that nobody, including the Society, wants to break the delicate balance knowing that he could crush them as easily as a bug. Trouble in a major way has finally caught up with Tessa, and it will take luck and perhaps a non-magical being to keep Tessa and her mother alive.

Conclusion: This story feels like a conclusion after all is said and done and the gang is looking back on what happened, and who they may not see again. However, it is my fervent hope that the author continues this series since it is light on romance and heavy on the unexpected. This series is highly underrated. I'd definitely love to see more people pick up this series. Tessa isn't a Mary Sue. She doesn't magically come into stunning new abilities. She struggles and fights and kicks ass whenever she's confronted by another antagonist.

What a great conclusion to an already outstanding series. I really felt the story wrap well in this. The characters... i would DIE for them!

This has been a good series though you really wouldn’t get as much out of this book three if you haven’t read the first two. Tessa is a likable young woman who’s had a harder life with her father gambling away every last penny of the money she’d saved for school as a teen but she and her mother have survived and moved on with their lives. She’s become aware of and involved in the magic side of the world and has allies now to go with her enemies, More details than that would definitely be spoilers if you haven’t read the first two. If you haven’t read The Late Great Wizard give it a try. This is a great urban fantasy series if you prefer your fantasy heavier on the fantasy and lighter on the romance (though there is romance, it’s just not the center of her life).