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Shadow Magic (Darkling Mage Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Nazri Noor (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.4 1,210 ratings

Book 1 of 10: Darkling Mage

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The gods are dying. But for one man, death is only the beginning.

Murdered as a ritual sacrifice, amateur thief and professional charmer Dustin Graves mysteriously survives, finding himself gifted with strange, dark magic. Then more dead bodies turn up. Some are human, but one is a god of the old world, slain at his own doorstep.

Mortal or divine, the bloodshed must end, and Dust is the mage for the job. But first he must contend with a succubus, a talking sword, a spider queen, a goddess of magic, and eldritch abominations from beyond the stars. No big deal… right?

If you like snarky heroes, snappy dialogue, and a bit of grit and gore, you’ll love the first standalone book in Nazri Noor’s series of urban fantasy novels. Explore the Darkling Mage universe and discover a taste of Shadow Magic today.

From the Publisher

Our hero Dustin Graves stands in a swirl of shadows and fire.

Dustin Graves surrounded by feathers and fire.

Join Dustin on his journey to arcane enlightenment.

A stylized portrait of Nazri Noor, the author.

About the author

Urban fantasy author Nazri Noor has written and released over 20 novels, each infused with his unmistakable brand of humor, horror, and heart.

Expect rip-roaring urban fantasy adventures filled with magic and mythology, grit and glamor, sass and class. Nazri Noor is also the author of the following series:

Sins of the Father
Infernal Inheritance
Vampire Vigilante
Arcane Hearts

Dead man walking.

One knife to end a life, one sword to face the horde.

Brought back from the brink of death, Dustin Graves thought that his life was over when a sacrificial dagger plunged deep into his chest. Awakened and granted the gift of shadow magic, Dust explores his newfound powers and discovers sinister threats lurking in the very streets of Valero, California.

Does evil truly dwell in the darkness? Are the gods really as fickle as they say? And who, or what, are the Eldest?

Unearth arcane secrets. Tease out these terrible truths. Discover Darkling Mage.

A snarky hero, shadow magic, and a sentient sword
A diverse cast of characters and deities
Multiple world mythologies: Greek, Japanese, Chinese, Norse, and more
The Eldest: Lovecraftian abominations aplenty

Four more heroes in the Arcane Underground universe.

Whole worlds to discover!

Darkling Mage is just one of several supernatural series in the interconnected Arcane Underground universe. Over 20 more novels to devour!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Nazri Noor builds textures of fantasy that few authors are capable of crafting, engaging the imagination to build out vivid pictures prompted by his word-painting. I see hints of Isaac Asimov in his words. On top of that, Noor's books are downright fun and often hilarious!" - John P. Logsdon, author of the Paranormal Police Department series.

"Full of magic, action, and supernatural goings-on, the Darkling Mage series will satisfy your craving for well-written urban fantasy!" - Joseph Nassise, New York Times bestselling author of the Templar Chronicles series

"An author with a masterful touch! The snack-sized use of humor keeps this urban fantasy a tightly-paced, entertaining thrill ride. Nazri Noor's genius shines through in his Darkling Mage books! He seamlessly weaves the elements of urban fantasy we enjoy with a very fresh take on the genre. This is what getting lost in an adventure is supposed to feel like! Strong characters, quick wit, snappy dialogue, and stories that move! If you're looking for a fresh voice to add to your UF TBR list, do not pass up Nazri's books!" - Paul Sating, author of the Zodiac series

From the Author

Darkling Mage

Shadow Magic
Dark Harvest
Grave Intentions
Oblivion Heart
Midnight's Son
Last Rites
Blood Pact
Soul Fire
Endless Knight
Penumbra
Crystal Brawl

Sins of the Father

Fallen Reign
 False Gods
 Morning Star
Holy Hell
Halo Goodbye
Kingdom Come
Ex Nihilo

 Infernal Inheritance

Demon Prints
Ex Inferis

Vampire Vigilante

Blood Moon

Arcane Hearts

A Touch of Fever

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07DF9SQBG
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Amazon Digital Services LLC (June 6, 2018)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 6, 2018
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1555 KB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 305 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #250,802 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #232 in Horror Comedy
- #331 in Greek & Roman Myth & Legend
- #332 in Witch & Wizard Thrillers

Customer Reviews:
4.4 1,210 ratings

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Nazri Noor

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Nazri Noor is a California-based author of Filipino and Malaysian descent. While capable of fluently cursing in three languages, he only writes in English, and has been doing so in a professional capacity for over 18 years. His urban fantasy novels feature wise-cracking heroes who save the world with wits, style, and magic: think sass and class, while kicking ass. Visit www.NazriNoor.com for a FREE copy of Crystal Brawl, an adventure in the Darkling Mage series available exclusively to subscribers.

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4.4 out of 5

1,210 global ratings

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Christopher Lavene

A very good read

Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2023

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Having read many of Nazri's books, this was totally not what expecting. Except that is one of the best books I have read. The twists are so good. Highly recommend.

Helpful

Kazza - On Top Down Under/Dark Hints Book Reviews

Well Written and Fun YA/NA/Adult Urban Fantasy.

Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2018

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Nice first book in this new YA/NA UF series. There is a (free) prequel, Penumbra, that you can read beforehand. It isn't necessary to have read it, you do get caught up pretty well in Shadow Magic, but I think it would be helpful to read it first - it's not a long novella.

This time there are minor gods/entities being killed, which creates a rift in the environment and the system, and the Lorica are investigating. Dustin gets to brush up on his shadowstepping and learn some magic creation as well. Oh, and there are portals. Everyone seems to like Dustin. He's charming, and good looking - just ask him, he'll tell you. He's still reeling from his premature and nasty death and coping with the new world he finds himself in, but he still cruises past his dad's house and wishes he could go in and tell him he's okay. It hurts to see his dad obviously grieving.

The same characters in Penumbra pop up - lovely, kickass Prudence and handsome, motorcycle riding, and annoying-to-Dustin, Bastion. Thea, Dustin's Lorica boss. Herald the archivist/alchemist. Vanitas the telepathic sword, and quite a few new characters, like Gil the werewolf, Sterling the vampire and their... interesting boss, Carver.

All in all I’m really enjoying the Darkling Mage world so far. It’s a good series for YA/NA and adult readers alike. I’m very much looking forward to book #2. I hope the author brings it and doesn't spare any action - for better or for worse. You better believe I’m counting on it all. Mwahaha!!

16 people found this helpful

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Tom Intiso

Wow! I’m sitting here stunned!

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2024

Verified Purchase

Let me be utterly clear here, when I first picked up one of Nazri‘s books I thought he was just starting out and almost didn’t give the second book in the series a second glance.

I have never been so wrong before in my life, and I hope I am never so wrong again.

I don’t know what it is with the Arcane Hearts series, which I loved, totally, and utterly by the end, or what might have been going on in his life when he wrote it, but the series DID improve EXPONENTIALLY, book by book. So whatever it is, he got over it and moved on, and his work shows that.

This series, which came first, already has me gripped tightly and compellingly. There is no stuttering, there is no hesitation. This is simply good, nay fantastic, writing from first word to end. Enjoy!

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William J. Toner

Well crafted. Great dialogue. Excellent protagonist.

Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2022

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This is a light but thoroughly enjoyable read. I didn’t even have to think about whether or not to buy the next book despite each book having a good ending. Great entertainment!

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echo1440

Another great read by Nazri Noor!

Reviewed in the United States on April 4, 2023

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This book has everything that I’ve come to expect from this author: humor, snark, banter, a great story, and a whole lot of heart. I started reading about the arcane underground backward so it’s been fun reading the beginning of this incredible world I’ve grown to love so much.

Dustin is an interesting narrator. He seems like he has a lot of growing up to do at the beginning of the story but I have faith that this author has the skill to develop his character as the story goes on.

There were parts of the Big Reveal that I saw coming from the beginning but some of it was a huge surprise. I even shouted at my book in the break room at work!

Also, a snarky talking sword? Hell yeah!

One person found this helpful

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Dwhite72

not what I expected

Reviewed in the United States on November 13, 2023

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Not what I expected..
Ok I asked my reading group if this author wrote MM urban fiction I was told he did but I guess it’s a slow burn because I don’t even know who the love interest is as a matter fact there was no type of nothing with any type of romance at all in this first book I don’t even know where this series is actually going I will try one more book to see if it perks my interest.. I don’t really have nothing against Dustin. He just seems kind of dumb. He does have funny moments but not enough for me to really care about his character… again I’ll go to book 2 and see what that’s like I listen to this book on audible, and the narrator did an excellent job. I think if I was reading the book, I probably would’ve stopped.

One person found this helpful

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Kathy D.

Fantastic new urban fantasy! If you like the Dresden Files, you'll like this

Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2019

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I love urban fantasy and my bookshelves are full of them by a ton of authors. This one goes right up there with the top hits in my digital and physical bookshelves!

I picked this up on a whim because I was in the mood for an urban fantasy and the price was right. Also, I have to admit, anything having to do with shadows catches my attention, I'm fascinated by the various takes I've seen on shadow magic. I devoured this book in a little over an hour and proceeded to purchase the rest - all of which I finished in that same day! I couldn't put them down.

When I say the book is like Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files, I don't mean that it's a knock off of the story or character - Dust and Dresden could not be more opposite, and the world is definitely Mr. Noor's and not a knockoff of Mr. Butcher's. I mean more that the first person style, where it seems that the narrator is explaining from the future, and you learn as the main character does, reminds me of that style - which is a style I'm quite fond of!

The main character's personality leapt off the page, and I loved reading his interaction with everyone else. Dust and Sterling are two of my fav characters, although Sterling doesn't have a huge role in this book compared to later ones.

Other reviews have a breakdown of the plot so read those if you want spoilers - I'll just say it's a great read, and it's been years since I've devoured a series in such a short time period! The Prequel is available for free from the author's website, although I'd really suggest reading this one first.

All in all, I can't recommend it enough, and I hope that Mr. Noor comes out with Book #7 soon!

6 people found this helpful

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Birdie

A beginning

Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2023

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This was an interesting introduction book to learn something about Dustin, his background and how he came to work for Carver. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

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Top reviews from other countries

kragthang

Good

Reviewed in Germany on February 1, 2020

Verified Purchase

Found this by chance and I think it is a good start for a new series. The writing was smooth, the execution of the ideas wasn't bad either. Sometimes I didn't know where the book was going, at other times I found matters were explained in such detail that I got lost for a few pages. Occasionally the book was also too repetitive. Things were mentioned and two or three pages later the exact same thing came up again.
Will check out the next book in the series to see how the writing and the story progresses.

Infrequent Buyer

Great

Reviewed in India on May 3, 2019

Verified Purchase

Great. Well written. Different story line. Strongly recommended. Hope to be able to read other books and sequels of this author.

One person found this helpful

ChrisM

Excellent series.

Reviewed in Australia on May 15, 2019

Verified Purchase

I came across this fun and entertaining series recently on an Urban Fantasy group. I both purchased the eBook & the audio narration (with Luke Daniels) and read & listened at the same time. I enormously enjoyed this book. Dustin is a brand new mage just discovering his magic, and thrown into pretty much an alien world/existence to where he was before he "died". There's an eclectic range of characters, and the good guys and bad guys are not quite what they seem to be. It's also very imaginative, and I enjoyed the adventure of it. I'm looking forward to reading the rest. 🤗😊

handrest

Interesting story with an unusual ending

Reviewed in Canada on May 31, 2019

Verified Purchase

The main character is likeable, but inexperienced and naive. The plot has some twists, and it takes an unexpected turn at the end. The book is fairly simple and straightforward, without elaborate imagery, musing, or a lot of subplots. I enjoyed it and might read the sequel.

Snowy the barn owl

Good

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 17, 2021

Verified Purchase

This is a new author for me and the first book I have read but won’t be the last . It’s about a man who is killed in a ritual but then comes back to life with special power’s, he has then got to learn from scratch what he can do . All sorts of things happen that keep you reading until the end.

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Shadow Magic (Darkling Mage Book 1) Kindle Edition

From the Publisher

About the author

Dead man walking.

One knife to end a life, one sword to face the horde.

Whole worlds to discover!

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the Author

Product details

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About the author

Nazri Noor

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