Mithermages Books In Order

Publication Order of Mither Mages Books

Mithermages Series

Mithermages is a series of fantasy books by a bestselling American author of nonfiction, poetry, science fiction and fantasy books Orson Scott Card. Card is also the author of Ender’s Shadow, Speaker for the Dead and Ender’s Game books that are popular among young and adult readers and are used in schools. The first book in Mithermages series is The Lost Gate published in 2011.

The Lost Gate

In the first book in Mithermages series Orson Card reveals to the reader that what we call the gods were human beings from another planet called Westil who arrived on Earth through magical gates. Going back and forth through the magical gates gave people with latent or minor magic abilities a huge boost to their skills giving them god-like powers, and as a result, people came to know them as gods.

However, in the 7th century, a trickster named Loki closed the magical gates between Westil and Earth trapping all the humans (known as gods) here on Earth. Fast forward to the current century, the descendants of the gods still live here on Earth although their powers have significantly diminished.

The North Family is the removed descendants of the Norse gods residing in a secluded in Virginia. Then there is Danny North, a member of the North family who grew up thinking he was a drekka- possessed no magical abilities- but its revealed that he is a Gatemage. Gatemages have the most feared and powerful skill of creating Gates. Any family with powers to create Gates is feared and respected because they can quickly eliminate rivals.

In a riveting afterword, the author explains that his idea for creating Mithermages series dates backed a couple of decades back but was paused because back then fantasy wasn’t popular as it is in the 21st century.

The first in the series follows two parallel storylines, but most of the story is about Danny North. As he escapes from his family becomes a small-time thief and travels to Washington DC where he encounters some odd character and finally discovers about his abilities. Danny is an exciting character, filling the novel with humor and smart banter and he matures as the story progresses.

The second The Lost Gate storyline follows a mysterious man on Westil who arrives on the planet without any memories. He is given the name Wad by the king’s cook and becomes entangled with the King, Queen. Just like Danny, Wad undergoes a growing process, but we get to see more of Earth story than Westil’s.
On the plus side of the story, The Lost Gate has an interesting magical system. Different gods have a particular liking with a specific element, and each affection has different levels of strength. The author gradually introduces the gods’ affinities as the story progresses.

What’s more interesting is how Orson has created the fiction universe with Westil and Earth influencing each other even though separated. How the author explains fictional creatures and the history of different religions on Earth and placing them in a magical system is wonderful. What’s more interesting is Orson’s easy but page-turning style, and the dialogue is fun.

The Gate Thief

The second in Mithermages series picks up where the first book The Lost Gate left off. We meet Danny North, the main character who previously discovered about his dormant power still entangled in a struggle against the Families.

The descendants of the fallen gods from another planet, they Families are on a mission to open one of the gates to strengthen their dwindling powers. After Danny defeats Loki, the chances of opening the great gates have risen. The families are also seeking to control Danny, and if they find it impossible to do control him, death would be the only solution.

Danny also realizes his failures and figures out that he cannot control the powers stolen from Loki. As the story gradually unfolds, it is revealed that Loki initially locked the gates for very protective reasons. Loki also wants to help Danny guard the gates and protect the humans from the mages of Westil. With the fates of the two worlds at balance, Danny North must also defend himself from his fellow human companion because everyone seems to want a piece of his powers.

The Gate Thief, the second in Mithermages series contains fast-paced action like the debut book, but the plot grows darker, adding a harsh edge to the story. Danny has matured from the first book, and even though he’s prone to making mistakes, he has the desire always to do good. The use of Loki in the story might seem out of place given his popularity on the big screen today, but his mythic and historical aura is nicely suited on the page. It’s true he wants to help Danny, but like the Loki we’ve come to know from the big screens, he’s trickster with his agenda. The magic system and the use of history and myth throughout the book add a sense of weight that roots the reader deeply.

Gatefather

Danny North is the first Gate Mage born on Earth in over 2000 years and the only one to live to claim his power. Westil families exiled on Earth have had an agreement that required the killing of any person suspected to be a Gate Mage.

The wars between the exiled families had been awful until they, at last, realized that was their survival under threat. However, the existence of a great mage, one with powers to build the Great Gate that would link Earth to Westil would give his family the control over all other families and rekindle the wars. So the only deal was to kill any suspected gate mage.

If the families failed to kill the gate mages, the gate thief (the Mage who shattered every Great Gate before it could be opened) would gladly kill them. However, Danny, a great Mage survived, fought the gate thief and won. However, what Danny didn’t know is that the Gate Thief had valid reasons for closing the gates- and now he has fallen into the evil power of an enemy of both Westil and Earth.