The Magister Trilogy is a fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 trilogy

Trilogy

A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, or video games...

 written by Celia S. Friedman

Celia S. Friedman

Celia S. Friedman is a writer of science fiction and fantasy.Friedman writes epic science fiction and fantasy novels which feature complex interweavings of plot and richly detailed settings. To date she has published eight novels, several short stories, and a sourcebook for White Wolf's Vampire:...

. It includes:

• Feast of Souls
  Feast of Souls
  Feast of Souls is a fantasy novel by Celia S. Friedman. It is the first book in the Magister Trilogy. It was published in 2007 by DAW books....
  
  (2007)
• Wings of Wrath
  Wings of Wrath
  Wings of Wrath is a fantasy novel by Celia S. Friedman. It is the second book in the Magister Trilogy. It was published in 2009 by DAW books.Its plot follows almost immediately after the plots of the previous book, Feast of Souls...
  
  (February 3, 2009)
• Legacy of Kings (August 23, 2011).

Background

The Magister Trilogy takes place in a world of magic that comes at a supreme cost - in order to cast a spell, a witch must give up some of his or her own life essence, causing them to die faster than usual, slowly wasting away. In this world, there are some, known as Magisters, who are capable of consuming the power of others instead of their own - meaning that they must consume the life of another human for their own gain. From the time the Magisters first appeared in the world, nearly a thousand years before the beginning of the first book, until the beginning of the series when the central female character (Kamala) achieves this status, Magisters were exclusively male - they had determined that no woman would be capable of the internal sacrifices necessary to make the transition from consuming her own life essence to the consumption of another person's life. When a Magister consumes someone's life in this way, it appears that the victim has a disease, which has come to be known as the "Wasting Disease," although only the Magisters know its true cause.

Human beings without magical powers are referred to as 'morati', whose world is divided into several continents, often distinguished by North and South. Royalty rules over such continents. Many kings employ a Magister 'Royal' to see to their bidding by providing sorcery and counsel to their kingdom.

Before the appearance of Magisters, there were monstrous creatures known as Souleaters (similar in description to giant dragonflies) who fed on the life essences of humans. According to legend, the gods of the world trapped the Souleaters near the world's north pole, creating a powerful barrier called "the wrath" that encircles the globe. They knew that one day, the Souleaters would return, and thus granted special powers into the bloodline of a particular race of men, now known as Lyr.

External links

• http://www.merentha.org/ C.S. Friedman's official fan site
• http://www.csfriedman.com/ C.S. Friedman's personal site