Rating: 
Summary: Every book in the series is great...
Review: but this novel, near the beginning of the series, is definitely one of the best. Watt-Evans manages an engagingly humorous romantic subplot, while still keeping the realistic characters/motivations and inventive use of magic that characterizes the other novels in the Ethshar series. Great, great stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Among the more entertaining reads I have ever found.
Review: Fans of characters who develop, rejoice! The author has created a believable world, a solidly thought-out system of magic, and most importantly, a hero to whom a reader can relate. Cast into the cold when his teacher dies, the future looks dim for this apprentice wizard, with his single spell and lack of connections. As the plot progresses, we not only come to know and like the character, we see him live and develop into a three-dimensional person. The second book in the "Ethshar" series, "With a Single Spell" cements Lawrence Watt-Evans's place as one of the best, and least-appreciated, authors in fantasy today.
Rating:
Summary: Another classic in the vein of Misenchanted Sword
Review: Great, great, great book. Lots of fun. A little light, but at the same time not simplistic, just a great read.
Rating:
Summary: Another classic in the vein of Misenchanted Sword
Review: Great, great, great book. Lots of fun. A little light, but at the same time not simplistic, just a great read.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent magical premises, refreshing cowardly hero.
Review: I have read this book over and over, there always seems to be something I missed. A delightful story.While sea-faring, dodging city guardsmen, and learning of the final dragon-hunt, Watt-Evans creates a completely believable world, and during the dragon-hunt and resulting quest a completely believable maturing of the character. I can't understand why Watt-Evans' books are mostly out of print.
Rating:
Summary: Another LWE Classic
Review: I love this book. It epitomizes some of the characteristics that make Lawrence Watt-Evans' books great. This story presents unorthodox fantasy elements with a seemingly improbably plot and weaves it together masterfully. An aprentice who knows a single spell and is expected to kill a dragon???? As crazy as it sounds, it is an immensely entertaining story with colorful characters, good dialogue, and creative writing. Given it is a light fantasy read, but many of his earlier books should be treated as such. Relax, kick up your feet, and read it in one sitting, enjoying it for what it is.......great fantasy.
Rating: 
Summary: Standard Formula
Review: Predictable plot, sketchy locale, good dialogue, sterotypical characters individuated by anachronistic twentieth century quips in an otherwise medieval mileau. The author has written this book several times under different titles with re-named characters in various locales. Reminiscent of Heinlein's "Glory Road" without fully realized characters. If you haven't already read one of Lawrence Watt-Evan's books it's definitely worth the price, worth reading for enjoyment, not worth re-reading. If you have read one of his books you know what your getting. Buy it, if you want more of the same. I borrowed my copy.
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Summary: A simple and wonderful story
Review: This book is, perhaps, the best example of what makes the Ethshar series tick: there is a problem and the character or characters work towards resolving it.It sounds simplistic when put that way, and it IS a very simple concept, but what makes Watt-Evans books in this series stand out is the relentlessly logical and believable way that the problems are addressed. With a Single Spell is a charming story about an apprentice wizard who has the misfortune of losing his teacher after only learning a single spell (a simple fire conjuration). You can't get any simpler than that. And yet, the book takes off from that starting point and leads us through some truly marvelous terrain, including a dragon hunt and a very, very mysterious castle that seems to have crashed (!) into the ground. It is a very fun and inventive story that, while not being exactly Tolstoy in depth, is utterly enjoyable to read.
Rating:
Summary: Good story: unpredictable and imaginative plot
Review: This is a good story. The plot develops quite quickly and goes in several unexpected directions. The main character is a nice down-to-earth, average kind of guy. His aggressive lack of ambition is a nice, cynical twist to the conventional "I want to save the world" attitude. The synopsis at the end was a nice touch to tie up all the "loose ends." A map or two would be really nice, but is not terribly necessary.
Rating:
Summary: Fun Read
Review: This is another great book in the Ethshar series of books by Lawrence Watt-Evans. This book takes place many years after the events in the "The Misenchanted Sword". Tobas is a failure. Tobas' Wizard teacher died after only teaching him a few nearly useless spells. This hardly seems to do Tobas any good and he quickly sinks into hunger and poverty and that is when the fun really begins. This book is as funny as the "The Misenchanted Sword" but becomes a fantasy/romance. A funny and fun read with an imperfect hero. Good read.
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