The Pretender by Foo Fighters
Paulo and Laurel’s story in The Fated Mage is fraught with tension between the two of them. Paulo’s oracular abilities makes it easy for him to meddle with things, to manipulate situations to benefit him. And Laurel hates it. She knows he pretends to be a pompous peacock in order to fool people into underestimating him and by the end of this series. All she wants is for him to stop pretending, to stop playing puppet master, and to become the man she knows he is.
Call of the Carnyx by Saor
The battles that take place in The Fated Mage aren’t just battles of the mind or the heart. When I was researching this book, I came across the carnyx, a tall wind instrument the Celts used around the Iron Age. It was this fearsome looking horn that let out this haunting drone over battlefields. I knew when I heard it that Paulo would hear the low moans of this horn as the rebels attacked his home. This particular song really embodies that sense adrenaline spike and that intensity that comes with battle.
Holding Out for a Hero by Bonnie Tyler
This song was the theme song for the first half of The Fated Mage. Laurel is just waiting for Paulo to realize his full potential. By the end of the siege, Paulo is running around like an absolute boss as he takes out rebels and saves his castle from falling. Yes, I regularly thought of the scene from Shrek 2 as Shrek was trying to get to Fiona before she could be enchanted by Prince Charming. Paulo would definitely scoff at the idea of being compared to an ogre, but Laurel would absolutely agree.
Thunder by Imagine Dragons
The growth that comes from this cast of characters is just insane. We watch both Paulo and Laurel achieve things neither of them ever thought possible. We see Diana make mistakes and find forgiveness. We see Aspen open her eyes to truth. We see other characters reign victorious over insurmountable feats. We see all of them meet fate head on and fight for a world they want, not simply the world others have told them they deserve.
Beautiful Things by Benson Boone
I had a hard time putting this song in this list because the tiny hipster that lives in my brain says it’s too trendy, but it fits The Fated Mage too well not to include it. Paulo has Laurel and his greatest fear is that Fate will take her from him. Laurel has done her best to build a life of freedom for herself and knows if she can’t figure out a way to free herself from her past, she won’t ever be able to claim the future she wants for herself. Both of them have experienced a slice of their deepest wish, but they both know it could be snatched away from them in an instant.
Burning Down by Alex Warren
Betrayal is a huge struggle for both Paulo and Laurel. The characters come face to face with it over and over again throughout The Fated Mage. It’s a difficult thing to come to terms with. To overcome. And with betrayal comes consequences—for both the betrayer and the betrayed. Dealing with all of it and coming out of top of it turns this story into something real and hopefully something we all can find ourselves in.
I Get to Love You by Ruelle
Paulo and Laurel’s love story is one for the ages. It’s about choice. It’s about sacrifice. It’s about realizing there’s more to love than simple attraction or even just convenience. The Fated Mage shows us two characters that are completely different and how they come together to make something stronger and more beautiful than they could be apart. It shows us that sometimes fate can be kind. That love is choosing to be brave and finding joy in the unlikeliest of places.
Cartographer’s War #6
The war ends here.
Paulo MacGregor cares for nothing besides changing Laurel’s future and convincing her to trust him. After the rebels took the capital, fleeing to Iatrus Castle, his home, seemed the only option. However, even though he’s brought Laurel to his home, fate has other plans. Not only are Laurel’s convictions not to trust him deepening, but both their pasts are catching up with them. The rebels are coming to Iatrus Castle and there’s little Paulo can do to stop fate from unfolding.
Laurel Flumen absolutely can’t trust Paulo. Not only had he kept her from accomplishing her mission to kill Olympia’s king, but he also is the reason she had to leave her sister behind. If Paulo had never involved himself in her life, she would never have betrayed Aspen, she wouldn’t be stuck in the cursed kingdom of Olympia, and she certainly would have never ended up on this side of a war she never wanted to be a part of.
In this epic conclusion of The Cartographer’s War, Paulo and Laurel must come together to defeat not only the rebellion trying to tear down the kingdom but also change the very strings of fate itself.
Young Adult | Fantasy Historical [Oliver-Heber Books, On Sale: June 17, 2025, e-Book , / ]
Allison Anderson lives her best life as a wife, a mom, a dedicated member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and a fantasy writer. As a life long fantasy nerd, she finds it natural to create stories of her own and you can often find her jotting down new story ideas or talking about dragons. She’s spent most of her life across the southwestern United States.
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