Innocence Lost is the sequel to the Innocent Mage. It pays off on the plotlines started in the first book and references events from it. So, obviously, there will be spoilers.
Innocence Lost begins with the discovery of the deaths of nearly the entire royal family, leaving Prince Gar the only heir. However, as his manifestation of magic is only recent, his position is far from secure, leaving him vulnerable to political monouvering. When his magic fails entirely, he asks his friend Asher to break their most ancient law in order to protect his kingdom and throne.
If I had to pick one theme in this book, it would be consequences. Everything that happens in this book is a consequence of an earlier decision by the characters, be it a year in the past, or twenty years, or a thousand years. There are so many ways that this could have ended more happily; if the Doranen hadn't led Morg to the Olken, if they hadn't asked them to give up their magic, if Durm hadn't looked beyond the wall, if Willer had been more loyal... I don't think there's a single decision these characters make that doesn't come back to bite them.
Gar, as in the first book, is a far more interesting character than Asher. He actually has something he wants, and his efforts to attain or keep this are the driving force of the story. Asher in comparison spends most of the story being pushed one way or another by other people's motives. I do feel sorry for him, and to Millar's credit, his reactions feel real. When he gets screwed over, he reacts with anger and frustration. When a friend lets him down, he's hurt and upset.
The other characters had their moments as well. Conroyd was the usual amorally ambitious politician, who had a moment of near-redemption toward the end, while Darran's absolute dedication to Gar was touchingly demonstrated. In contrast, Dathne whose deceptiveness and ruthlessness was rather interesting in the last book (like when she served up the cakes to the prisoner) was suddenly reduced to the love interest and didn't take any further initiative of her own. I feel if you'd taken Veira out and had Dathne take over her role, you'd have a much more dynamic character.
The ending I was torn about. I felt the final chapter had everything working out too conveniently considering the bloody near-Armageddon that just happened, but this is high fantasy. And in a weird way, it ties in with the books' constant debate regarding qualifications of rulership. All up, it's a good sequel that follows through on everything that was promised to us by the first.
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