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Mageling

J.L. Mullins

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Similar in characterization + relationships

These books are ranked using the characterization + relationships labels extracted for Mageling. Books rank higher when they are close on every selected axis.

Characterization labels used: young mage, overpowered protagonist, curious protagonist, headstrong protagonist, naive protagonist, resourceful protagonist, risk-taker, self-taught learner, female protagonist, underestimated protagonist, sheltered protagonist

Relationships labels used: mentor-student, friendship, professional camaraderie, debt coercion, family debt, low romance, chaste

This does not mean the books share the same plot, setting, quality, or difficulty. It means their characterization + relationships embeddings are close.

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The Books of Earthsea

Ursula K. Le Guin · 2018 · Earthsea Cycle

A complete illustrated Earthsea omnibus tracing mages, islands, dragons, and the costs of power across a lifetime.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young mage · priestess heroine · archmage · mentor figure · young prince · widow · mother · scarred child · dragons · arrogance · maturity arc · internal struggle · female protagonists · complex characters · character growth

Relationships labels: mentor-student · friendship · alliance · mother-child · romance · community bonds · power imbalance · gendered social roles · companionship

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1323

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The Earthsea Trilogy

Ursula K. Le Guin · 1979 · Earthsea Cycle

Three linked Earthsea tales follow Ged across youth, maturity, and old age as magic, identity, and death entwine.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young wizard · flawed protagonist · headstrong youth · humble damaged man · female priestess · young prince · wise mentor · powerful mage · symbolic characters

Relationships labels: mentor-student · male friendship · companion quest · priestess and outsider · family estrangement · institutional control · self versus shadow · community responsibility

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1450

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The Giver

Lois Lowry · 1999 · The Giver

A boy chosen to receive hidden memories discovers the cost of his community’s perfect, controlled sameness.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young protagonist · curious protagonist · selected outsider · mentor figure · emotionally restrained community · assigned roles · authoritarian elders

Relationships labels: mentor-student · family unit · community control · friendship · parent-child

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1515

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Athyra

Steven Brust · 1993 · Vlad Taltos

A fugitive assassin hides in a rural village, where a healer’s apprentice begins to see his world—and himself—differently.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: former assassin · antihero · mentor · apprentice · peasant protagonist · young protagonist · healer's apprentice · fugitive · necromancer · undead sorcerer · wisecracking hero · naive youth · thoughtful youth · outsider

Relationships labels: mentor-student · friendship · outsider bonds · family disapproval · villager suspicion · power imbalance · protector-protected · trusted companion · mentor-apprentice · human-jhereg bond

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1577

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هناك

Ibraheem Abbas, إبراهيم عباس · 2014

A young man wakes in a strange alternate realm where near-death becomes a journey of love, lessons, and reality-bending discovery.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: male protagonist · young adult protagonist · ordinary-to-exceptional · female guide · enigmatic love interest · inspiring mentors · historical figures · naive protagonist · motivated protagonist

Relationships labels: romance · mentor-student · guidance · love interest · family duty · protagonist-guide bond · emotional dependency · trust and doubt

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1587

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Castle Roogna

Piers Anthony · 1997 · Xanth

A young magician travels into Xanth’s past with a giant spider to restore a zombie and learn how to grow up.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young protagonist · magician talent · maturing boy · humorous companion · giant spider companion · destined ruler · ghost character · zombie character · maternal figure · weak female characterization

Relationships labels: mentor-student · friendship · companionship · parent-child · nanny-child · love triangle · romantic pursuit · rivalry · loyalty · protective bond

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1604

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Anathem

Neal Stephenson · 2008 · Anathem

A young monk-scholar in an isolated world of ideas is thrust into a first-contact crisis that could reshape civilization.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young protagonist · student · monk-scholar · intellectual · naive narrator · rational · curious · likable cast · supportive cast · academic rivals · mentor figures

Relationships labels: mentor-student · brotherhood · sisterhood · community bonds · intellectual camaraderie · romantic subplot · intergroup alliance · us-vs-them · outside-inside divide · friendship

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1625

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Land of the Lustrous, Vol. 1

Haruko Ichikawa · 2017 · 宝石の国 [Hōseki no Kuni]

A fragile gem being is given an odd assignment and pulled into a strange war against moon-dwellers in a far-future Earth.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: fragile protagonist · stubborn protagonist · comical protagonist · inept protagonist · outcast · loner · tragic characters · complex characters · distinct personalities · morally flawed characters · identity struggle · character development

Relationships labels: mentor-student · caretaker figure · peer bonds · friendship · protective bond · outsider connection · found family · community structure · dependence

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1633

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The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 1: Coming Home

J. Michael Straczynski · 2001 · The Amazing Spider-Man (1999) (Collected Editions)

Spider-Man faces a mysterious powered foe, new truths about his origin, and life-altering fallout from a secret-identity crisis.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: reluctant hero · smart aleck · isolated hero · ordinary outsider · burdened protagonist · flawed hero · responsible adult · teacher role · mentor figure · morally conflicted · resourceful · self-sacrificing

Relationships labels: mentor-student · marriage · romantic relationship · family bonds · friendship · frenemy tension · hero alliance · betrayal · father-figure · peer rivalry · community support

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1640

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The Chaperone

M. Hendrix · 2023

In a future America that controls girls through chaperones, one teen starts questioning everything after a sudden death.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen heroine · brainwashed protagonist · quiet determination · naive protagonist · defiant awakening · privileged girl · protective chaperone · rebel mentor · male antagonists · one-dimensional villains · brainwashed bystanders

Relationships labels: mentor-student · surrogate family · father-daughter conflict · sisterhood · friendship · romantic tension · forbidden romance · power imbalance · betrayal · dependency

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1646

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The Dollmakers

Lynn Buchanan · 2024

An apprentice dollmaker seeks to prove her creations can fight monsters, but her quest upends everything she knows.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: unlikable protagonist · flawed heroine · arrogant protagonist · stubborn protagonist · brash protagonist · childish behavior · violent temper · redemption arc · traumatized character · reclusive character · guard dollmaker · apprentice · mentor · reclusive expert · complex side characters · sentient dolls

Relationships labels: mentor-student · friendship · rivalry · protective bond · community role · shared trauma

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1651

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Myth-Nomers and Im-Pervections

Robert Lynn Asprin · 2006 · Myth Adventures

Skeeve travels alone to a hostile dimension to find his lost partner and learns how to stand on his own.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: naive protagonist · apprentice magician · growing up · self-reflective · whiny protagonist · inept protagonist · solo protagonist · mentor figure · supporting cast absent · new side characters · temporary sidekicks · deadly bodyguard · djinn character

Relationships labels: friendship · mentor-student · business partners · apology · falling out · reconciliation · found family · loyalty · dependency

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1653

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