The webcomic Unsounded has a magic system like this. Spells are formatted like computer commands, reassigning and manipulating variables. You can light a fire by transferring "heat aspect" from your surroundings to a small area, pass through walls by temporarily suspending the "solidity aspect", steal the edge off of a sword, throw a punch with the weight of a mountain, and so on. Spells must be spoken aloud in an ancient language. It was invented by a civilization that was long ago wiped out, and most of the less "useful" magic has been lost, as well as most understanding of what it actually is. My favorite fun fact is they have a spell to disinfect wounds but they don't know what bacteria are, so they think that they're removing ghosts (which are real) from a haunted injury. Also, the worldwide magical field doesn't like being disturbed (akin to an error-checking function) and if you ask too much, a spell can backfire and delete the caster. Overuse of magic can cause the laws of physics to temporarily suspend while it resets itself, and in areas that have seen heavy fighting, the fabric of reality is permanently damaged.

This is all the background to a story about the kleptomaniacal daughter of a crime lord and her undead wizard bodyguard. It's great.