The Chronicles of Chrestomanci: Volume 3: Conrad's Fate and the Pinhoe Egg: 3 (Chronicles of Chrestomanci) [Mass Market Paperback]

Long before Harry Potter was even dreamed of, Diana Wynne Jones was penning stories about her magical alternate worlds, and the nine-lived enchanter Chrestomanci.

Fortuntely, the last few years have seen a return for Chrestomanci. "The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Volume III" compiles the latest two books, one set in the past and one in the present. And both of them have everything you'd expect of a Chrestomanci novel -- eccentric humor, oddball characters, strange magic, mysterious happenings, and plenty of cats.

According to Conrad Tesdinic's uncle, "Conrad's Fate" involves deadly bad karma, which he can only rid himself of by killing someone at Stallery Mansion. With only an enchanted cork, Conrad is sent to Stallery as one of the new footmen, and soon befriends a strangely aristocratic older boy, Christopher "Smith," who turns out to be at Stallery for his own reasons -- and turns out to be an enchanter as well.

But Christopher isn't the only oddity at Stallery -- Conrad is left to question just who is "pulling the possibilities," aka changing details of the world via magic. Also there's a witch, an acting troupe, a dog, and his own sister, all making things more complicated. Now Conrad is forced to decide his OWN fate...

Then, having revisited Christopher Chant's teenage years, we lurch back into Chrestomanci's adult life.

Gammer Pinhoe has gone unexpectedly mad -- but her successor Marianne doesn't entirely believe that she has. While the Pinhoes and Farleighs have always conspired to keep their "dwimmer" magic a secret from Chrestomanci, suddenly they are sending unpleasant curses at one another, and Marianne suspects that it's Gammer's doing. Unfortunately, none of the adults around her will believe that Gammer -- even a crazed Gammer -- would ever do such a thing.

To make matters even more complicated, she and her brother have befriended the future Chrestomanci, Cat Chant -- and while they're exploring Gammer's old house, she gives him an old egg in the attic. But suddenly Cat is receiving nighttime visits from a great shadowy monster -- and the egg hatches. As Chrestomanci begins to investigate the strange matter of the Pinhoes, it turns out that Marianne has unwittingly revealed a conspiracy from centuries back...

Returning to the worlds of Chrestomanci is a little like slipping on a pair of well-worn fuzzy socks. Diana Wynne-Jones has thankfully lost none of her quirky talent, or her ability to spin up a world that is very much like early twentieth-century England, but then add something unique to it -- like deep-rooted "dwimmer" or the idea of making small changes to the universe to bring about big ones.

Her twinkly British humor and detailed style bring plenty of atmosphere, whether it's the polished creepiness of Stallery or the stifled chaos of Chrestomanci Castle and its surrounding villages. Jones spins up some dark and creepy moments (such as the ruined Stallery), but the plots are mostly saturated with lighthearted dialogue ("You pear-shaped FREAK!") and some very funny moments, like the crazy-looking flying machine.

And she intertwines lots of little subplots -- including quite a few mysteries -- that sort of float around loosely until she snaps them taut at the end. Just read carefully to avoid losing track of the details.

We also get to see Chrestomanci in two time periods here -- as a charming, confident teenager, and as a more responsible but still quirky adult. Other favorites such as Millie and Gabriel return, and Cat Chant gets plenty of expansion -- we get to see him truly acting as the future Chrestomanci, as well as dealing with his adorable new pet Klartch.

And most of the new characters are also pretty solid, particularly the kids who are having trouble with their families. Marianne is a likable girl who dreams of being a writer, and struggles with family legacies and prejudices that nobody bothered to explain. And despite his gullibility, Conrad is a pleasant sidekick for Christopher and a fairly clever kid.

And don't worry, the trademark cats are still very much in the series. Of particular note: Nutcase, a suitably named feline who seems to have the ability to walk through walls.

"The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Volume III" brings together two more of Diana Wynne-Jones' clever, complex fantasy stories, and it's a welcome return to the multiverse of the nine-lifed enchanter. Definitely a good read.

This volume contains two books: "Conrad's Fate" and "The Pinhoe Egg". It costs just a little more than each of them, so it's a very good deal. I wish I'd known this before.

I've ready many Diana Wynne Jones books, some better, some worse. The two stories in this volume are excellent. I bought it late in the afternoon, reluctantly put it down in the middle of Conrad's Fate to go to bed, then finished the rest the next day. I scarcely noticed the time passing, and I look forward to another reread.

One thing I love about both of these stories is that consequences always exist for the actions of the characters--whether they're young or old, no one gets off scott-free. There may be elements of mercy, but there's not getting off without a consequence of some kind, and the adults are just as smart as the children. And yet the children don't expect the adults to do everything--they're quite independent and each tries to solve problems on their own--sometimes in the face of enormous pressure and disapproval, from fellow children and adults both. And when rewards come, in the form of advanced education or activities, they're nearly always influenced by (if not the direct result of) something the children did. Which is very satisfying, to me. It's always a disappointment when the ending is entirely made up by an adult demigod coming in and resolving everything.

The magical world(s) are thoroughly created and I never once got a feeling as if any element of the story was out of place.