Talking to Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles) (Turtleback)

This book is different from its predecessors. For one thing, it is written in the first person. Daystar, the son of Cimorene, is suddenly witness to a wizard melting, given a mysterious sword, and instructed by his mother to enter the Enchanted Forest with virtually no instructions as to what he must do. For his own protection, he has never been told of his heritage and history. This novel is the story of his quest, his discovery of his own special fate, and his realization of his ultimate purpose in life, which is to free his father, defeat the ignominious ambitions of the Society of Wizards, and secure the magically vibrant future of the Enchanted Forest. Although we as the reader know, if we have read the previous stories, who Daystar is and what he must do, it is interesting to see him discover the truth for himself and to learn just what the magical sword he was given by Cimorene is. The companions he meets along his journey are wonderful new characters, especially the fire-witch Shiara; she, like Daystar, is trying to discover and use her own talents; unfortunately for her, being a rather impatient, somewhat hot-tempered fire-witch, she finds herself able to use her magical powers only after she has been polite to others, politeness not being one of her assets by any means. Still, she is inherently likeable and easy to relate to. The young dragon that accompanies the group is the source of many delightfully comic moments.

This book is geared more to young people than the others in the series, it would seem. In this case, all of the protagonists--human, fire-witch, and dragon--are young people learning how to act, how to respect others, and how to succeed in life. Any lessons for young adult readers, though, are subtle and take nothing away from a great story which I, as an adult, enjoyed immensely. I must point out, though, that anyone unfamiliar with the first three books in the series may well have problems understanding just who everyone is and what is going on at times. This is a wonderful series for young and old alike, and I for one hope most sincerely that a fifth Enchanted Forest novel will appear some time in the future.

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Billed as the concluding episode in Wrede's acclaimed Enchanted Forest Chronicles, Book Four opens to find King Mendanbar still imprisoned. Queen Cimorene has been living almost in seclusion at the edge of the Enchanted Forest with their son Daystar.

Now that Daystar is deemed old enough to rescue his father a multitude of challenges await him. Alone he must traverse the Enchanted Forest with a magic sword, a fire-witch, and a baby dragon. There are many who will challenge him.

It's all in the name of good excitement presented with crackling dialogue and imaginative situations. When it comes to fantasy, Wrede knows her magic spells.

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