Centaur Aisle (Xanth - 4) by Piers Anthony

CENTAUR AISLE (Xanth - 4) AUTHOR: PIERS ANTHONY ISBN: 0-345-35246-7 COVER ART BY MICHAEL WHELAN The magic of Xanth was useless in Mundania - until Dor tried honesty!

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INTO DARKEST MUNDANIA
Dor was having troubles growing up to the be the next Magician-King of the magic Land of Xanth. He wanted no part of running the Kingdom. But now Good King Trent was leaving on a trade mission to non-magical Mundania, home of such weird beasts as horses and bears, so Dor had to take over as King for a week.

A week passes. No Trent. Then three weeks. King Trent still hadn't returned. Surely, something terrible had happened; he was apparently held captive in some foul dungeon, unable to escape. Dor was left with the burden of ruling - and with Irene, who was entirely willing to be his Queen.

His only hope was to enter Mundania and free King Trent. But how could it be done without the powers of magic? Nevertheless, he started forth bravely - together with Irene, a golem, a centaur, and a young ogre - heading for the far south of Xanth.

The entrance to Mundania, of course, lay to the north.

My Opinion Is...
A book of homonyms. Gotta love it.

This book takes place four years after Castle Roogna. Again, Dor is the main character. King Trent decides to head to Mundania to a certain period in time so that a trade route can be established. When King Trent and Queen Iris doesn't return, Dor and cast are forced to head to Centaur Isle before they head off to Mundania - and even that wasn't easy!

Parts of the book slowed down but it was a good read.

Castle Roogna by Piers Anthony

CASTLE ROOGNA (Xanth - 3) AUTHOR: PIERS ANTHONY ISBN: 0-345-35048-0 COVER ART BY DARREL K. SWEET

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ONCE UPON A PAST
Millie had been a ghost for 800 years. But now, restored by the magic of Xanth, she was again a maddeningly desirable woman. She could have had any man she wanted... except the one she did want, Jonathan the zombie. To grant Millie her desire, and to prove his right to rule Xanth in the future, young Magician Dor embarked on a quest for the elixir which would restore Jonathan to full life.

But the potion could be found only in the past... so, through a magic tapestry, to the past he went, taking over the body of a barbarian warrior. The first person he encountered there was Jumper, a giant spider - a nightmare monster, but a staunch friend and much-needed ally in peril-haunted, ancient Xanth.

Then Dor met Millie - 800 years younger, but just as lovely. And he realized that, in his new body, he was no longer twelve years old...

My Opinion Is...
Castle Roogna is the third book in the Xanth series. It focuses on Dor, 12 year old son of Bink and Chameleon, who is sent off into the past due to a mission by King Trent.

Right away, I loved Jumper. One may think the giant spider is a weird companion but Jumper has been extremely helpful - mostly because he's an adult. That's what Dor struggles with a lot - trying to understand what it is to be mature. He learns a lot from Jumper.

I also thought it was neat to know about King Roogna of Castle Roogna as well as Magician Murphy. The Zombie Master was also pretty neat. I definitely enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading Centaur Aisle.

The Source of Magic by Piers Anthony

THE SOURCE OF MAGIC AUTHOR: PIERS ANTHONY ISBN: 0-345-27284-6 DEL REY (FIRST EDITION - FEBRUARY 1979) COVER ART BY DOUG BEEKMAN A quest for the source of its power threatened to doom the Land of Xanth

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THE MAGIC OF XANTH

As the ruler of a country steeped in enchantment, King Trent was naturally curious about the source of its magic.

It made sense to order Bink, the only one of his subjects immune to supernatural harm, to undertake a quest to discover the wellspring of Xanth's uniqueness.

From the beginning, Bink and his companions, Chester the centaur and Crombie, the soldier transformed into a griffin, were harried by an unseen enemy determined to thwart them. Even the power of the Good Magician Humfrey, together with Bink's protective talent, scarcely saved their lives.

Then when Humfrey and Crombie turned againsth im, all seemed lost. But Bink's ingenuity and luck prevailed, and he reached his goal. The King's orders had been carried out...

But the King had not expected Bink's next act - to destroy utterly the magic of Xanth!

My Opinion Is...
This is the second book in the Xanth series and pretty much a year has passed. Bink is growing bored and is missing adventure! King Trent decides to send him on a mission: To find the source of magic. Of course, heck breaks loose over and over on their way to finding the source.

The book was awesome. I loved it. My favorite character was Grundy the Golem. His little insults while translating for Crombie and others were pretty funny. "You tell 'em, twerp!"

The ending was pretty neat. I never ever expected the ending at all. I'm going to have to keep an eye out on the other books and continue to 'Castle Roogna'.

A Spell for Chameleon by Piers Anthony

A SPELL FOR CHAMELEON AUTHOR: PIERS ANTHONY ISBN: 0-345-25855-X DEL REY (FOURTH PRINTING - FEBRUARY 1979) COVER ART BY MICHAEL WHELAN In Xanth magic was the rule - alas, poor Bink was the exception!...

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FOR LACK OF A SPELL... XANTH!

That was the enchanted land where magic ruled - where every citizen had a special spell only he could cast. It was a land of centaurs and dragons and basilisks.

For Bink of North Village, however, Xanth was no fairy tale. He alone had no magic. And unless he got some - and got some fast! - he would be exiled. Forever!

But the Good Magician Humfrey was convinced that Bink did indeed have magic. In fact, both Beauregard the genie and the magic wall chart insisted that Bink had magic.

Magic as powerful as any posssessed by the King or by Good Magician Humfrey - or even by the Evil Magician Trent.

Be that as it may, no one could fathom the nature of Bink's very special magic.
Bink was in despair. This was even worse than having no magic at all... and he would still be exiled!
My Opinion Is...
The beginning of the book was slow. Very slow. I think it was a very long attempt to show you what was in Xanth when Bink had to find the Good Magician Humfrey to find out why he had no magic. Xanth appears to be a very dangerous place to live! It seems almost every *plant* was carnivorous there!

Once Bink was exiled, It got very interesting because he was captured by Evil Magician Trent. Through the book, I teetered back and forth. Is Trent good? Do I want to like him or is he really dangerous?

To keep this vague for people who didn't read this book but enough to explain for people who did read this book - I don't like Trent even with how the book ended. With or without Chameleon's interference, the fact remains... He made that move. That's something I can't recover from. If I was traveling with them and all, I never ever would've forgiven him. I would always remain suspicious because of how it all changed AFTER that move.

I also don't like Trent's magical ability. The way he uses it all willy nilly and then walks away without caring! *shudders*