Searching for Dragons

This perfect follow-up to "Dealing with Dragons" maintains everything which made its predecessor great and adds to it in the best ways. It adds more, interesting characters, leverages a new main character with a perspective and experience drastically different from Cimorene’s in the first book, and expands the world as our heroes adventure far outside the geographical confines of the first book. With two main characters now, there is expanded opportunity for inter- and intra- personal growth and relationships, and this, besides a slightly expanded scope of the story, is what sets it apart from its predecessor. Add to this a slightly better story with a few less coincidences, and it is clear "Searching for Dragons" is another fantastic book perfect for the whole family.

Kazul, King of the Dragons is missing, and sections of the Enchanted Forest have been stripped of their magic and turned into dust. This can only be the work of those dastardly wizards. In Searching for Dragons, we unite again with the delightful Cimorene, princess--make that Chief Cook and Librarian--for Kazul, the newly selected King of the Dragons as she seeks once again to thwart the plans of the Society of Wizards to steal untold amounts of magic from the land, this time by attempting to start a distracting war between the realm of dragons and the kingdom of the bordering Enchanted Forest. Mendanbar, the young king of the Enchanted Forest, having discovered sections of his forest destroyed, heeds the council of a wise squirrel to seek the counsel of Morwen the witch. She insists that he meet with the King of the Dragons, before which meeting he encounters the head wizard Zemenar, who implicates the dragons in the destruction he has discovered. Boldly going to the Mountains of Morning, he encounters Cimorene, learns that Kazul is missing, and finds himself joining Cimorene in a search for the missing dragon. Along the way, they encounter a pair of giants, survive a wild ride on a faulty magic carpet, repulse an attack by a horde of snakes, meet up with a strange, loquacious magician, and finally unite along with Morwen to take on the wizards and rescue Kazul. This time, they need more than buckets of soapy water and lemon juice to defeat Zemenar's crew. Wrede is a wonderful writer. She is especially good at closing every hole in the story--things mentioned even briefly early on are brought into play before the end, and the fact that I as a reader actually forgot about many of them along the way just makes me respect her talents even more. Her incorporation of fairy tale lore is brilliantly subtle, and her description of the magic practiced by Mendanbar, which is essentially a visual magic, is quite unusual and interesting. I think that young and old alike can find great enjoyment in this book--I myself believe that it is very important to retain at least a measure of the wonder and magic we knew as children, and fantasy such as this helps much in this regard. Do yourself a favor and read Dealing With Dragons first; you won't appreciate Cimorene nearly as much without knowledge of the first book. While you're at it, go ahead and get Calling on Dragons and Talking to Dragons, as well--if you read one, you will want to read them all.

What? Only five stars? I need more to do this series justice! Patricia C. Wrede writes marvelous fantasy. It's like "Mixed-Up Fairy Tales" or something, but funnier, more engaging, and ripe for repeat reading (After graduating from high school, I read the entire series for the third time in a matter of days). These are timeless tales. Even her NAMES are inventive. Cimorene, Mendanbar, Kazul, Morwen, Telemain, Daystar, Shiara...and let us not forget Zemenar and Antorell. The chapter headings induce chuckles immediately, simply by their existence. She writes in a style that incorporates intelligent fantasy with enjoyable humor. The characters are some you would like to know personally. And nowhere else have I seen as unique a discussion of magic in its many forms as in these four books. I did notice a trend of centralization. Dealing was Cimorene's book. Searching was Mendanbar's. Calling was Morwen's. Talking was Daystar's. I wish the series was not concluded, because I'd love to see Telemain's book. And perhaps Kazul's book could be somewhat of a prequel. Oh, and what about a book from Antorell's perspective? That would make for an incredibly funny story. The Enchanted Forest and its surrounding is a world I want to know about. Not many authors can create an entire world that entices the reader so greatly. But Mrs. Wrede has. Unlike the Douglas Adams' Hitchiker's Guide series, which got progressively worse, each book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles compares to the original, as fresh and brilliant as ever. Needless to say, this series is one of the best ever. I have not really sampled a lot of the adult fantasy by Piers Anthony and Anne McCaffrey and such, but I doubt they can compare with the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. This is not mindboggling fantasy like the Lord of the Rings trilogy: this is fun. Oh, and remember: ..."Argelfraster."

This book, along with the other three in the series, captured my full attention and did not let it go until I had read the entire 600+ pages in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. I got it on a Friday and kept reading until my eyes would not stay open, I woke up Early Saturday and, well, read the entire thing. It is one of the absolute best books I have ever read with an original plot. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

I am a picky reader, especially when it comes to the standard fantasy cliches, like, romance, Dragons, and enchanted forests. This book is easily taken for granted-- a standard quest, with all the usual quest-hampering pitfalls. So how does Patricia Wrede turn it on its head and make this (and the other Enchanted Forest novels) some of the most well-written and engaging novels I've ever read? They appeal to everyone I've ever known who has read them, from my little sister to my much-older cousin. They even appeal to me, reading for the fifth or sixth time many years after I first picked them up. Particularly this one, which may be my favorite of the lot. Anyone who is interested in fairy tales, fantasy- and for that matter, anyone interested in reality- will have their socks knocked off their feet.

What? Only five stars?!? I need more to do this series justice! Patricia C. Wrede writes marvelous fantasy. It's like "Mixed-Up Fairy Tales" or something, but funnier, more engaging, and ripe for repeat reading (I just graduated from high school, and I just finished reading the entire series for the third time in a matter of days). These are timeless tales. Even her NAMES are inventive. Cimorene, Mendanbar, Kazul, Morwen, Telemain, Daystar, Shiara...and let us not forget Zemenar and Antorell. The chapter headings induce chuckles immediately, simply by their existence. She writes in a style that incorporates intelligent fantasy with enjoyable humor. The characters are some you would like to know personally. And nowhere else have I seen as unique a discussion of magic in its many forms as in these four books. I did notice a trend of centralization. Dealing was Cimorene's book. Searching was Mendanbar's. Calling was Morwen's. Talking was Daystar's. I wish the series was not concluded, because I'd love to see Telemain's book. And perhaps Kazul's book could be somewhat of a prequel. Oh, and what about a book from Antorell's perspective? That would make for an incredibly funny story. The Enchanted Forest and its surrounding is a world I want to know about. Not many authors can create an entire world that entices the reader so greatly. But Mrs. Wrede has. Unlike the Douglas Adams' Hitchiker's Guide series, which got progressively worse, each book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles compares to the original, as fresh and brilliant as ever. Needless to say, this series is one of the best ever. I have not really sampled a lot of the adult fantasy by Piers Anthony and Anne McCaffrey and such, but I doubt they can compare with the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. This is not mindboggling fantasy like the Lord of the Rings trilogy: this is fun. Oh, and remember: ..."Argelfraster."