LEGEND OF THE REALM

A new threat to the magical creatures of the Realm prompts fledgling Seeker Bryn to break more rules and further annoy her elders.

Readers of the 2020 series opener, Seekers of the Wild Realm, may feel a sense of déjà vu as the cast, themes, and villains remain largely the same—only the MacGuffin changes. Still fuming that she gets no respect from other Seekers because she’s a girl, blithely ignoring orders she doesn’t like, and continuing to pay lip service to bromides about the value of teamwork as she goes, Bryn discovers that a debilitating malady has struck her animal charges, even the dragons. As the older, more experienced Seekers basically flap their hands helplessly and declare there’s no cure for the return of the lethal dark plague, she decides that it’s up to her to save the day single-handedly (more or less). Along with unmasking the culprits, she gets her healer friend, Runa, to whip up a healing potion. Fans of Cressida Cowell’s How To Train Your Dragon series looking for more of the same with flying dragons and flowy magic—but without real suspense or character growth—will be pleased. As before, the population of the village has light-brown skin and dark-brown eyes.

Second verse same as the first, pretty much.