WIZARDS AT WAR
From the Young Wizards series, volume 8
by Diane Duane
The newest entry in the Young Wizards series is a reunion for the series’ fans, though somewhat impenetrable to newcomers. Secondary characters from earlier volumes cameo when wizards fight yet another impending apocalypse. The Lone Power is rewriting the underlying structure of the universe, destroying wizardry in the process. Adult wizards lose their magic, leaving Kit, Nita, Dairine and friends to save the world again. The ultimate danger to the universe (more deadly than the ultimate danger in the preceding volume, which was more deadly than the ultimate danger in the volume before that) is neatly defeated by the youngsters’ self-sacrifice and ability to convince aliens that Good is better than Evil. This entry’s a solid pleasure for fans of the series, if only for the humorous entry of Kit’s sister Carmela as a strong individual character. While the overstretched storylines (anthropomorphized wizardry, the divine ascension of multiple characters) are a far cry from the quality fare of So You Want to Be a Wizard? (1983), they still make tasty literary junk food. (Fantasy. 12-15)