THE GOLDEN DEFICIT

A young elven woman with ties to the mortal world begins another adventure in this fantasy series installment.

Lady Alexin, the Elven Keeper of the Keys for the Council of Elders, returns to the magical world Eledon from London, only to be immediately beset with problems. Eledon was given to the Elves by the Mentors when they were forced to flee Earth. In exchange, the Elves must pay tribute to the Mentors with gold every 4,000 years. Alex was placed in charge of the Golden Harvest. Upon returning home, she’s informed that the deceitful Rock Elves have been paying other elves with fake gold knots (lead covered in gold) for years. The Mentors now demand the Elves repay the deficit, which is millions, and Alex must come up with a plan to deliver it. Along the way, she must contend with an assassination plot against the king and other prominent Water Elf nobles and find a council member who disappeared on assignment—all within 90 days. Though the described financial crisis may sound a little arid, the story is anything but. It moves briskly from one adventure to the next, calling on its hero to use the vast array of skills she developed in the previous books. The first half of the book in particular provides vivid, high-octane action scenes and accomplishes a lot of worldbuilding with a great economy of language: “Icy fingers of dark magic seeped out through the bars in the door, and my chest felt heavy. I could barely breathe, but I knew I couldn’t stop. I had to fight against this magic.” The second half of the book, however, starts to meander. Alex’s attempt to breach the upper levels of Water Elf society aren’t as compelling as the novel’s earlier life-or-death battles. Also, the ease with which Alex can transition from the mortal to the elven world, bringing mortals and their technology with her, seems too simplistic. A satisfying ending makes up for it.

Fast-paced and entertaining, a satisfying installment of the series.