A TRIAL OF MAGIC

Mages Mulng and his son Lithim continue their attempt to band the mages of all races together to defeat the Earthdoom foreseen in The Magical Fellowship (1991). Hounded by secular and religious forces because they contradict sacred teaching, the two are first imprisoned but then aided by a wise village leader, and the convocation of mages begins. Their goal is opposed by a renegade master mage of the Halvarah (the ``Old Ones''); because he has foreseen the ultimate dominance of the Halvarah, he aids an army sent to kill the mages with the strength of his hideous magic, but is forestalled by Lithim and the young dragon mage Gra-kwo, who kill the renegade and rout the army. Now the mage- moot can begin—with just six months to Earthdoom. Somewhat stolid writing, but good pacing and imminent doomsday make this a satisfactory if uninspired sequel; fantasy buffs who've followed the story this far will surely want to know whether a band of strange-bedfellow mages can defeat the half- machine planet-plundering aliens even now hurtling through space. Bet they can. (Fiction. 10+)