If you liked the trilogy then you will enjoy this book that revisits familiar villains and characters. Wizards magical stones are being stolen and Conn is being blamed for them. Of course, his dragon doesn't help literally dropping a stone into his hands during a wizards' meeting. The city is being run by teenagers, the Duchess Rowan and Underlord Embre, both friends of Conn. When Rowan forces Conn to be the High Wizard of the city, he rebels wanting his freedom. The author pokes fun at meetings while showing a teen that doesn't want to be tied down by responsibilities. Part of the character arc is Conn coming of age and learning to trust others. Growing up an orphan, his survival instincts make him unwilling to ask for help when he needs it and trust others. When he decides to hunt for the stolen wizard stones he uncovers a plot that lands him in a heap of trouble and makes him realize he must stop running away from those who care about him and responsibilities.
While I like Conn and the humor he brings to situations, I found the plot more predictable than the other books. There is a bit of repetition as Nevery and Rowan try to force Conn into the Ducal Magister position that he desperately doesn't want to fill. Crowe is back as a villain and his sidekick is obvious from the start. I found the use of letter-writing to give other characters point-of-view as a slow-down to the action. The characters tell what they are doing and it isn't shown making for a less than interesting progression of the plot. I didn't mind it in the trilogy and perhaps I have grown too familiar with the characters. Or maybe the lack of new characters kept me from just enjoying this on a surface level. A light, fun read.
3 Smileys
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