A darkness returns

With his Firemane Saga finished, Feist launches a new, follow-up series. Hatu, the last heir to the Firemane magic, his wife Hava, and their friend Donte, are transported via a rift from their home world of Garn to Midkemia. They are primarily traveling so that Hatu can learn to use his unmatched powers from well-known magicians within Feist's mythos: Pug, Magnus, and Nakor. Hava and Donte settle into familiar roles in Midkemia, as Hava seeks a ship with which to combat pirates and Donte launches his own criminal empire in Port Vykor. But Hatu's training is interrupted when a message arrives from Garn warning that magic left that world when Hatu did, with further disruptions when his mentors realize the dangers facing Garn stem from the Void--which they have encountered before. All of the magicians find themselves teleporting between worlds to counter the Church of the One and its undead armies as they're unleashed on Prince Declan's defenses. Feist's rich world building is on display in the first book of the new Dragonwar Saga.

Feist (Master of Furies) wastes no time in introducing a sense of foreboding into this epic first volume of the Dragonwar Saga, a spinoff of his Firemane series. A brief summary titled "Our Story So Far" orients new and returning readers to the world of Garn, the fate of which is indelibly linked to Midkemia, the world that has been the setting of Feist's epic fantasies for decades. Magic wielder Hatu; his wife, Hava; and his roguish friend, Donte, have travelled through a magical rift from Garn to Midkemia, where they are hosted by magicians Magnus, Pug, and, eventually, Nakor, all characters that returning fans will be excited to revisit. Donte remains in Midkemia, while everyone else returns to Garn to find ways to support Hatu's friend Declan, newly named prince of Marquensas, as he and his brother, King Daylon, face a new manifestation of the Void, the destructive force that Pug and his allies have opposed through the centuries. All the usual Feist elements are here: skullduggery, high seas action, military clashes, and ever-expanding types of magic. It's a grand setup for what could be the ultimate battle between all of Feist's heroes and their age-old nemesis. (Aug.)