A Wizard in Rhyme #04 - The Secular Wizard

From Publishers WeeklyThis is the latest enjoyable installment in the escapades of Matt Mantrell and Saul ("Wizard of Sarcasm") Bremener, former graduate students now living happily in an alternate world where verse has magical powers. When the evil King Maledicto of Latruria ("Italy by any other name") is killed, his grandson Prince Boncorro, having determined to be loyal to neither Good nor Evil, introduces supply-side economics to his goods-based kingdom. Matt, now Lord Wizard of neighboring Merovence, investigates the changes Boncorro has wrought. His "incognito" expedition is a curious one, impeded by occasional contretemps and the specious reasoning and obtuseness of several characters (Queen Alisande, Matt's wife, is particularly ill-served by multiple scenes apparently intended to show that pregnancy can make a woman moody). Readers older than Stasheff's usual audience may be bemused by the presences of Chancellor Rebezo and a friendly ghost called Spiro. Fans of the series' previous volumes should find this one, though a progression for neither author nor reader, as pleasant a distraction as those. Science Fiction Book Club alternate. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From BooklistThe fourth book in Stasheff's Wizard in Rhyme series stands quite well on its own. Young King Boncorro is turning the land of Latruria into an earthly paradise, and the malcontents of neighboring Merovence are muttering that Boncorro's rule would be good for their own realm. But there are suspicions about what Boncorro is really up to, and Lord Wizard Matt Mantrell has to assume his minstrel disguise and go investigating. He finds a good many surprises, including the ease with which he is unmasked by Boncorro's chancellor, and barely escapes with both life and knowledge. Stasheff's series continues to be distinguished by intelligence, literacy, and wit, so put this volume confidently alongside its predecessors on your fantasy shelves. Roland Green