Book Review: 2 Treasure Boxes
Book Three of The Magic Kingdon of Landover Series
Publisher: Del Rey; First Thus edition (July 17, 1989), Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages, Language: English, ISBN-10: 0345362276, ISBN-13: 978-0345362278

Ben Holiday was a lawyer from our world in modern times, he was unhappy and kind of lost because he lost his wife and their unborn child in a tragic accident. On
e day he finds a most unusual ad in the paper. It is for the sale of a real live magic kingdom for $1,000,000.  This magic kingdom has fairy magic, witches, trolls, and other strange creatures including a living castle. Now Ben is living as King of Landover with Willow, who is a wood sylph, Questor Thews, the sometimes inept wizard and Abernathy, the once human now talking dog scribe. This book primarily takes place on our earth after Questor Thews sends Abernathy to our earth in error while trying to change him back into a human.

This is the third book in The Magic Kingdom of Landover Series.  To date there are a total of six books in this series.  Terry Brooks is also very well known for the numerous books he has written in the Shannara Series, but these two series are totally unrelated.  The Magic Kingdon of Landover Series are fantasy books that go back and forth from contempory to traditional fantasy depending on the location of the book.  This book is written in the third person narrative from the various character’s point of view as the story is told.

The story centers around Ben and Willow as they journey back to earth to save Abernathy.  It is also the story of what happens to Abernathy on earth with the introduction of a new character, Elizabeth, a nice girl who helps him out. Meanwhile in Landover, a demon in a bottle has switched spots with Abernathy, (that is what caused Abernathy to appear on earth.) And that demon is causing a lot of havoc in Landover with help from the witch Nightshade. There is also some assistance from Strabo the dragon, who is always fun to read about. I like the concept of the Paladin and how Ben and the Paladin, Ben’s mystical champion, work together.

There is a lot going on and I found the story to be interesting, exciting and well written.  All the characters are interesting, but I did not think there was much development in their characters, they all are pretty much what they are. I liked the ending of the story. The book had a good build up to the final conclusion.   I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

This is a stand alone story which I always find satisfying, yet it is also clearly part of a larger story. I recommend you read the books from the beginning to get a better understanding of the world in which they live.  The story also builds from one book to the other, yet each book can be read independently from any other. If you enjoy reading Terry Brooks, then you will enjoy this book, it is a good fantasy novel that is fun to read.

To Purchase: “Wizard at Large” from Amazon, click here or on picture above