Prince of Magic

January 1, 2007
This next generation follow-up to the Sisters of the Sun trilogy finds the Sun Witch's daughter, Ariana Kane Varden, facing her own epic quest and the prospect of romance in Jones's richly realized fantasy world. Up until the wizard Sian Chamblyn appears at court with dire news, the witch Ariana has used her modest powers of healing to aid the ailing emperor of Columbyana. That changes, however, when Sian's alarming prophecy points to her as one of three cousins who must lead the land against as-yet-unrevealed forces of evil—an evil that promises to unleash monsters on the land and "a very ugly death" for the unprepared. Neither the cynical Sian nor Ariana believe she's capable of leading an army, but they're forced to work together to train her for the struggle ahead. Bit by bit, Ariana develops powers that help her divine the true nature of their foe, at the same time she's reluctantly falling in love with the equally recalcitrant wizard. Punchy battle scenes and steamy lovemaking will please genre fans, but it's Jones's gift for creating complex heroes and villains that lifts this story out of the ordinary.

February 1, 2007
The first in Jones' Children of the Moon trilogy reveals a prophecy: Columbyana must be defended by the first born of three Fyne witches. Stern magician Sian Chamblyn is dismayed to learn that two of the prophesied heroes are female. Ariana Kane Vaden, the emperor's own healer and the daughter of Sophie from " The Sun Witch" (2004), is destined to fight against the evil that is menacing the empire. While training Ariana for the war to come (and falling in love with her), Sian accompanies her to the dread thirteenth level of the palace, where Ariana is possessed by the soul of a long-dead evil empress who reveals that the enemy is the Isen Demon, who gains strength as he consumes souls. Crown prince Ciro is now under the demon's control and has raised an army of the soulless. Jones' paranormal adventure works well both as heroic fantasy and fantasy romance and will appeal to readers of Barbara Hambly and Lois McMaster Bujold.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)