Ilse Witch

Since it's been 24 years since I last read a fantasy from this popular author, I thought I'd give him another go. This is the first book of a trilogy which finds a motley crew of adventures on a mission to find out what happened to an earlier mission and to recover some artifacts and hopefully get their greedy little hands on some new magic. There are elves, a druid, a seer, “Rovers” (like a gypsy), and all sorts of magic aboard the airship Jerle Shannara. It's an easy read but moves at a glacial pace. For such a popular author, you'd expect a more crackling story. But it seems to rely heavily on – hey, what's the plural of deus ex machina? machinas? – it uses magic too often to get characters in and out of trouble. That whole element should be toned down. Regardless, I'm enjoying the character of Truls Rohk, a somewhat minor character but more inventive than the others. The leader of the mission, Walker Boh, the druid, is a bit of a cipher. I'm hoping the second book gets more interesting.