Book 68: Xanth 32: Two to the Fifth

Xanth #32: Two to the Fifth, by Piers Anthony

I’ve been reading a lot of Xanth novels lately, and “Two to the Fifth” is the only one I’ve really enjoyed after reading a few other lackluster installments in the fantasy series.

I do have one big complaint about this book, and that is Anthony violates his own “Adult Conspiracy” and has a 12 year old girl (Princess Rhythm) have a relationship with an adult male. The relationship isn’t a little thing either; it’s thrown in the reader’s face quite often and is a big plot point. It irritated me somewhat, and I was sick of being reminded of their relationship over and over. Anthony seems to be turning into something of a pervert, and while it’s a bit refreshing to have him move beyond the oppressive “Adult Conspiracy,” doing it in this way wasn’t the best.

Well, enough harping on that. Because once you get over that point, you’ll be reading one of the better Xanth novels in recent years. Cyrus Cyborg goes to see the Good Magician and learns his life’s desire – to be a playwright. His Service for the Answer is to rescue Xanth from the clutches of an evil roc who is intent on taking over the magic land. Cyrus and his troupe are the only ones who can defeat Ragna Roc.

A nicely large part of the book details the troupe’s formation and evolution into a talented acting company. I really liked Anthony’s take on writer’s block – instead of keeping one from writing, in Xanth, one *needs* a writer’s block, complete with a muse inside to inspire the writer. The plays Cyrus creates are fun as well.

All in all, a good Xanth book with just one big stumbling block, but at least Anthony does clean things up at the end. A little too neatly for real life, but then again, Xanth is a land of fantasy. And for once, there isn’t an overabundance of puns, which was a real plus for me.

3/5.

Book 56: Xanth 22: Zombie Lover

Xanth #22: Zombie Lover, by Piers Anthony

I think “Zombie Lover” was the first Xanth book I read, and it’s a perfect book for getting into the series. Breanna, the main character, isn’t a native of Xanth but instead migrated with the Black Wave; human migration into Xanth has always happened in waves of people. And so the readers see Xanth through Breanna’s eyes, which is a great way to see it if you’re new to the series.

Not overfull of puns, as some of the later Xanth books are, “Zombie Lover” follows Breanna as she tries to escape marrying a zombie king. Anthony examines bigotry and racism through her attitude toward zombies, which mirrors the feelings some have toward Breanna herself as she is black.

Parallel to Breanna’s story are the stories of Jenny, and of the kings of Xanth, who accidently drank Lethe water, causing them to forget where home was. Jenny, an elf and another non-native of Xanth, is writing invitations and planning a massive wedding, but no one knows who the bride is.

“Zombie Lover” is a solid installment in the series, and is better than some of the recent Xanth books published.

3/5.

Book 47: Xanth 30: Stork Naked

Xanth #30: Stork Naked, by Piers Anthony

Surprise Golem gets the shock of her life when her baby is delivered, but the stork flies off with the baby because of a technicality. She immediately decides to see the Good Magician, to find out how to get her baby back. He tries to dissuade her from her quest, but Surprise is a good girl with morals, and already loves her baby, so she sets off on a mission to attempt to rescue the infant.

But what Surprise doesn’t know is that she is part of a Demon bet. Two of the characters that join her quest, Stymy Stork and Pyra, are the agents of the Demons. Each has a reason for wanting Surprise to succeed or fail, because then they will get their heart’s desire.

Surprise and Che Centaur, who is on a mission of his own trying to find the Simurgh, adventure through the alternate realities of Xanth. Not content with the endless possibilities offered by the moons of Ida (explored in previous books), Anthony introduces an alternate reality concept, and Surprise and Che visit 6 realities out of an infinite number of realities.

I didn’t really enjoy this Xanth novel; I think a large portion of it, especially around the middle, could have been cut out and that would have improved the book quite a bit. “Stork Naked” feels quite fractured, probably because the viewpoint switches often, from Surprise, to Che, to Stymy, and so on; at one point, each character has their own chapter. Things jumped around too much and at some points I had to look back because I was confused on how the characters got from A to B. At times the puns were too overwhelming, and it seemed as if Anthony was just trying to clear his backlog of readers’ suggestions. A few parts were interesting, but they weren’t enough to overcome the rest of the book’s faults.

2/5.

Book 4: Xanth 24: The Dastard

Xanth #24: The Dastard, by Piers Anthony

While most people in Xanth have a magic talent, many of the talents are minor – the “spot on the wall” variety. Usually only Magicians and Sorceress’ have powerful talents, such as being able to transform any living creature into something else.

Anomy has a useless magic talent – the talent of stupid ideas. Frustrated by this, he sells his soul to a demon for a much more powerful talent – the ability to rewrite history. With his new talent and soulless self, Anomy changes his name to the Dastard, and sets out to erase happy people and events all over Xanth.

Three bored princesses, Melody, Harmony, and Rhythm, happen to see the Dastard erase a happening in the magic tapestry in Castle Roogna. The princesses are bored and see this as an opportunity for an adventure; and their parents let them go see the Good Magician to find out how to keep the Dastard from ruining Xanth. He tells them that they need to exchange their four-year-old selves with their seventeen-year-old selves from Ptero, and off they go on an adventure that includes Becka, a dragon-human crossbreed, Sim, who will one day be the smartest bird in the universe, and the Sea Hag, an evil, centuries old spirit.

In “The Dastard,” Anthony provides more of what Xanth is about – fun fantasy. In my opinion, the story is somewhat darker than many in the series, as the Dastard has a talent he puts to evil uses, and with no soul, he has no conscience. The Sea Hag also adds to the darker story, as she possesses young women and uses them their bodies to seduce and control men. But of course there’s the classic happy ending, where everyone gets what they want, but for a while you’re unsure of just how it’s going to happen.

3/5.

Book 3: Xanth 21: Faun & Games

Xanth #21: Faun & Games, by Piers Anthony

When Branch Faun is lost to the Void, his friend Forrest embarks on a quest to find a replacement before Branch’s tree dies. Like all Xanth protagonists, he goes to visit Good Magician Humfrey with his Question, and his resulting adventure sends him to the world of Ptero.

Forrest is paired with Imbri, a nightmare who used to deliver bad dreams but then got a soul and became a daydream delivering mare. The two travel to Ptero, which is a moon orbiting Princess Ida’s head. Ptero is the place where all people who might ever be born on Xanth wait to be delivered by storks. Ptero follows Xanth is some aspects – full of puns and magic, but also different. Geography is time on the moon, if you travel in one direction you become younger, the other, older. So people on Ptero are restricted in travel by their age range.

In the course of his Quest to find a new faun for Branch’s tree, Forrest saves Ptero from marginalization, struggles to overcome his faun-ly feelings for the twin princesses Dawn and Eve, and starts to fall in love. Like most Xanth characters, Forrest comes to realize the true value of his Answer is in the journey it prompts, not the actual Answer itself.

This is a solid entry in the Xanth series; I’m not particularly a fan of it but neither is it horrible. The concept of Ptero is a little farfetched, but it also gives Anthony a new direction to expand in. There are maybe a few too many puns; I sometimes wonder if Anthony created comic strips to use up readers suggestions, but then of course puns are an integral part of Xanth.

3/5.

Book 2: Xanth 14: Question Quest

Xanth #14: Question Quest, by Piers Anthony

The Good Magician makes an appearance in every Xanth book. That’s how most books start – a character has a problem in their lives that they need to see him about. So they make a journey to his castle, battle through the three Challenges, get their Answer from the Book of Answers, and end up on a journey through Xanth to figure out their cryptic Answer.

But how did the Good Magician get his Book of Answers? How does he know what every person ultimately wants? And just how does he have five and a half wives?

While “Question Quest” starts out with Lacuna, a woman who has passed into middle age and thus has a very boring life, it is actually the story of Good Magician Humfrey. Because his son-in-law is manning the Book of Answers and doesn’t quite understand everything written the book, Lacuna goes to Hell in a handbasket to get a more complete Answer. There she finds Humfrey, who has been sitting in the Demon X (A/N)th’s waiting room for 10 years, trying to rescue one of his wives from Hell.

I found “Question Quest” to be an excellent history book of Xanth. This is the first time Humfrey’s story is told in full detail, from his youth with MareAnn, to marrying a demoness, to attending Demon University to get a degree in magic, to finding Castle Roogna, and quite a few other adventures. Humfrey’s over 100 years old, and he’s sure packed a lot of living into his century plus of life. This Xanth installment really fleshes out the old gnome, and adds a lot of information to any reader’s knowledge of Xanth.

This is probably one of my favorite Xanth books, as I tend to like histories, especially histories of created worlds. “Question Quest” gives life to one of the more interesting characters in Xanth, a character included in every novel but one previously hadn’t much back story. Read it if you want to learn about Humfrey, or if you’re curious about the history of Xanth.

4/5.

Book 1: Xanth 1: A Spell for Chameleon

Xanth #1: A Spell for Chameleon, by Piers Anthony

Twenty-five year old Bink of the North Village is in danger of being exiled from his homeland, Xanth, because he has no magic talent. Xanth is a land where magic is the norm, and the King requires that every citizen have a magic talent. Naturally Bink wants to discover his talent so he can stay in his homeland and marry his girlfriend, so he heads off to the Good Magician for help.

So begins the first novel in the Xanth series, which now has over 30 books. Most follow the format introduced in this novel: a protagonist with a Question goes to see the Good Magician, navigates three Challenges for an Answer, which sends them on an adventure throughout the magic country. Throughout the course of Bink’s adventure, he is exiled from Xanth, meets the Evil Magician, finds a very unique female, returns to Xanth, and shakes up the current order of things.

“A Spell for Chameleon” is light, fun, and fresh fantasy. This is one of my personal favorites in the series; I’ve read most of them. Some of the later novels are quite bogged down with puns, but this book doesn’t have that problem. Anthony creates a world you’d want to visit, for the sheer fun you could find there. The reader isn’t inundated with page after page of details about the world, instead you discover the dangers and excitement of Xanth along with Bink and the other characters.

I tend to read Xanth books as relaxation, and as a break from “heavier” fantasy. I find them refreshing – a good change of pace. Sure, Anthony has quite a fascination with ogling women and panties; sometimes Xanth seems like a land designed for juvenile boys, but if you can get past that, you’ll find a fun, enjoyable read.

4/5.