Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Trained as an elemental mage since childhood, sixteen-year-old Iolanthe Seabourne is aware that she’s a capable magician, but even she is surprised when she manages to call down lightning from the skies. Her performance is observed across the Realm and signals to Prince Titus that it is time to fulfill his mother’s prophecy: that Titus will sacrifice his life to protect a great elemental mage, who will then defeat Bane, the tyrannical and unjust ruler of the Realm. When Titus finds Iolanthe, however, he realizes his mother’s visions didn’t account for everything, most notably that Iolanthe is a girl, a fact that is going to make Titus’ plan to hide her in the non-magical world at Eton College, where Titus is receiving his non-magical education, problematic. The boarding-school setting completes this exercise in familiar fantasy tropes, along with the prophesied savior, the all-powerful enemy, and the magical quest. That the savior is this time a girl will likely appeal to readers who felt more of a kinship with Hermione Granger than Harry Potter, and Iolanthe is a likable heroine with a wry wit and strong sense of self. Of the two leads, however, Titus is more compelling; he’s had to constantly present a façade of an arrogant and spoiled [End Page 183] prince to seem no threat to Bane’s rule, and now he’s unsure of how to deal honestly with Iolanthe. The world is built mostly through dialogue, which avoids lengthy exposition, but the book fails to establish any real sense of atmosphere, either in the Realm or in Britain. Still, piecing together the prophecy will likely keep readers engaged, and the return of the thought-to-be-dead Bane ensures a sequel.