Labyrinths of Light

Dave Jenkinson is a professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba and the author of the “Portraits” section of Emergency Librarian.

While the first two volumes of the Stoneman series, The Flight of the
Stoneman’s Son and The Keeper of Three, could each stand alone as
separate reads, this most recent addition to the fantasy sequence
demands familiarity with the earlier novels. As Munsey explains,
“Labyrinths is the bridging book between [books] two and four. It is
intended to add more depth and a notion of ‘time’ to the series. It
is the book that continues the adventure, while adding new dimensions in
style and thought to the series.”

The story, such as it is, finds hero Julian and villain Merm falling
into the canyon’s abyss. The pair’s plunge and Julian’s loss of
the Key constitute the book’s “real” time; however, during his
drop, Julian enters the Labyrinths of Light, “the transition zone
between the world of Jard and

that of Magic.” While in this “timeless” buffer zone, Julian
mentally revisits events that occurred in the two earlier books and
gains in self-knowledge, especially as it applies to his trust in the
power of the Magic.

Adolescents already committed to the series will likely see the
slow-moving Labyrinths of Light through to its end in the hope that the
next volume, Marks of Stone, will pick up the story’s pace.
Recommended with reservations.