The Weathermage

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.

In this concluding volume of the Tales of Three Lands fantasy trilogy, a
prologue introduces Galia who was born during a storm on the island of
Rork, part of the nation of Islandia. Galia joins the other two
adolescent girls, Freya’s Catrina (“Cat”) and Ashdale and
Uglessia’s Talisa Thatcher, in telling this tale.

At age 12, Galia had unintentionally demonstrated her ability to change
the weather, and Islandian wise women had taken her away to teach her
how to use her power for good. When readers next meet Galia, she is a
15-year-old “exchange” student at a Freyan college for wizards
where, while struggling to learn Freyan magic, she attempts to teach
others her “magic.” At the same time, Cat, uncharacteristically not
having heard from Garth Spellman in over a month, travels to Freyfall to
see if she can locate him. Talisa is also in Freya because Cory Updale,
having surrendered himself to Freyan troops at the conclusion of
Talisa’s Song (2005), has been tried for murder, convicted, and
sentenced to hang. Garth’s and Cory’s fates become intertwined when
the cause of Garth’s disappearance is revealed to be kidnapping, the
ransom being Cory’s release.

Smith ties the many continuing plot elements together by rotating each
chapter’s narrator, using a repeating pattern of Cat, Talisa, and
Galia. This approach effectively increases tension by advancing a
particular plot element and then requiring readers to wait until that
narrator returns three chapters later. For readers who must know what
happens after the book’s satisfying conclusion, Smith provides an
epilogue. Highly recommended.