Night of Madness

Set in his popular fantasy world of Ethshar of the Spices, Watt-Evans's (Dragon Weather) newest is a sweet yarn about magic gone awry and a young noble's coming of age through adversity. Chubby, good-natured Lord Hanner is his Uncle Farran's errand boy. He works as a liaison between his uncle, who is chief adviser to Lord Azrad the Sedentary, and the community of wizards, witches, sorcerers, necromancers, etc. Since the rules set up by the Wizards' Guild include ""No mixing different sorts of magic. No mixing magic and government,"" all Hanner can do is learn about magic, not practice it. Then comes the Night of Madness, when people awaken with terrible dreams and strange powers. This new magic creates unusually powerful warlocks; moreover, it affects many regular citizens and members of government, breaking the rules set by the Wizards' Guild. Magical mayhem ensues, and Hanner must learn the rules of the new magic, keep command of his small army and learn to control his own burgeoning powers as his uncle, the Wizards' Guild and Lord Azrad fight among themselves for control of Ethshar. Swiftly paced, with likable characters, this novel leaves open many questions that may someday be answered in further installments. (Nov.)