UNEXPECTED MAGIC

This eclectic collection of previously published stories will delight existing fans and win new ones. Here’s an impressive range, from “Enna Hittims,” in which a young girl’s unintentional magic looses tiny heroes to ravage her home, to the novella “Everard’s Ride,” a historical fantasy full of epic political maneuverings. “The Girl Who Loved the Sun” provides an unusual romance among Jones’s trademark humor. “Dragon Reserve, Home Eight” explores power on a world where each wife rules over her several husbands. Closer to home, in “Carruthers,” Elizabeth uses her magical stick to overcome her sexist father. Stock stories gain depth when told from unfamiliar perspectives, as with “The Green Stone,” narrated by the harassed scribe of a high-fantasy quest, or with “Little Dot’s” narrator, the comfort-loving cat of a neighborhood Wizard. The presumably autobiographical “The Girl Jones” adds a touch of personal eccentricity. The running theme of surprise, reversed expectations, and the unexpected gives this collection a constant impact. Great work from one of the best modern fantasy authors; too bad none are new. (Fiction. 10+)