WIZARD'S FUNERAL
Book II Of The Red Pavilions
By Kim Hunter
Orbit (Little, Brown) - March 2002
ISBN 1841490970 - TPB
Fantasy

Reviewed by: Rachel A Hyde, MyShelf.com
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This is the second in Kim Hunter's amiable and thrilling fantasy series about Soldier, the man who has no memory of who he is but fights to defend his adopted homeland and his princess wife. As usual, there is an adventure on every page almost and the pace fairly rattles along, putting the characters through their paces. The King Magus is dead and while Soldier is the only human allowed to attend his funeral, he also has to go and find his successor, the son of the beggar woman Uthellen. But the boy's evil father has plans of his own to become King Magus in his stead, and when he unleashes his power, Soldier and his friends are going to find themselves in the thick of almost more adventures than they can handle.

This is that most desired thing - a novel with lots of childhood motifs that is written for adults. There is the talking raven that is really an enchanted human, lots of fairy folk (don't worry, none of them are twee), Soldier's adopted dragon and a Sultan with marital problems. There is plenty of sword and sorcery action, but it all owes more to folklore and earlier types of fantasy than Tolkein, so makes a refreshing change. This is no groundbreaking book but who cares - these two covers contain one hell of a good story! If you like the type of thing Chris Bunch writes, then this is definitely for you with the bonus of some well-placed humor.