“Jannit Maarten, boatbuilder, was on her way to the Palace.”

From Angie Sage’s Septimus Heap: Queste.

Ever since young wizard Apprentice, Septimus Heap, returned from the past with his adopted princess sister, Jenna, he has been searching for a way to find and rescue Nicko and Snorri who were lost in time. Septimus and Jenna reach out to the centuries-old Marcellus for information on his missing brother and friend; while Marcellus is unable to provide much information he does give Septimus ancient papers and notes from Nicko stating that the two planned to travel to the House of Foryx and return to the present. Jenna takes the papers to search for more clues as to what happened to Nicko and Snorri, but after a run-in with the evil DomDaniel’s former apprentice, Merrin, results in the papers being damaged. Jenna takes the papers to Septimus’ best friend Beetle to see if he can restore the printed messages. Beetle is unable to fix the pages on his own, but with the help of Ephaniah Grebe, Jenna and Beetle learn that the pages contain everything except the map to the House of Foryx. Trying to sabotage Septimus, Merrin and the ghost Tertius use trickery to get Septimus to accept a deadly queste. Unable to ignore the queste, Septimus, Jenna, and Beetle set off in search of the House of Foryx and the missing Nicko and Snorri. However, when they enter the maze-like House of Foryx, Septimus comes face-to-face with a dangerous darkness that threatens to trap them all forever.

The fourth book in the magical fantasy adventure that is the Septimus Heap series is full of wild characters and unexpected happenings. Sage easily creates a story that will compel magic-loving young readers to dive deeper into the story. When coupled with the book’s illustrations, the story of Queste will keep readers captivated until the very end.