Elf Realm

Gr 5-8 Matt, 14, and his younger sister Becky have been living on the edges of the Elfin city Ljosalfar while their parents and baby sister are held captive. The elves have been preparing Matt for a quest to the North Pole that's supposed to help him rescue his family; what they haven't told him is that if done correctly, it will also cost him his life. Accompanied by Tuava-Li (an Elf) and Tomtar (a Troll), Matt heads back to the human world to search for maps. Meanwhile, Becky and Princess Asra start off on their own journey, stalked by Asra's presumed-dead former fiancé, Prince Macta. At the same time, an evil entity named Jal-Maktar has agreed to impersonate Macta and help gather a thousand human children for a grand sacrifice, for the small payment of a human soul every day, and the odd internal organ of almost-Mage Jardaine. Complicated, dark, and filled with strange illustrations in which it's hard to tell the humans from the otherworldly beings, this second book in the trilogy doesn't stand alone and probably won't attract many new readers. Buy only if the first is popular."Mara Alpert, Los Angeles Public Library" Copyright 2010 Media Source Inc.