Dark Lord of Derkholm - Hardcover

Jones, Diana Wynne

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0688160042 ISBN 13: 9780688160043

Publisher: William Morrow, 1998

Synopsis

Derk, an unconventional wizard, and his magical family become involved in a plan to put a stop to the devastating "Pilgrim Parties" tours of their world arranged by the tyrannical Mr. Chesney.

About this title

Review:

If, next door to our ordinary world, there existed a world full of magic, wouldn't you want to visit it? That's the situation that Diana Wynne Jones explores in Dark Lord of Derkholm, and she makes an effective and comical tale of it.

Groups of tourists, called Pilgrim Parties and organised by the cold- hearted profiteer Mr. Chesney, take a portal to the magical realm, where they are shepherded about the countryside by a wizard guide. Mr. Chesney sets the rules, such as that all wizard guides must have long white beards--even 14-year-old Blade--and every Party gets to "slay" the Dark Lord. No wizard wants to be chosen as the year's Dark Lord, because Mr. Chesney demands large battles that cause great devastation in the local villages and farms, and he doesn't pay very well, but he does have a captive demon to enforce his will. This year, things are going especially badly for the chosen Dark Lord, Derk. He can't seem to keep his evil forces on the right track, despite help from his son Blade, his daughter Shona the bard, and his griffin sons and daughters. His chief aide, Barnabas, is drinking heavily and muddling his spells. And the dwarfs are taking their baskets of gold as tribute to the one they say is the real Dark Lord--Mr. Chesney.

Jones spoofs many of the trappings of fantasy epics, while at the same time portraying a family, with its surface squabbles and underlying love, through a rollicking and somewhat unwieldy story. Her messages about exploitation and responsibility come through clearly. Although not as tightly focused as some of her earlier novels, the galloping pace makes Dark Lord of Derkholm a quick, fun read for her numerous fans. --Blaise Selby, Amazon.com

Book Description:

Can the Wizard Derk and his family of human and griffin children save the world from the depradations of the evil Mr Chesney?

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0688160042
• ISBN 13: 9780688160043
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 352