The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede

 

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles © Patricia C. Wrede

Summary

"Dealing with Dragons" introduces Princess Cimorene, youngest daughter of the king of Linderwall. Like most medieval tomboys, Cimorene is considered rough, unseemly and stubborn -- she wants to fight with swords and learn magic. On the advice from a magic frog, she goes out in search of a dragon to
be housekeeper for. But when she's not sending away valiant knights, she's dealing with some very troublesome wizards...

"Searching For Dragons" picks up when the dragon Kazul goes mysteriously missing. Cimorene is, unsurprisingly, very concerned about this and wants to find her. Enter Mendanbar, a young king as unconventional as Cimorene -- not to mention in need of a wife. But even though he goes along to find Kazul, with wizards and laughter all around, he'll find that he's much more interested in Cimorene.

"Calling on Dragons" skips ahead to when Cimorene and Mendanbar are mrried, and Queen Cimorene is pregnant. All is right, right? Wrong. Magic is vanishing in the Enchanted Forest; the king's sword has been stolen. To combat the troublesome wizards, Morwen the witch teams up with Cimorene, Kazul, Telemain the Magician, and a rabbit called Killer.

"Talking to Dragons" skips ahead even further, to when Daystar is sent off by his mom Cimorene with only a magic sword. Poor kid -- he has to help King Mendanbar escape from an evil wizard's spell, without knowing that Mendanbar is his father. He teams up with a hot-tempered firewitch, Shiara, a dragon, a lizard, and a rather annoying princess. Can Daystar clue in before all is lost?

By E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" http://www.amazon.com/Enchanted-Forest-Chronicles-Dealing-Searching/dp/0152050523

 

Review/Comments

When I found these books I had a set idea of how fantasy was supposed to be written. There would be a princess that would need to be saved from dragon and a prince that would save her. Or if it follows Arthurian tales, it would be filled with great hope and later betrayal and tragedy. The enchanted forest chronicles would shatter all those myths. I got a better understanding that fantasy standards could be broken to create something fun and remarkable. Harry Potter and Artemis Fowl series would follow Werde’s example of creating worlds based on fantasy/folk myths and adding their own essence to the genre.