Xebdigon Whizzfiddle is a wizard who has to find a quest, get it contracted, and finish it to the letter within 30 days or he’ll lose his guild membership status, meaning he’ll have to actually work for a living. At the perpetual age of 650, this is really no longer an option.
A Quest of Undoing is a cheeky, irreverent book which I really enjoyed. John P Logsdon lists Monty Python, National Lampoons, Family Guy, Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett among his influences and it shows. There are no prophecies or imminent apocalypses, but there are wizards, dragons, knights, giants and dwarves aplenty. The plot is fantastical yet logical, and moves at a comfortable pace – neatly balancing world-building and action.
The political machinations of the Wizards’ Guild on Ononokin are not so different from some corporations, bureaucracies and parliaments in the real world but what sets their shenanigans apart? Well for one thing, there’s magic and also … dragons!
4 stars