Scoffers may dismiss Fantasy books as just “swords and sorcery” but huge numbers of fans adore them.  Still, it is a wonder how authors can come up with a new slant on magical worlds.

Kate Constable manages, and very well.  Simply by noting the “chant” in “enchantment”, she puts the magic in her world of Tremaris in singing.  And, as men and women sing differently, there are different magics for each to master.  But could anyone master all the magics?

The Singer of all Songs centres round Calwyn, a trainee priestess who finds an injured Outlander man, Darrow, inside the great ice wall of the magic haven of Antaris.  When he tells of the weakening of magic in the world outside the wall, Calwyn follows him.  This draws her into his battle with Samis, who seeks to master all the nine powers of chantment, and rule the world.

This story, with the events that lead to the climactic confrontation, is fairly typical Fantasy fare.  Kate Constable, however, has managed to people her tale with well-drawn, realistic characters and they create the world of Tremaris for us by making it believable and consistent.  Calwyn, Darrow and the rest of the little band that they gradually accumulate, can be enthusiastic, then uncertain, determined or frustrated.  They sulk, they laugh, they grieve and they fight.

They surprise each other as they gradually learn trust and friendship.  And when the inevitable climax comes, it is that friendship that matters, though not as one would normally expect in a typical battle of magic.

While The Waterless Sea continues the events begun in The Singer of all Songs, it also adds to the whole story by delving into the history of the key characters, by developing their personalities and attitudes, and by introducing new (and unexpected) directions for the narrative.  The reader is rewarded with a new adventure, taking both the characters and the issues into unexplored territories.

Calwyn sets out for the desert waste of Merithuros with her motley group of friends to rescue children kidnapped to the secret Palace of Cobwebs because of their magic skills.  Echoes of the battles in the first episode of the series come back to haunt them, but more pressing are Calwyn’s own emotions and responsibilities.  There are comings and goings and new twists that look to set up an intriguing finale.

The Waterless Sea is much more than a stretching of a single idea over a trilogy of episodes.  It builds on a firm foundation established in the first part, develops features that are essential to its own story, introduces new elements and heads towards an exciting conclusion in the final part.

Part 3 - The Tenth Power - does what all good part 3s should do and tie up all the loose ends, resolve the big issues, but leave just enough hanging so that there is a possibility of continuation.  Calwyn's fragile relationship with Darrow is sorely tested as she loses her powers and flees back to Antaris.  but instead of sanctuary, she finds that chantment and magic is draining from the whole world, that Antaris is hostile to her, that Darrow is suffering too, and that bad guy Samis is behind it all.  Once again, she must gather the troops, make discoveries about her past, and face Samis on her own.  There is a touch of Isaac Asimov in the resolution, with some interesting possibilities left open.

Which raises the question - why do fantasy quests always seem to come in trilogies or even longer?  Other genres deal with a story in one hit.  Is it the author/publisher trying to hang on to a captive audience, or do magical worlds need more explaining?  Fantasy fans could become just a little cynical about stories simply being dressed up and told again.

But then along comes a winner like Kate Constable’s Chanters of Tremaris series and faith is restored!

Review by David Beagley

© 2002, 2003 David Beagley