Jack’s younger sister Lucy has always been spoiled and capricious, but he never suspected that she might not be human until his father reveals a long-held secret: Lucy is not the baby born into their family, but one that was substituted for their real child as an infant. This knowledge, and Lucy’s abduction by the Lady of the Lake, compels Jack headlong into a new adventure in the realm of elves. Familiarity with the first volume about Jack and his family, The Sea of Trolls (A Richard Jackson Book / Atheneum, 2004), will ease readers entry into this original story set in Britain around the year 790 A.D., at a time when beliefs in the traditional gods and Christianity are colliding. Memorable characters (human and otherwise), a gallant quest, and frequent dollops of humor combine in this second installment in a planned three-book series. (Ages 10–14)

“Like the druidic life force Jack taps, this hearty adventure, as personal as it is epic, will cradle readers in the ‘hollow of its hand’ (Booklist, starred review).

Jack has caused an earthquake. He was trying to save his sister Lucy from being thrown down a well, but sometimes the magic doesn’t quite work out. Not only does Jack demolish a monastery, but Lucy is carried off by the Lady of the Lake, and Jack has to follow her through the Hollow Road, which lies underground.

Aided by Pega, a slave, and the berserker Thorgil, Jack encounters hobgoblins, kelpies, yarthkins, and elves—not the enchanted sprites one would expect, but fallen angels who steal human children for pets. In the eighth century, the world is caught between belief in the Old Gods and Christianity, and what Jack and his companions do will decide the fate of both religions.

From National Book Award winner Nancy Farmer, this second book in the Sea of Trolls trilogy brilliantly enlarges the world of the first story. Look for the conclusion in The Islands of the Blessed.