The Taker’s Key completes the Marmawell trilogy, which began with The Dragon’s Tapestry and continued with The Prism Moon. In those books, we met Marwen, an orphan scorned for her lowly status and overly proud of her magical skills. By the end of The Prism Moon, Marwen had won her inheritance as a wizard and the love of Prince Camlach. But the land of Ve is now in serious trouble. A drought threatens crops, and the magic is failing. In addition, Marwen is bothered by a mysterious illness and troubled because she’s not allowed to marry Prince Camlach.

We are firmly in the world of fantasy here first mapped by J.R.R. Tolkien and explored by writers such as Ursula K. Le Guin and Lloyd Alexander. Bates creates a fully formed alternate world, made real by telling detail and deep characterization. Marwen ventures into the mysterious desert that is also the land of the dead to discover why the magic is leaving Ve, and do battle with her old enemy, the dragon Perdoneg. She finds she can only defeat him by giving up those things she values most, her magic and her pride.

The book does not stand alone. A reader without vital information from the previous books will feel lost, but this is not a terrible flaw. Fantasy is a particularly good genre for exploring fundamental truths of the human spirit, as The Taker’s Key does very well. Bates shows how misuse of power and pride can lead to serious trouble. Her magic is in words, both literally in her plot and stylistically in her writing. Marwen’s journey is one that will absorb readers completely.