The Dalemark Quartet, Volume 2: The Spellcoats and The Crown of Dalemark

This set of four stories (two in each book) are out of chronological order, just like the four original Chrestomanci stories. This is the only reason I gave it 4 instead of 5 stars. When these things are out of order they don't make sense and I have to spend time wrestling with the timelines before I can go on and enjoy the stories. Buy both books in the Dalemark Quartet at the same time and read the stories in this order: The Spellcoats then Drowned Ammet then Cart and Cwidder then The Crown of Dalemark. This will make a lot more sense to you. The stories were all very engaging and I kept reading and reading. "The Spellcoats" dragged a bit - in fact it dragged a lot, because DWJ is throwing lots of fantasy-mythology stuff at the reader very quickly - but after I finished all four stories (in the publisher's order) I went back and reread "The Spellcoats" and it made more sense. The other three stories are pretty easy to figure out from the get-go. Great stuff. ** Edited after a rereading...I've read a lot of Ms. Jones' work, and I feel the Dalemark Quartet is probably the best of the ones I've read. Instead of people "casting spells" as they do in her other stories (an act that is often just tossed out there as easily as "he scratched his ear"), the people in this world are plain old people, with the Undying (like gods) appearing to lend magical hands when needed. The character development is better in this quartet and the stories feel richer than, say, the Chrestomanci stories, where people just conjure up what they need, or wave a hand to mend broken items, and whatnot. Dalemark seems like a believable world structure.

Diana Wynne-Jones is best known for her wizards and humorous magic, but in the Dalemark Quartet she takes a trip into more serious fantasy, complete with warring earldoms and strange gods. "The Dalemark Quartet Volume 1" includes the first two books of this series, "The Spellcoats" and "The Crown of Dalemark." "The Spellcoats" is the tale of Tanaqui, centuries before the first two volumes of the quartet. She lives with her family in prehistoric Dalemark, where a battle is being fought between the "Heathens" and their own folk. When her brother returns, insane, she and her family must flee their village. But Tanaqui learns of the existance of Kankredin, a malevolent wizard who is waiting for them. In the final volume, "Crown of Dalemark," a forthright young boy named Mitt is called on to be an assassin. A countess wants him to destroy a young lady, Noreth, who may become the uniting monarch of Dalemark. But Mitt begins to like Noreth, and so joins her supporters. What he doesn't know is that she is actually Maewen, a confused young girl from 200 years in the future... Jones is best known for a sort of wry, homey fantasy with a British flavor -- not to mention that they often have dapper wizards. That sort of stuff is mostly missing in "The Dalemark Quartet Volume 2." Instead, we get a darker, much more epic story -- there are godlike figures, earldoms, peasants, nobles, and plenty more. Jones' writing is quite detailed in this book, since she not only describes the clothing, woods and people, but also the alternative world of Dalemark. Both stories are connected, but independent, and Jones carefully crafts the politics and conflicts that run under all the magic and the godlike Undying. Certainly not many authors can make an invented world that is simple, yet realistic. Her heroes are also very realistic -- Tanaqui less so, mainly because she is given the dimension of part of a myth. But you do sympathize with her struggles. Mitt is a more engaging character, a torn young man who has some very difficult situations to deal with. Maewen is a mysterious character, but also a likable one. Some questions regarding the characters are left dangling at the end, leaving me wondering if Jones ever plans to resume the story. The last two books of the Dalemark Quartet are included in this two-pack, a pair of solid stories that will leave readers wanting more of Jones' unique fantasies. Just be sure to read the first two books, or these two will make zero sense.