From Publishers Weekly
In this sequel to Stevermer's charming fantasy of manners, A College of Magics (1994), set in an alternate Edwardian age, Jane Brailsford, the indomitable and fashionable sorceress from France's Greenlaw College, hooks up in England with handsome American sharpshooter Samuel Lambert. The sorcerous Fellows at Glasscastle University have recruited Lambert to perform field tests for a magical weapon. Jane has been charged with compelling Lambert's roommate, professor Nicholas Fell, to assume the mystical duties of the warden of the west. Fell, though, detects a disturbance in the music of the spheres that he believes he must rectify before accepting the wardenship. Unknown others, however, also have designs on both Fell and the wardenship. While the plot is mostly inconsequential, the descriptions of life at Glasscastle University, together with the sheer zest of the characters for magic, truth and fashion, make this a sweet, if slow, magical romance. This is the perfect read for those who enjoy taking ambling walks in orderly alternate worlds where calling cards and starched collars still help make a man. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
The sequel to A College of Magics (2002) takes place in the same magical, Victorian-Edwardian Britain, and shows yet again that Stevermer is a worthy follower of Jane Austen for wit, of Dorothy Sayers for suspense and erudition. Samuel Lambert, sharpshooter, formerly of Kiowa Bob's Wild West Show, has been invited to Glasscastle University to contribute his shooting skills to the secret Agincourt Project. At first, things are somewhat dull, especially since he isn't supposed to drink even beer. But then the provost's modish sister, a magician, comes to town, and Samuel becomes hip-deep in spies, auto chases, mysterious assailants in bowler hats, and you-name-it. This emerging series will likely draw readers from across a very wide spectrum of the fantasy and alternate history audiences, including--indeed, never forgetting--the adult readership for the adventures of the boy named Harry. And Stevermer is fast rising to a place in fantasy comparable to that of prolific fantasist for children and adults Diana Wynne-Jones. Frieda Murray
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
A Scholar of Magics FROM THE PUBLISHER
"Glasscastle. University of dreaming towers and distant bells, pompous dons and disputatious undergraduates, exquisite architecture and grass that can choke you to death if you walk on it without the proper escort. On the surface, it is one of the most beautiful and peaceful places in England. But underneath, its magic is ancient and dangerous." Samuel Lambert, sharpshooter, adventurer, late of the Wyoming plains and Kiowa Bob's Wild West Show, has been invited to Glasscastle to contribute his phenomenally accurate shooting eye to the top-secret Agincourt Project. The only dangers he expects to face are British snobbery, heavy dinners, and tea with the provost's pretty wife. But when the provost's stylish sister, Jane, comes to town, things get much more exciting.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
In this sequel to Stevermer's charming fantasy of manners, A College of Magics (1994), set in an alternate Edwardian age, Jane Brailsford, the indomitable and fashionable sorceress from France's Greenlaw College, hooks up in England with handsome American sharpshooter Samuel Lambert. The sorcerous Fellows at Glasscastle University have recruited Lambert to perform field tests for a magical weapon. Jane has been charged with compelling Lambert's roommate, professor Nicholas Fell, to assume the mystical duties of the warden of the west. Fell, though, detects a disturbance in the music of the spheres that he believes he must rectify before accepting the wardenship. Unknown others, however, also have designs on both Fell and the wardenship. While the plot is mostly inconsequential, the descriptions of life at Glasscastle University, together with the sheer zest of the characters for magic, truth and fashion, make this a sweet, if slow, magical romance. This is the perfect read for those who enjoy taking ambling walks in orderly alternate worlds where calling cards and starched collars still help make a man. Agent, Frances Collin. (Apr. 15) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
Sequel to Stevermer's A College of Magics (1994), a tale set in an alternate Edwardian world where, unobtrusively, magic works. Samuel Lambert, late of Wyoming and Kiowa Bob's Wild West Show, has been invited to magical Glasscastle University in England to assist with the mysterious Agincourt Project. Lambert, an expert marksman, can hit anything: targets with bullets, flying beetles with sugar cubes, you name it. He shares rooms with the elusive Nicholas Fell, Fellow of Holythorn College and considers himself prepared for anything-snobbery, boiled dinners, afternoon tea-until he meets Jane Brailsford, sister of Robert, one of the Project's sponsors. Jane teaches mathematics at equally magical Greenlaw College in Normandy. With Fell unaccountably absent, Lambert and Jane spot an intruder in Fell's study-a person apparently invisible to everyone else. Then Robert disappears, seemingly headed for the stately home of Lord Bridgewater, scion of an aristocratic and magical family. Fell reappears; he'd been researching in London-with Bridgewater (aha!). Jane's magical friend Faris avers that Fell is the warden of the west, an entity of great magical power, but is refusing to take up his duties. Lambert and Jane attempt to persuade him, but he vanishes, this time for good. Jane magically ensnares the intruder, but he reveals nothing. What's going on? Well, all these matters are connected; unfortunately, the plot lurches and staggers before fizzling out in courtroom-style explanations. Samuel and Jane's burgeoning romance, impossibly decorous by modern standards, provides some diversion, but overall it's more misdirection than substance: Fun in places.
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