In 1981, Piers Anthony returned to the land of Xanth to tell a new tale in which Dor must take up the mantle of King, if only for a small time, but as usual, things go wrong in Centaur Aisle. Synopsis: Dor was having troubles growing up to be the next Magician-King of the magic Land of Xanth. He wanted no part of running the Kingdom. But now Good King Trent was leaving on a trade mission to non-magical Mundania, home of such weird beasts as horses and bears, so Dor had to take over as King for a week. A week passes. No Trent. Then three weeks. King Trent still hadn't returned. Surely, something terrible had happened; he was apparently held captive in some foul dungeon, unable to escape. Dor was left with the burden of ruling--and with Irene, who was entirely too willing to be his Queen! His only hope was to enter Mundania and free King Trent. But how could it be done without the powers of magic? Nevertheless, he started forth bravely--together with Irene, a golem, a centaur, and a young ogre--heading for the far south of Xanth. The entrance to Mundania, of course, lay to the north.
The novel opens with Dor writing an essay about Xanth, and he's quite terrible at it and can't seem to get it done until Irene suggest he use a Spelling Bee to help him word his essay. The problem is that Dor forgets to tell the Bee how to spell the words, and his essay is a disaster. Irene, in a close off section of the moat around Castle Roogna, teases Dor; they both rip each others clothes off in amusement, then are about to kiss when Cherie Centuar interrupts them and tells Dor that King Trent wants to speak to him. Trent informs Dor that he's leaving for Mundania on a trade mission and tells him to remember that "honesty" is the key. Weeks go by, with no word from Trent or Queen Iris. Dor wants answers, but the Elder Council is most unhelpful, so Dor goes to Good Magician Humphrey. Humphrey informs Dor that there's a centaur Magician on Centaur Isle; it turns out that the Gorgon and Humphrey are getting married and the Gorgon wants to do so now. Dor performs the ceremony and asks Jonathan and Millie to oversee Xanth until his return; they agree because the ghosts and zombies miss them. Both the Gorgon and Millie tells Dor that one day Irene will marry him despite his protests. Days later, Dor, Irene, Smash, Grundy, and Chet set off for Centaur Isle. It's a hazardous trip that leaves Chet wounded; but they manage to find the centaur Magician. He's named Arnolde and hadn't realized his talent was to create a magical aisle that extends a few feet in front of him and a bit behind him. Realizing that he's going to be exiled from his herd, Arnolde agrees to accompany them to rescue King Trent and Queen Iris; during the trip up north, both Irene and Dor say they hate each other, but mean it jokingly and several times they kiss. Dor writes "honesty" as "Onesti" in dirt, but Irene points out that Dor can't spell well.
Upon reaching the edge of Xanth, they cross over into a Mundane area known as America and, after Arnolde and the librarian archivist Ichabod talk, they learn that "Onesti" is a place circa AD 650; they go to pay Ichabod a gold Spanish dubloon and Dor wants a dime from him; despite his protests that the dime is much less in value, they trade. Arnolde wants to come back and talk with Ichabod after the mission is done to learn more about Mundania while Ichabod wants to cross over to Xanth and learn about it. After several attempts, the group finally arrives at Onesti and, after learning from a table that King Oary imprisoned both Trent and Iris, are drugged and dragged down to the dungeon, but Grundy manages to escape and causes mischief while helping Irene and Dor plan an escape. It's during this that the two finally profess their love for each other and they get engaged and find out that Trent went to trade with King Omen, but Oary imprisoned them so he could rule. Grundy, with Irene's magical plants, helps free Arnolde from the stables and he positions himself on a cliff to help Smash destroy the wall; they all escape and, during the night, Dor uses his talent for making inanimate objects talk to get the information about King Omen's whereabouts. They head there and manage to free Queen Iris, King Trent, and King Omen. Faced with possible death, Oary tries to spin things his way, but Dor proposes that Omen make him an ambassador to the Nordic Magyars. Trent and Iris attempt to form a trade treaty by giving Omen Irene, but Dor suggests that Omen take a midnight sun stone that he got from Jewel instead. Irene yells at Dor for treating her like a slave, but Dor throws the dime in front of her; Irene stops on the dime and spins around, angry until Dor kisses her and finds out that they were beyond the centaur aisle; she tells him that, like the Gorgon marrying Humphrey, she also won't give up on Dor.
All in all, a great read. Fast-paced and filled to the brim with puns and magic and romance, Piers Anthony has once again created a compelling story that captivates the imagination. Highly recommended for fans of the series.
The novel opens with Dor writing an essay about Xanth, and he's quite terrible at it and can't seem to get it done until Irene suggest he use a Spelling Bee to help him word his essay. The problem is that Dor forgets to tell the Bee how to spell the words, and his essay is a disaster. Irene, in a close off section of the moat around Castle Roogna, teases Dor; they both rip each others clothes off in amusement, then are about to kiss when Cherie Centuar interrupts them and tells Dor that King Trent wants to speak to him. Trent informs Dor that he's leaving for Mundania on a trade mission and tells him to remember that "honesty" is the key. Weeks go by, with no word from Trent or Queen Iris. Dor wants answers, but the Elder Council is most unhelpful, so Dor goes to Good Magician Humphrey. Humphrey informs Dor that there's a centaur Magician on Centaur Isle; it turns out that the Gorgon and Humphrey are getting married and the Gorgon wants to do so now. Dor performs the ceremony and asks Jonathan and Millie to oversee Xanth until his return; they agree because the ghosts and zombies miss them. Both the Gorgon and Millie tells Dor that one day Irene will marry him despite his protests. Days later, Dor, Irene, Smash, Grundy, and Chet set off for Centaur Isle. It's a hazardous trip that leaves Chet wounded; but they manage to find the centaur Magician. He's named Arnolde and hadn't realized his talent was to create a magical aisle that extends a few feet in front of him and a bit behind him. Realizing that he's going to be exiled from his herd, Arnolde agrees to accompany them to rescue King Trent and Queen Iris; during the trip up north, both Irene and Dor say they hate each other, but mean it jokingly and several times they kiss. Dor writes "honesty" as "Onesti" in dirt, but Irene points out that Dor can't spell well.
Upon reaching the edge of Xanth, they cross over into a Mundane area known as America and, after Arnolde and the librarian archivist Ichabod talk, they learn that "Onesti" is a place circa AD 650; they go to pay Ichabod a gold Spanish dubloon and Dor wants a dime from him; despite his protests that the dime is much less in value, they trade. Arnolde wants to come back and talk with Ichabod after the mission is done to learn more about Mundania while Ichabod wants to cross over to Xanth and learn about it. After several attempts, the group finally arrives at Onesti and, after learning from a table that King Oary imprisoned both Trent and Iris, are drugged and dragged down to the dungeon, but Grundy manages to escape and causes mischief while helping Irene and Dor plan an escape. It's during this that the two finally profess their love for each other and they get engaged and find out that Trent went to trade with King Omen, but Oary imprisoned them so he could rule. Grundy, with Irene's magical plants, helps free Arnolde from the stables and he positions himself on a cliff to help Smash destroy the wall; they all escape and, during the night, Dor uses his talent for making inanimate objects talk to get the information about King Omen's whereabouts. They head there and manage to free Queen Iris, King Trent, and King Omen. Faced with possible death, Oary tries to spin things his way, but Dor proposes that Omen make him an ambassador to the Nordic Magyars. Trent and Iris attempt to form a trade treaty by giving Omen Irene, but Dor suggests that Omen take a midnight sun stone that he got from Jewel instead. Irene yells at Dor for treating her like a slave, but Dor throws the dime in front of her; Irene stops on the dime and spins around, angry until Dor kisses her and finds out that they were beyond the centaur aisle; she tells him that, like the Gorgon marrying Humphrey, she also won't give up on Dor.
All in all, a great read. Fast-paced and filled to the brim with puns and magic and romance, Piers Anthony has once again created a compelling story that captivates the imagination. Highly recommended for fans of the series.
