Review: The Tower at Stony Wood by Patricia A McKillip

The Tower of Stony Wood begins with the deceptive simplicity of a medieval style fairy tale. A lady in a tower and a knight on his dark charger. But the first lady we meet is no princess, but merely an errant baker's daughter who has sought to escape from her chores in a mysteriously magical place she does not quite understand. And the knight has to be persuaded by an unlikely tale to leave his somewhat happy life for a quest that may not even be real. And so the layers begin.

For there is more than one tower to explore and more than one enchantment to challenge. As the hero of this tale, Cyan Dag is a likely knight - the provenance of his family name is his main inheritance, but he lacks the means to woo the lady he loves. Melanthos is compelled to stitch together sense of faraway mysteries, but she does not quite realize that the greatest enigma has tangled itself into her own family. And then there is Thayne, who needs magic, but must also learn what to do with it once it finds him.

The characterization is stellar and enables interactions to be emotionally realistic throughout. Even relatively minor characters like Regis Aurum, Anyon and Gentian feel authentic throughout. Melanthos and Sel are exquisitely rendered and it's wonderful to encounter a female trickster for a change. The atmosphere of magic that permeates the story makes the plot seem hazy at times, but I suppose that is in the nature of tales of fantasy.