Whenever the Nordian bird traders arrived in Quentaris people were a little wary. Yes, they loved the beautiful and rare song birds they sold but after the Nordians left there would always be something missing. Usually this would be a saddle or piece of jewellery but this year it was different. This time they kidnapped fifteen Quentarian children.

Desperate to find their children they despatch the Rift Guards to track down the Nordian caravan but this involves passing through the Rift Caves and an especially dangerous intersection known as the Enigma of Rusticus where time ceases to pass in a normal manner.

Will they manage to save the children before they are sold as slaves to Rodentia, rat-King of the Trollantan mountains? And if they do, will they still be the same as they were before their ordeal?

It is hard to believe that this is book nineteen in the Quentaris Chronicles and that the editors have managed to keep the quality of the writing through so many volumes. As I have come to expect from this series, the style slots in perfectly with previous volumes in both the style of the writing and the overall feel of the story.

What is unusual about this book is that rather than it concentrating on the people of Quentaris as they try and rescue their children, we get to experience the situation from the point of view of the children themselves. We feel their fear and also discover their courage as they do what they can to escape. But this is not your usual kidnapped children story – not everyone survives and the children have to come to terms with death.

I do not know if Michael Pryor and Paul Collins had any idea that their original idea for Quentaris would become as big as this but I hope they are enjoying seeing what other authors make of this world they have created. Great fun, as always.

Synopsis
Stolen Children of Quentaris is a gripping fantasy novel which tells the story of the Quentaran children stolen by Nordian traders to sell to the despicable Trollantan rat people. The novel follows the children’s capture, journey though the rift caves in tumbrels drawn by the brutish Nordians, and their final arrival in the court of the Trollantan rat king, the hideous Rodentia.