New York Times best-selling Iron Druid chronicler joins with Dawson (Star Wars: Phasma) to launch a witty, bighearted fantasy series starring Gustave the Talking Goat, Fia the Unusually Tall, Argabella the Ensorcelled Bard, and Grinda the Sand Witch, all intent on keeping LØCHER from stealing the throne.

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Pell, there lived a farm boy, a talking goat, a semidark Dark Lord, a fuzzy-tailed bard, a peace-loving warrior in a chain-mail bikini, an assassin deathly afraid of chickens, and a sand witch with an affinity for bejeweled crabs. One of them is the Chosen One, and on a quest to awaken a sleeping princess from her tower and generally right the wrongs in the kingdom of Pell, all of them will encounter much more than they expected. This fairy tale's happily ever after is one readers won't see coming. VERDICT Dawson (Star Wars: Phasma) and Hearn's ("Iron Druid Chronicles") reimagining of a traditional fairy tale is reminiscent of William Goldman's The Princess Bride and William Steig's Shrek! Irreverent, funny, and full of entertaining wordplay, this will keep readers guessing until the end and eager for the sequel. [See Prepub Alert, 1/29/18.]—Elisabeth Clark, West Florida P.L., Pensacola

In this pun-laden quest, first in a trilogy, Hearne (A Plague of Giants) and Dawson (Star Wars: Phasma) skewer the traditional tropes of epic fantasy sagas. Though the field is already rife with parodies and satires, the authors execute their own unique twist by killing off the titular farm boy on page 31 before his hero's journey can ever truly begin. Now it's up to a ragtag band of unlikely heroes—including a seven-foot-tall horticulturalist in a chainmail bikini, a cursed half-rabbit bard, a bread-conjuring would-be dark lord, a clumsy rogue, and a boot-eating talking goat—to save the kingdom from magical misdeeds. As they face their greatest childhood fears, contend with gourmand giants, and negotiate with arrogant elves, these improbable heroes display surprising depths and complexities. There's a Pratchettian humor at play here, manifesting in frequent pun wars, silly songs, and an underlying level of societal absurdity—everyone takes cheese rather seriously, for instance. The authors claim they wanted to make fun of the typical "white male power fantasies," and in that, they succeed, with their heroes all characters of color and/or falling somewhere under the LGBTQ umbrella. Even so, there's the feeling that they're marching through familiar, previously conquered territory, putting this solidly in the middle of the field of humorous fantasy. Agents: (for Hearne) Evan Goldfried, Jill Grinberg Literary; (for Dawson) Kate McKean, Howard Morhaim Literary. (July)

Combining the satirical fantasy of authors such as William Goldman, Terry Pratchett, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Tamora Pierce, Hearne and Dawson have written a thoroughly enjoyable, enormously ambitious novel. The authors state in their acknowledgements that their book specifically refers to killing off the "white male power fantasies," though they are substantially more successful at skewering the male-ness than the white-ness of the genre. The eponymous farm boy is anointed the "Chosen One" by a fairy in Chapter 2 (titled "In a Squalid Barnyard in Borix, Redolent of Feces and Angst") and is, as promised, dead after two more chapters. Readers are left to follow his (now) talking goat, Gustave; his accidental killer, Fia, a powerful warrior in a chain-mail bikini; an enchanted half-rabbit bard named Argabella; the Dark Lord Toby, whose magic primarily consists of causing bread products to rain from the sky; and a variety of supporting characters. Surprisingly, it is Dawson and Hearne's careful attention to their characters that proves the novel's greatest strength, much more so than their hit-or-miss puns or socio-politically minded satire. Fia and Argabella develop a tremendously touching relationship, Gustave steals many a scene, and the unexpected deaths of two traveling companions are genuinely moving. VERDICT The humor and empowerment theme should make this an easy sell for teens, and they'll stay for the well-drawn characters. Give this one to fans of Diana Wynne Jones, Terry Pratchett, or William Goldman.—Mark Flowers, Rio Vista Library, CA