Enchanted Forest Chronicles #4: Talking to Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede

My name is Daystar. My mother gave me a sword and sent me into the Enchanted Forest, but she didn't say why. I've since discovered I hold the Sword of the Sleeping King and must find the Dragon King Kabul. I'm now accompanied by a fire-witch named Shiara, but she must learn to control her temper in this forest. Evil wizards are searching for us everywhere, but the sword is able to sense and absorb magic. A dragon says he knows a shortcut to the castle and the Dragon King, but the path has changed. There are invisible barriers and new trees popping up. The trees seem innocent enough, but the dragon says there haven't been any new magical trees in a long time. I still don't know what it all means, but I do know that we must arrive safely to the castle soon, before a war between the dragons and wizards breaks out.

This book was written before the other book in the series, but the introduction says they're all prequels to Talking to Dragons. A helpful hint I had forgotten: remember that Cimorene was pregnant throughout the previous book. We already knew characters like Cimorene, Telemain, and Morwen, so it was strange to read about Daystar and Shiara meeting them for the first time. The magic sword must have been the same one as in earlier books, but it wasn't clear why a peasant boy was wielding it. Why wasn't his mother, a queen in earlier books, living in the castle, and where was her husband King Mendenbar? All of the questions were answered in the last quarter of the book, and all issues appeared to be resolved. Overall, the series was a quick-read and was very enjoyable.