Hoping to duplicate the adventurous yarns of their parents, the children of spellsinger Jon-Tom and his otter sidekick Mudge set out on a perilous quest of their own

Decades have passed since college student Jon-Tom Meriweather was first marooned in a strange land of magic, and over the years he has married, raised a son, and honed his voice so that the effects of his spellsinging—whereby he calls up magic with song—are almost predictable. His son’s voice is another matter. Buncan wants to follow in his father’s adventurous footsteps, but his every chord brings more discord, and there seem to be no good quests to be had. When one falls in his lap—investigating something called the Grand Veritable, whose very name is enough to send wizened wizards hiding under their covers—he seeks the help of two of his friends, children of Jon-Tom’s old otter sidekick Mudge, whose voices are as pure as Buncan’s is muddy. The determined trio runs away from home, ready to pit their teenage talents against a very adult danger.

Into the Out Of