The Magister — Sally Miller Gearhart

Now that the bailiwick outbreaks have been handled by Little Blue's all-woman peacekeeping force in Book I, "The Kanshou," a new threat to the planet emerges. The human species may be following in the footsteps of animal life, which deserted the planet on "Empty Monday" in the year 2021. Little Blue's children are dying--in some cases, just after birth. In other cases, the children range from several years old to teenagers and exhibit no apparent signs of illness. In fact, they greet Death as a friend and go willingly, in song, singly or in groups.

Magister Zella Terremotto Adverb and her sister magisters Lin-ci Win and Flossie Yotoma Lutu--anchored in their Code of the Kanshou and their responsibility to govern Little Blue--find themselves in an unexpected alliance with Jezebel Stronglaces and her followers. Previously, these camps had been at odds regarding support of the Testing and Protocols that seek to identify and surgically eliminate a physical cause for violence in the planet's habitantes, those who have committed violent acts.

Just how much of this alliance is based on the fact that Zude and Jez were lovers at the Amah Academy in their youth is one of the tantalizing aspects of Book II. As are the dramatic and soul-chaging realizations they bring each other regarding the global threat to Little Blue's children and the spirit of all human life that the children represent.

In this time when technology transforms complicated planetary operations with instantaneous data exchange through the glow of an I.D. sensor, following the heart still remains the best approach for a civilization's salvation. As the Heart of the Kanshou struggle to discover the link between the children's deaths, the animals' disappearance, and whether or not humans can forgo violence within their collective spirit, Zude and Jez face unexpected dangers on land and at sea. They are each transformed in ways that determine the fate of Little Blue.

Ultimately, the magic of "going shy" reveals an ending to Book II that will surprise and startle readers of this action-packed and philosophically challenging second segment of the trilogy by Sally Miller Gearhart.