The Magic Engineer

The saga of Recluce continues! L. E. Modesitt, Jr. burst into the fantasy field with The Magic of Recluce, which Asimov's called "a very special fantasy, original." "Believable and insightful," said Kirkus. Amazing praised his "original and interesting twists... I hope he visits Recluce, Candar and their neighbors in the future."

Then, in The Towers of the Sunset, Modesitt told another tale set in his magical world. "Another charmer," said Publishers Weekly. "I could not put it down," said Andre Norton. "This is an outstanding fantasy tale."

Now in The Magic Engineer, we return to the magical island of Recluce, where Dorrin, a young scion of the Order magicians, is interested in forbidden knowledge, in the workings of machines. Promising, intelligent, but determined to follow his passion for scientific knowledge, Dorrin can invent machines. He is the Leonardo da Vinci of his age, but his insights violate the rules of the Order magic of Recluce. Now he must go into exile in the lands of Chaos to pursue his dangerous inventions.

Yet he remains loyal to the idea of Order, and is tortured by the knowledge that to preserve it he must constantly create new devices for war. For the forces of the Chaos wizards are moving across the land, devouring whole countries and creating an empire – whose ultimate goal is the destruction of Recluce.