This was a pretty mediocre book, in my opinion. The characters where lovable and fun, but the story line was very derivative. A lot of things were pulled from Tolkien and Dungeons & Dragons. There were quests, spellbooks, mithril, a drunk redheaded dwarf, and a mysterious ranger, to name a few. The plot was a little sketchy, too. There were some events that seemed unlikely. The pattern of healing got repetitive as well. A character gets hurt. It looks like it might be really bad. Nevermind, Reika used magic and they're ok. If this had happened once or twice it would have been fine, but this happens after nearly every battle. That being said, I really love the interaction between the author's characters and how he ties in the prejudices that are a part of human nature. Overall the book was okay. I don't think I'd recommend it to anyone, though.