Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede

Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede
339 pages

    Eff is asked to travel past the Barrier Spell and into the unprotected territory of the far west. She finally convinces her mother to let her go. At first, it seems to be no dangerous trip, since they have magic to protect them. But then they see weird things. Wild cats hanging out in unusual places in unusual groups and plants growing in strange places. These may be just a result of teh mirror bugs from the season before, but a frightening and stange discovery tells them otherwise.
    When they stop to camp for the night, Eff and Professor Torgeson find stone statues of animals that are perfectly carved-a little to perfect. Is some unknown creature turning thae animals to stone? Will it be a threat to the settlers, or is it something from a long time ago?



*Book 2 in 'Frontier Magic'*
Previous book: Thirteenth Child

Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede

Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede
344 pages

    Eff is the thirteenth child in her family, so everyone thinks she is unlucky. Her Uncle Earn is especially mean about it. Eff's twin brother, Lan, is the seventh son of a seventh son, so everyone thinks he is lucky.  People want Lan to learn magic, so he can be a powerful magician, but no one lets Eff learn. But when the family moves out west to the frontier, everyone's lives change.
    Eff can learn magic, and no one knows that she is supposed to be unlucky. But Eff still has problems. She feels that everything bad that happens is her fault. When a sudden problem comes up, can Eff realize that she is not destined to fail?



*Book 1 of 'Frontier Magic'*
Next book: Across the Great Barrier