Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 01/01/2026 Taking a (somewhat) more serious tone in this volume, Riley raises the stakes while introducing both the main villain and a potential new friend for apprentice wizard Ciara—if she can only overcome her pigheaded conviction that he’s a bad guy, too, and stop treating him like dirt. With only the best of intentions, Prince Aiden arrives in the village of Skael at the head of a small army, determined to persuade Ciara to accompany him back to the palace with a certain long-hidden sentient spellbook. Sure that he’s bad, Ciara tries casting a truth spell that makes a little bell ding when he lies; unfortunately, she casts it over the entire town, which makes for plenty of amusing dialogue, since she herself is an inveterate liar. Even more unfortunately, Aidan’s scheming autocratic father turns up just as stunning revelations emerge about his connection to the shadowy revenants who years ago caused the supposed deaths of nearly all wizards and dragons. This episode, too, ends on a cliff-hanger—and a hint that all is not as hopeless as it seems. - Copyright 2026 Booklist.