How It All Goes Down
Tilja Urlahdaughter resides in the really pretty Valley (super original name). Her family is descended from a woman who helped save their Valley years ago from being invaded by the evil Empire. Magic—specifically speaking to the local cedar trees—runs in the women in her family, but Tilja's upset to find that her sister, Anja, got all the power of chatting to the trees… and Tilja got none. When the powers protecting the Valley start to fade, Tilja and her grandma, Meena, team up with their counterparts in the north of the Valley (Alnor and his grandson, Tahl) to save their home.
The foursome has to journey all the way through the dangerous Empire to find Faheel, the magician who allegedly saved the Valley for their long-ago ancestors. After being attacked by a series of imperial magicians, Tilja begins to realize that she isn't entirely magic-less after all. It turns out her powers aren't like her mother and sister's—she can work with magic in other ways.
Using her newfound magic, Tilja works to get her friends and family to Faheel's island. On the way, they meet a mysterious magician called the Ropemaker, who helps them escape from bandits in the hills—and gives Tilja a magical hair tie.
Faheel turns out to be rather weak and can't use his magic ring much anymore. He uses his remaining magic to save the Ropemaker from being turned into one of the Emperor's minions, called the Watchers. He plans to retire and give his powerful ring over to the Ropemaker, who will take his place and help Tilja's Valley.
But things aren't that easy—why should they be? He's got to first snatch the Ropemaker out from under the eye of the Emperor, who wants to make Ropey part of his team of magical attack dogs—a.k.a. the Watchers.
Faheel pauses time (cool) and he and Tilja fly to Talagh (thanks to the help of a magical bird called a roc—also cool), cause a commotion that allows the Ropemaker to run away, incite a rebellion that causes a regiment to kill the Emperor, destroy the Watchers, and get away. And that, dear Shmoopsters, is what we call a very busy day. Oh—and there's some unknown magician lurking around who wants the ring.
Back on Faheel's island, the wizard gives up his powers and drops the magic ring off with Tilja to give to the Ropemaker, who will help them with the Valley. One problem—she can't tell any of her friends about it. Faheel also gives Meena and Alnor magic grapes that, when eaten, make the old folks young again.
The group heads on home, but the Ropemaker doesn't catch up with then. When Tilja calls Ropey by the secret name Faheel told her to use, the bad guy—whom Tilja dubs Moonfist—also shows up. They fight, and Meena, Alnor, and Tahl get burned alive, but the Ropemaker reverses time so they're okay. Phew.
To get out of the forest, Ropey turns their horse into a flying steed, which the boys use to help defeat the armies trying to conquer the valley. The story ends with Tilja back home and Meena and Alnor returning to their normal age. All's well that ends well.