Six months after the end of The Era of Magic, Rufusis being looked after by his Uncle Seb, helping him to cart tomatoes from hisfarm to the docks. His parents are missing, having been on a journey aboard TheGumtree - the biggest ship in The Southern Lands - that was attacked and limpedhome with half the crew missing. Moreover, he feels that his powers as a'Discerner' have failed, letting down the faith that had been put in him by theQueen. But then, visiting the restored Gumtree, he is shocked to bechosen, by the ship's trusted cat, as the new Navigator!He joins up with Kirra, the fisher girl from the first book, and stowaways Clara and Mellek, becoming a vital part of the crew on avoyage that will bring them face to face with what looks to be a revival of themagic: from killer seagulls, to a bombarding forest, to seductive Smiler Fish and knife-wielding weeds.Can they discover the source of the magic? Is it anything todo with what Rufus has done with the book that tells of the Earth Heartexperiment from a year before - a book he was told to destroy? Can they stop the magic and restore balance with the natural world, somethingthe Discerners of the Lands have worked so hard to establish? And, for Rufusthe biggest question of all, can they find out what happened to his parentswhen they disappeared on that last voyage?
