Demons Don't Dream (Magic of Xanth #16)

From Publishers Weekly
This latest and weakest Xanth fantasy (after The Color of Her Panties ) starts off in Mundania, the series's term for the world in which the readers live. Playing the new fantasy/adventure computer game Companions of Xanth, teenagers Dug and Kim select companions from among the characters of Xanth, Dug choosing a sultry half-woman/half serpent and Kim a young Elven girl. Soon Dug and Kim find they have entered the actual Land of Xanth. Unknown to them, the demons that provide Xanth's magic are in mystic competition, using Kim, Dug and their companions as pawns. Written in a simplistic style, the novel marks the continued decline of this once-diverting series. The teenage characters are all but lifeless, while the story line, remarkably similar to that of Anthony's recent novel Killobyte , lacks not just tension but consequence. However, the legions of Xanth readers can rest assured that the book contains plenty of the punningly named animals, vegetables, people and things (such as the Ice Queen Crone and the Censor-Ship) that have become the series' raison d'etre. Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
A computer game becomes the doorway between Mundania and the magical, pun-filled world of Xanth in the 16th installment of one of the genre's most popular series. The switch to hardcover format will guarantee patron demand for library copies.Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book Description
Beloved by millions of readers around the world, Piers Anthony's Xanth novels are among the most popular fantasy adventures ever published. Demons Don't Dream begins a thrilling new Xanth sequence, as a pair of young adventurers play for the highest stakes of all: the future of Xanth--and of Earth as well!

Drawn into Xanth by a harmless-looking computer game, two young people find themselves competing for a precious prize: Dug, who is beguiled by a beautiful serpent-princess, and Kim, who discovers her favorite fantasy realm has suddenly become frighteningly real.

In a desperate race against time, dug and Kim battle their way across the wondrous, perilous land of Xanth, testing their courage against dozens of fearsome obstacles (and their wits against a host of outrageous puns!) But when treachery, danger, and deceit place Xanth itself in peril, Dug and Kim learn that some things are more important than winning or losing.

A breathtaking, madcap quest filled with fearsome monsters and far-fetched fun, Demons Don't Dream is vintage Xanth, an unforgettable escapade from fantasy's most imaginative storyteller.



About the Author
Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.

In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.



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Introducing the concept of interactive video games to his popular inhabitants of Xanth, the prolific Anthony adds number 16 to the series. Dug Edsel, bored with traditional graphics, wagers his girlfriend against his friend's motorcycle that no game can keep his interest for more than an hour. It's a bet Dug loses gladly when he's drawn into the "Companions of Xanth" game, is allowed to choose the luscious Princess Nada Naga as a traveling companion, and finds that he can actually enter the adventure by refocusing his eyes and eliminating his disbelief. False companions and a competing player complicate matters for Dug (who obviously hasn't read the rest of the series and has no concept of how Xanth works). Anthony loads the story with elaborate puns, wild adventure, and quirky characters and sneaks in his customary jab at critics. Xanth fans will be waiting in line.


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