Product Description

"...Add venom from your greatest fear -- One drop -- and then the truth is clear."

Rowan and his mother have journeyed to the Maris folk on the coast to do their duty. Rowan's mother is to choose the new Keeper of the Crystal, who will lead the Maris when the old Keeper dies. Rowan is to be ready to take her place if she should be killed. Her death is a distinct possibility.

Then Rowan's mother is poisoned, and he boldly breaks a thousand-year-old tradition. He refuses to choose a candidate using the customary tests until all three candidates help him find the antidote for his mother. Armed with just a cryptic rhyme, the four set forth to face perils they can't even imagine. Will they figure out the meaning of the rhyme in time to save Rowan's mother? Can they survive the deadly creatures that await them? And even if they do, what will happen when the hidden dangerwhich threatens everyone in the land -- reveals itself?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1599989 in Books
• Published on: 2002-02-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 208 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Back for a third installment in Emily Rodda's Rowan and the Keeper of the Crystal, the hero faces his greatest challenge yet when the poisoning of his mother thrusts him into the role of selecting a new "keeper of the crystal" as he also attempts to find a life-saving antidote for his mother.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6-In this third book in the series, Rowan and his mother journey to the Maris folk on the coast so that she can choose the new Keeper of the Crystal, who will lead the Maris when the old Keeper dies. His mother knows that death is a distinct possibility but must fulfill her duty or else the Crystal will die and the Maris will no longer be protected against attack from the Zebak. When she is poisoned, Rowan breaks a 1000-year-old tradition by refusing to choose a candidate using the customary tests. He insists that the three candidates accompany him to an island to get the rare ingredients for an antidote to the poison. With their reluctant aid, he gathers what he needs, though it means plunging into one peril after another. Having survived both savage beasts and deadly political intrigues, he has one more test in store, for at the last possible instant, he realizes that the newly chosen Keeper has been bespelled by the Zebak. In this suspenseful, clever story, Rodda gives her young hero a generous supply of courage and wit, which proves helpful when he is faced with a series of catastrophes. Rowan's inner, if not outer, stature grows in each individual episode of this well-written, entertaining series.
Janet Gillen, Great Neck Public Library, NY
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Gr. 3-6. This third book in the Rowan of Rin series finds the young hero accompanying his mother to the seaside village of Maris so that she can perform her ancestral task of choosing the new Keeper of the Crystal. When she is poisoned and falls into a deathlike sleep, Rowan must assume her duties, even as he works to create the antidote that he hopes will save her life. Accompanied by three of the fishlike Maris Candidates for Keeper, Rowan journeys to the far side of the island where they battle a deadly sea serpent and solve a mysterious riddle. As always, Rodda's story teems with unexpected twists and turns that will keep readers guessing about the outcome. Those children who have read the previous titles will appreciate seeing Rowan's evolution from a small, shy, insecure boy in the first book to a confident hero, able to listen carefully, make hard choices, and take a brave stand against the enemy. This first-rate fantasy can stand alone, but it will be most appreciated by followers of the series. Kay Weisman
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