[STARRED REVIEW] “McKillip’s signature talents are on full display in this wondrous tale, wherein memories of ‘barren crags and ancient forests, winds scented with honey, wolf, wildflowers, swift water so pure’ can be summoned as a force for good, and love is an articulation of guileless recognition of another.”
—Foreword

“Driven by a formless fury when the prince of Kardeth refuses to halt his invasion of the kingdom of Pelucir, the great mage Atrix Wolfe creates a fearful hunter, ‘a warrior with no allegiance but to death.’ But the ensuing massacre of both armies and the king of Pelucir appalls the mage, and he flees to the mountains to live in wolf form among wolves until, 20 years later, the queen of the Woods demands that he seek out her daughter, who disappeared at the time of the great bloodbath. The ensuing story involves aspiring mage Talis Pelucir, son of the slain king, and Saro, a young, mute scullery maid in the castle of Pelucir whose background is unknown. Steeped in medieval legends of the wild huntsman, living trees, and shape changers, McKillip’s tale is decidedly atmospheric, complex, compelling, and filled with rich imagery.”
—Booklist

“No writer has better captured the elusive power of language than Patricia A. McKillip. The Book of Atrix Wolfe is a shimmering tale of language, power, magic, and soul.”
—Rambles

“Prince Talis, heir to the Pelucir throne, has been away from his homeland studying magecraft. At the wizards’ college, he discovers a mysterious book of spells whose words carry hidden meanings. Returning to Pelucir, Talis encounters the Queen of the Woods, who is looking for her daughter, Sorrow, lost ever since the mage Atrix Wolfe misused his magic to divert a war. Now Talis and Atrix must solve the riddle of Sorrow’s existence, and rid the world of the evil that Atrix conjured. . . . Connoisseurs of fine fantasy will delight in this expertly wrought tale.”
—Publishers Weekly

“The Book of Atrix Wolfe is a spell woven from moonlight, dirty pots, golden leaves, and shadows. Patricia McKillip describes magic I can believe in—the magic of place, captured in the stones of a wall, the wood of a door, the light shining through a window, the reflection in a pot of water. Her magic is founded in love and power and pain. Far more than a tale of battling kings—this is a story of the workings of the human heart. Such pleasure to read!”
—Pat Murphy, Nebula and Hugo Award winning author of The Adventures of Mary Darling

“It is always a joy to read Patricia McKillip’s work, and The Book of Atrix Wolfe is particularly rich in its fairy-tale motifs, imagery and language. Evocative details invite readers to appreciate Prince Talis’s wonder at forest depths and mountain heights, share the smells and sounds of Saro’s life in the castle kitchen, and recognize the pain of memories that linger long after a battle ends. By grounding the varied human and Otherworldly societies in specific landscapes and hinting at their collective past, the novel explores the difficulty of reaching a shared understanding of history. Yet McKillip offers wonder and words as hope. As in McKillip’s other works, this novel’s language is beautiful, making visible and magical what is usually overlooked or seen as ordinary. The Book of Atrix Wolfe thus demonstrates the power of words and stories to recover the past and create the future, a tale that repays rereading, as that hope is more relevant now than before.”
—Ann F. Howey, author of Afterlives of the Lady of Shalott and Elaine of Astolat

“Patricia A. McKillip is one of the finest writers of fantasy fiction of all time. In Tachyon’s beautiful 30th anniversary edition McKillip’s rich prose is on full display in this powerful novel of war and remembrance, magic and forgiveness.”
—Audrey Taylor, author of Patricia A. McKillip and the Art of Fantasy World-Building

“A man who lives among wolves and hides from his magical mistake from the past finds his talents again needed among humans when a queen asks him to search for her missing daughter. His quest leads to unexpected love and adventure in McKillip’s gentle fantasy.”
—Midwest Book Review

“This is a beautifully written book. It is a quick, easy read and I really enjoyed my time with it. The story unfolds in a way that kept me interested, and it was definitely a good example of McKillip’s whimsical, otherworldly imagination. I recommend this book to anyone who liked any of McKillip’s other work, or enjoys authors like Robin McKinley, Charles de Lint, or Peter S. Beagle.”
—Superstardrifter