A Wizard Of Mars

In the hotly anticipated ninth installment of the Young Wizards series, Kit and Nita become part of an elite team investigating the mysterious “message in a bottle,” which holds the first clues to the secrets of the long-lost inhabitants of Mars. But not even wizardry can help them cope with the strange events that unfold when the “bottle” is uncorked and a life form from another era emerges. Though the Martians seem friendly, they have a plan that could change the shape of more than one world. As the shadow of interplanetary war stretches over both worlds, Kit and Nita must fight to master the strange and ancient synergy binding them to Mars and its last inhabitants. If they don’t succeed, the history that left Mars lifeless will repeat itself on Earth.

Young wizards Kit Rodriguez and Nita Callahan manage to wangle their way onto an elite team sent to investigate the mysterious, long-sought "message in a bottle" that holds the first clues to the secrets of the ancient Martian race.

The most comprehensive look at our relationship with Mars—yesterday, today, and tomorrow—through history, archival images, pop culture ephemera, and interviews with NASA scientists Mars has been a source of fascination and speculation ever since the ancient Egyptians observed its blood-red hue and named it for their god of war and plague. But it wasn't until the 19th century when “canals” were observed on the surface of the Red Planet, suggesting the presence of water, that scientists, novelists, filmmakers, and entrepreneurs became obsessed with the question of whether there’s life on Mars. Since then, Mars has fully invaded pop culture, inspiring its own day of the week (Tuesday), an iconic Looney Tunes character, and many novels and movies, from Ray Bradbury’s Martian Chronicles to The Martian. It’s this cultural familiarity with the fourth planet that continues to inspire advancements in Mars exploration, from NASA’s launch of the Mars rover Perseverance to Elon Musk’s quest to launch a manned mission to Mars through SpaceX by 2024. Perhaps, one day, we’ll be able to answer the questions our ancestors asked when they looked up at the night sky millennia ago.

A mysterious library book opens the door to a world of magic and danger in the first book in the beloved Young Wizards series. Bullied by her classmates, Nita Callahan is miserable at school. So when she finds a mysterious book in the library that promises her the chance to become a wizard, she jumps at the opportunity to escape her unhappy reality. But taking the Wizard's Oath is no easy thing, and Nita soon finds herself paired with fellow wizard-in-training Kit Rodriguez on a dangerous mission. The only way to become a full wizard is to face the Lone Power, the being that created death and is the mortal enemy of all wizards. As Nita and Kit battle their way through a deadly alternate version of New York controlled by the Lone Power, they must rely on each other and their newfound wizarding skills to survive--and save the world from the Lone One's grasp.

With the scale and scope of a great sci-fi epic, this is the story of Lora and her family, third generation settlers on the red planed, who are struggling to survive o a smallholding in the desert landscape, surviving storms and sinister rumours of unexplained disappearances - until one night Lora sees the Dancers. When her father and grandmother disappear, Lora and her family are driven out to seek a new life across the plains. But none of them are ready for what they find - the beautiful and dangerous City Inside.

Coming to the aid of a wounded whale, Kit and Nita are plunged into deep wizardry. The whale is a wizard, and she enlists Kit and Nita in battle against the sinister Lone Power. Becoming whales themselves, Nita and Kit join in an ancient ritual performed by whales, dolphins, and a single fearsome shark. But which poses more of a danger: the Lone Power, or ed'Rashtekaresket, the enormous shark as old as the sea?

Long Island’s teen wizard returns in “an unusually consistent fantasy, rich in details, subplots, and Irish lore” from the author of High Wizardry (School Library Journal). To give fifteen-year-old Nita a vacation from magic—and her partner Kit—her parents pack her off for a stay with her eccentric aunt in Ireland. But Nita soon finds herself with a host of Irish wizards battling mythical beings, wolves, and elves from a nightmare land. In Wizard Abroad, “Duane seamlessly interweaves encounters with creatures from legend with glimpses of modern Irish life and teen culture. Her view of magic’s place in the scheme of things is so clever and well reasoned that readers will have no trouble suspending belief (School Library Journal). “Exceptional.”—Science Fiction Chronicle “The series may be of particular interest to female readers as Nita and her younger sister are the focus of most of the books and they are strong female characters. If you’ve read the other Wizardry books, this fourth book in the series won’t disappoint you.”—SF Site Praise for the Young Wizards series “Duane is tops in the high adventure business . . . This rollicking yarn will delight readers.”—Publishers Weekly “High Wizardry is . . . high entertainment.”—Locus “Recommend this series to young teens who devour books about magic and wizards . . . or kids looking for ‘Harry Potter’ read-alikes.”—School Library Journal “Stands between the works of Diana Wynne Jones . . . and Madeleine L’Engle . . . An outstanding, original work.”—The Horn Book

When her younger sister uses the family computer with its special wizard software to travel to worlds light years away, Nita uses her wizardry to try to find her. Book three in the Young Wizards series