Excerpt from The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert V. S. Redick, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

"You’re not ill?"

"No," said Pazel.

"Your mind-fits?"

"They’re cured," said Pazel quickly, very glad they were alone. No one on the Eniel knew about his mind-fits.

"Cured?" said the doctor. "How did you manage that?"

Pazel shrugged. "I bought some medicine in Sorhn. Everyone goes to Sorhn for that kind of thing."

"Everyone does not live under the influence of magic spells," said Chadfallow. "And how much did they charge you for this . . . medicine?"

"They took . . . what I had," admitted Pazel, frowning. "But it was worth every penny. I’d do it again tomorrow."

Chadfallow sighed. "I dare say you would. Now what about your teeth?"

Pazel looked up, startled by the quick change of focus: his mind-fits were the doctor’s favorite subject. "My teeth are just fine," he said carefully.

"That’s good. But this tea is not. Taste it."

Chadfallow passed him the cup, and watched as he drank.

Pazel grimaced. "It’s bitter," he said.

"More bitter for you than me. Or so you may well imagine."

"What do you mean by that?" Pazel’s voice rose in confusion. "Why are you all so odd?"

But like the duchess and the soap man, Chadfallow merely turned to face the sea. And all through that night’s crossing he showed no more interest in Pazel than in the common sailors who bustled around him.

Excerpted from The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert V. S. Redick Copyright © 2009 by Robert V. S. Redick. Excerpted by permission of Del Rey, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.