Two lonely boys born worlds apart learn the meaning of friendship and trust. It is thirteen years since the Battle of Sundor at the end of The Starstone. Gerrad, the Lake Lord's son, born the year after the battle, longs to meet Gom and share an adventure. On his twelfth birthday he sneaks off to find him. He meets Essie & Carrick and befriends a homeless boy. Does he find Gom? Sort of. And he gets his adventure, maybe more than he bargained for. At its end, his life is changed forever. This, the fifth book in the combined series, offers a rare outside view of Gom, and is the first span of the bridge that leads to the culmination of Gom's own quest. An exciting adventure in which Gom, busy working in his mother's magic dwelling, play a brief but crucial part!