THE SEEKER

Kids Can Press, Toronto, New York, 2002
ISBN: 1553373588 (HARDCOVER)
ISBN: 1553373596(TRADE PAPERBACK)

Emma Sweeney (See The Watcher for the first book about Emma) has the potential to become an exceptional Watcher, but her instructors are losing patience with her. Raised by an Earth family, Emma is prone to emotional behavior that always seems to get the better of her Watcher instincts.

Emma's Earth mother, Leto, is dying on the Island world of Argadnel. Longing to be reunited with her human daughter, who was stolen at birth, Leto has lost the will to live. Emma has pledged to find the missing child and restore order to her adopted family's life. But the quest becomes a dangerous race when Emma realizes she isn't the only one searching for the child.

In The Seeker, the exciting second volume of Margaret Buffie's trilogy, The Watcher's Quest Series, Emma, Tom and their allies become pawns in The Game, played by power hungry beings for whom victory must be had - at any price.

Shortlisted, McNally Robinson Book for Young People Award

Chosen: The New York Public Library for their 74TH Annual Books for the Teen Age

Chosen: VOYA'S 18th Annual List of the Best In Science Fiction and Fantasy for the Young Adult Reader This list "features books for the very young teen and also reaches out to the older teen with books that challenge and inspire."

Chosen - Our Choice Canadian Children's Book Centre

Chosen - PSLA's Young Adult Top Forty Fiction List

A FEW EXCERPTS FROM REVIEWS OF THE SEEKER:

REVIEW: Emma Sweeney, a 16 year old Watcher who doesn't know who she really is, was not supposed to have bonded deeply with her Earth family. But as she watches her adopted mother die, Emma vows to find her missing sister and reunite her entire family, now far-flung across the worlds. Emma undertakes this quest hampered by an identity crisis that will resonate with author Margaret Buffie's preteen readership. This is the second book of The Watcher's Quest fantasy trilogy. Emma's quest begins when she upsets the powerful Game Player Fergus. Desperate, Emma challenges Fergus to a magical board game called Fidchell and, surprisingly wins. Her quest continues but must now be played out in a life-sized version of Fidchell. Emma must seek her sister, while Fergus and his arch-enemy/companion secretly play an overarching game against each other. This is one of the ways Buffie elevates what could have been a standard quest narrative. Emma is playing a game within a game, within a game. Buffie also invents beautifully imagined worlds, exquisite villains, and a cast of delightfully improbable quest companions, including Cill, a sweet pile of walking leaves. Emma wants to see the world in black and white but Buffie weaves in shades of grey, which puzzles her protagonist. Against the grey, our hero obsesses about whom to trust. Who are her real friends? And most critically, can she trust her own instincts? The answer is sometimes yes, sometimes no. The ending which is tied up without being strangled, intriguingly raises as many questions as it answers. Teresa Toten, Quill and Quire, August 2002

REVIEW: ...Emma is a headstrong, appealing narrator, and Buffie uses her first person perspective to smoothly provide background for readers unfamiliar with the first volume. The characters have depth and complex motivations, keeping the protagonist and readers guessing about who her true friends may be ... this is a good choice for sophisticated fantasy readers, with strong appeal for gaming fans looking for a darker, more complex story than Diana Wynne Jones's The Homeward Bounders. School Library Journal (USA)

Buffie's ability to keep the story moving without a lag in the action also helps this book to stand on its own. A welcome choice for fantasy buffs. American Library Association

Buffie invents beautifully imagined worlds, exquisite villains and a cast of delightfully improbable quest companions. Quill and Quire

With ... numerous other strange and wonderful inventions, (The Seeker) provides ample evidence of Buffie's fertile imagination and innovative skill. Winnipeg Free Press

READERS' COMMENTS:

I just finished reading your books "The Watcher" and "The Seeker", which were given to me for Christmas. They were fantastic! Your books have always been a welcome escape from everyday life for me. I found the characters from your new books very endearing. Emma is hard not to love, with her "slightly" big mouth and her loyalty to her Earth (or Eorthe) family. Tom was my favorite character, I think. Such an enigma at times, and near the end of The Seeker, it is so so hard to know if he's to be trusted! The reader can find themselves relating completely to what Emma is feeling at the time. Your books are impossible to put down, because you just have to know what is going to happen to everyone! Cill was a very loveable character, as was Gyro. I cannot wait until I read the last book of the trilogy. I always find that after reading books by other authors for awhile, returning to your writing is like coming home again after being away for years, to things that are familiar and safe. I think that teenagers like myself can relate fully to the things your characters go through, which is what make your writing so welcomed by my age group. Your books even have a way, at times, of making lost teenagers feel less alone, making them feel that there is someone who does understand their troubles. I hope you continue writing for a long time, and look forward to reading other books by you. Sarah from Ontario

This summer I went to Canada, where I first read your first two books of The Watchers Quest . I love the trilogy. Every time I read it I get the same thrill and excitement of the Adventure. It ranks up there with Harry Potter and I am a big fan of that. I think that you should make a movie of the books. It would be amazing! A reader from Maryland, USA

I am a high school teacher from Erie, PA. I recently picked up your books THE WATCHER and THE SEEKER and thoroughly enjoyed them. I saw these books at the local library and thought they looked like something my students would enjoy. I didn't realize how much they would enjoy them ... I can't wait to see what happens next to Emma and Tom in the ongoing Game. Sincerely, Mrs. Lori B.

I just love Emma! I've read both THE WATCHER and THE SEEKER twice (something I rarely do) and am looking forward to seeing what's in store for Emma and her friends. Thank you for sharing your gift and writing such a wonderful story. Natalie R

I just wanted to tell you that so far I've really enjoyed reading your books called The Watcher's Quest. I've started reading them in the wrong order - 2, 3, 1 ... but I haven't been able to stop reading which I must say (as) I don't read much. But I really love the second book. (The Seeker) It's great. Even though you already knew that I just wanted to tell you myself. I already can't wait to read the 2nd book again. (No joke its just something about it. I can't let go. It makes me want to relive it over and over again.) =) Toni M