This time around the story centres on Marla's estranged brother, Jason Mason, who turns up apparently as a semi-reformed character. He still rips people off for a living, but these days only those who can afford to be taken. It's as near to going straight as he is ever likely to get. Marla is suspicious, but quietly pleased to accept him back into her life. We're told that the reason why Marla and her brother have not seen each other for around twenty years, is because of what Jason sees as a betrayal of trust by Marla, back when they were both struggling teens. Jason, now a polished professional trickster, inveigles Marla to lend him Rondeau, and the use of her name, in a long con against local multi-millionaire Campbell Campion. Cam-Cam, as he is know, is a regular pain in the posterior to the magical community of Felport, who have rebuffed his repeated attempts to buy his way into their company. Jason intends to relieve Cam-Cam of his entire fortune, by convincing him that he can purchase rare and deadly spores. The spores are touted as a weapon, which will supposedly be used for the greater good against a familiar -- albeit non-existent -- magical enemy. The spores, of course, are also entirely fictitious. The problem that emerges to ruin this grand scam, is Bulliard, a nature sorcerer from halfway across the country, who hears about the spores and decides that he must possess them at all costs. Running alongside the main theme is a sub-plot concerning Marla's new apprentice, a former minor Hollywood movie star named Bradley Bowman. B, as he prefers to be called, has the magical ability to create oracles, which in exchange for a small price, will give him valuable, often cryptic information. Marla sends B for preliminary training in various disciplines of magic by the other powerful sorcerers of the city, in lieu of their monthly tribute. Everything comes to a head when Bulliard hits town, and goes after the imaginary spores.

T.A. Pratt is now well into his stride with these novels, and it shows in his slick characterisation, funfair ride of a plot, and dry witted dialogue. As pretty much every character is working on erroneous assumptions, mistakes are made by all. Some funny, others tragic, and one or two so well masked they took me entirely by surprise. Suffice it to say that the resolution tidies up most of the minor questions, but leaves bigger ones wide open. Spell Games keeps Marla Mason ahead of the pack in this genre, and I'm keen to find out what happens next.