The Shifting Sands

infobox Book |
name = The Shifting Sands
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption =
author = Emily Rodda
illustrator =
cover_artist = Marc Mcbride
country = Australia
language = English
series = Deltora Quest
genre = Fantasy novel
publisher = Scholastic
release_date = 2001
english_release_date =
media_type = Print (Paperback)
pages = 131 pp
isbn = ISBN 0-439-25326-8
preceded_by = City of the Rats
followed_by = Dread Mountain

"The Shifting Sands" is the fourth book in the eight-volume Deltora Quest series written by Emily Rodda. It continues the trio's journey to find the seven missing gems of Deltora, braving dangers and guardians in each book.

Plot

The three go on their way towards the Shifting Sands from the City of the Rats when they spot an Ak-Baba in the sky. In order to hide from it, they dive under the River Broad and hide under their cloak. Surprisingly, they are aided by the fish of the river as well, which are rather intelligent. Later, once the threat has passed, they pass by an apple farm owned by an eccentric old woman known as Queen Bee. Hungry and Tired, they decided to steal and eat from the apple orchard. Queen Bee revealed that she was not actually a fragile old woman, but a dangerous threat because of the bees that she hids under her shawl. The trio are promptly chased off by her deadly bees for stealing.

After some time on the road, they reach the town of Rithmere and started hearing about a competition called the Rithmere Games. Thinking they could win some money from it, they attempted to enter. But there was an entrance fee of one silver coin, and they had no money whatsoever. Lief, Jasmine, and Barda decided to let the operator of a game called Beat the Bird borrow Kree to spin the wheel thirty times, for a coin. In Beat the Bird, a bird would spin a wheel after a silver coin was paid. If the wheel landed on a number, the better was paid that number of silver coins. But if the wheel landed on a bird, the better only received a worthless wooden bird figurine. After thirty turns were up, Kree sensed something was amiss and pulled the table sheet, which revealed that the operator was controlling the wheel through the use of a pedal. The cheating operator then fled, leaving the coins that had fallen off the table sheet to the crowd. Leif, Barda, and Jasmine attempted to take some of the coins, but all that was left was a wooden bird.

The three decided to enter the Rithmere Games when they meet a scar-faced man named Doom, who they last saw at Tom's shop. They enter the games, and discover that the "games" are in fact fighting matches. Despite this fact, they entered anyway. Lief, Jasmine, and Barda were locked in their room in the night, but Mother Brightly, the host arrived and saved them. After the fights, Jasmine managed to win the one thousand gold prize for first place. Mother Brightly told the trio about the secret passageway that they could use to leave. However, upon trying to use it, the trio was ambushed by Grey Guards. It was revealed that there was a scandal that the prize money would be returned to Mother Brightly for the next competition while benefitting from the audience. Lief, Jasmine, and Barda attempted to make off with the coins when Doom came to them and helped them escape.

On foot, they finally reached the walls of the Shifting Sands. Lief starts to hear voices. The three hid from the Grey Guards, who were then eaten by terrible, insectile monsters called Sand Beasts. Lief sees the Guards' belongings sinking into the sand and travelling to the center, in a place called the Hive. They arrived at the Hive, and Lief enters the hole full of treasures after smoking it. He replaces the Lapis Lazulli with the wooden bird to keep the structure of the piling treasures stable and climbs out of the Hive just before they were eaten by it. Lief fits the gem into the Belt of Deltora and their quest continues to the Dread Mountain.

Characters

*Lief: Lief is the main character of the series. Lief was born to parents King Endon and Queen Sharn though he believed them to be Jarred and Anna of the forge. As a child Lief roamed the streets of Del, sharpening his wits and gaining him the skills needed for his future quests. Though he did not know it, he was constantly protected by Barda and he prided himself on his many 'lucky' escapes. On his sixteenth birthday it is revealed to him that he must begin a dangerous quest to find the lost gems of the Belt of Deltora.
*Barda: Barda was enlisted as a friend by the King and Queen of Deltora and was trusted to help him find the lost gems of Deltora sixteen years before the initial story took place. For the next sixteen years Barda disguised himself as a beggar so as to discover information vital to the Quest. He also became the bodyguard of Endon and Sharn's child Lief, albeit without the semi-arrogant Lief's knowledge thereof. Upon Lief's sixteenth birthday Barda revealed himself to Lief and the quest for the gems of Deltora began. Though Barda was at first annoyed to travel encumbered by a child, he soon saw Lief as more of a help than a hindrance.
*Jasmine: Jasmine is a wild girl, described as having wild black hair (dark green hair in the anime) and emerald green eyes who has grown up in the Forests of Silence, where Lief and Barda meet her shortly after leaving Del. Her parents, Jarred and Anna, were captured by Grey Guards when she was seven years old, and so she has been raised by the forest. She can understand the language of the trees and of many animals, and has incredibly sharp senses, but has trouble understanding some social customs. Jasmine is usually seen with her blackbird, Kree, and a mouse-like creature she calls Filli. Jasmine is like Lief and occasionally has a quick temper. After helping Lief and Barda in the forest and with the help of the Topaz, she is greeted by her mother's spirit from beyond the grave, who tells her to go with Lief and Barda in their quest. After this encounter, she joins Lief and Barda in the search for the great gems that will complete the belt.
*Kree: Kree is a raven and one of Jasmine's closest companions in the Forest of Silence. His family was taken and eaten by the witch Thaegan, and Kree was found by Jasmine. She took pity on him, as both had their family taken away, and she took care of Kree. Kree treats Jasmine as his master, and does not tolerate offensive behaviour towards Jasmine. His presence is advantageous towards the three companions, as he is able to fly ahead and warn the others of oncoming danger or safety.
*Filli: Filli is a small, mouse-like creature (although Jasmine denies that he resembles any rodent). He was rescued by Jasmine when she discovered him paralysed by the Wenn in The Forests of Silence. As such, he remains close to Jasmine and Kree, often hiding himself in Jasmine's clothing when danger arises. Like Kree, Jasmine is able to understand Filli. His small size is often advantageous to Lief, Barda and Jasmine, as he is able to hide easily and eavesdrop on others.
*Doom: Doom was a man that Lief, Barda, and Jasmine met in Rithmere. They met when the four competed at the Rithmere Games. Doom was competing with the aim of exposing the Games as a means of soughting out great fighters and taking them to the Shadowlands. He fought Jasmine in the final before faking a loss to witness Lief, Barda and Jasmine being captured by Grey Guards. He rescued the three and asked them to join the Resistance, but they refused. Doom then travels away, but returns in the future books as an important character.
*The Hive: The Hive is a vast community of underground invertebrates, of what kind no human knows. They, like bees, have a Queen Mother, workers, and studs. Smoke calms them, whereas heat agitates them. They dwell in a massive pyramid of bones, gold, gems, and other nonperishing oddments, which sink to the Hive like detritus in a whirlpool. The Shifting Sands are made up of the Hive's dead. Every grain of red sand was once a Hive member. The vast number of them has created a simple ecosystem similar to a desert above the Hive. Strangely, the Hive somehow has an ability to draw living creatures into the desert, and once that living thing is drawn it is cursed to forever be tempted to go to the hive (though the powers of the Lapis Lazuli counteracted and removed the curse from Lief), something that happened to a Mere woman named Rigane, who spent her life living on the outskirts of the desert and studying the Sand Beasts and other creatures of the desert. The Hive then became the Guardian(s) of the Lapis Lazuli, and the jewel became part of the Hive's pyramid beneath the ground. However, the Hive won't take one's life if you offer them something as tribute, Jasmine's dagger also became part of the pyramid. Lief entered the cone in the center of the desert to retrieve the gem while Barda and Jasmine calmed the hive by using smoke. He managed to retrieve both the Lapiz lazuli and Jasmine's dagger.

ee also

*Deltora series
*Deltora Quest 1
*Emily Rodda
*Characters in the Deltora Quest series

External links

* [http://www.scholastic.com.au/titles/deltoraquest/ Australian Deltora Quest website]
* [http://www.scholastic.com/deltora/ US Deltora website]
* [http://www.emilyrodda.com/ Emily Rodda's official website]
* [http://www.deltoraquest.jp/ Deltora Quest anime website]