Although he asserts that he does not write sequels, Beagle has written a novella, Lal and Soukyan (1997), that features two of the principal characters from The Innkeeper's Song, and he has written several other novellas that take place in the same imaginary world as that found in The Innkeeper's Song. Lal and Soukyan takes place many years after the events in The Innkeeper's Song, when both of the title characters have grown very old. They undertake one last quixotic quest, to apologize for a wrong done during their years of traveling together. They fail in their quest yet succeed in having a last magical adventure and in saving the life of a young man.

Lal and Soukyan is one of six disparate tales, each a gem, in the collection Giant Bones (1997). The Innkeeper's Song sets the tone for the six novellas, emphasizing characterization over plot and...