Third Time's a Charm — C. Dale Brittain

This is an omnibus edition of three Yurt novellas, "The Lost Girls and the Kobold," "Below the Wizards' Tower," and "A Long Way 'Til November," adventures of the wizard Daimbert at three stages of his life. You would think that being Royal Wizard of the tiny kingdom of Yurt would be easy, but somehow it never works out that way. Daimbert always thinks it will be straightforward: finding a girl lost in the mountains, visiting old friends at the wizards' school, or taking a trip in a gypsy caravan. But then he discovers the mountains are more than they seem, a doppelgänger threatens the school, and his pleasant trip turns ugly with suspicion and bigotry. Good thing he knows how to improvise!