Fantasy/SF Book Reviews
Page Two of TwoThe Watch by Dennis Danvers
Eos, January, 2002Hardcover, 356 pages
ISBN: 0380977621
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
As he lays on his deathbed, the anarchist prince
Peter Alexeivch Kropotkin is visited by a mysterious
man from the future. He is offered a new life in
the year 1999. Between wracking coughs, Kropotkin
agrees, and is instantly transported to the year 1999,
with his own, rejuvenated body, a passport, a green
card, but no money. Alone in Richmond, Virginia,
a city with a racially turbulent past, Kropotkin
starts over at life. He meets Rachel Pederson, a
social worker who helps him, and beings to
put a life together. As he adjusts to life in the 20th
century, he begins to see that all the old social
injustices that he fought against in his old life
still exist. And he begins to wonder what his
benefactor wants from him. Is his life his to
lead, or is there something more sinister going on?
Dennis Danvers (Circuit of Heavan) presents us with a thought-provoking time travel novel that is sure to fascinate. Danvers' novels always explore some facet of our society, and this novel is no exception. A bittersweet love story, as well as an exploration of the themes of freedom, self-determinism, racism and social ethics, The Watch is also a funny and moving story of a man who is displaced in time. Don't miss it.
The World Tree (The Daughters of Bast) by Sarah Isidore
Eos, November, 2001Paperback, 376 pages
ISBN: 0380803208
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
The Egyptian cat goddess Bast is known to only
a few worshippers in the ancient British isles.
But she and the other gods are fading away, as
worshippers turn to a new religion.
Charlemagne and his army are about to
sweep across the land from their home in Gaul,
determined to wipe out all traces of the ancient
pagan religion. Now Bast's last, reluctant priestess
Sirona, must take up arms with another priestess to
stop the destruction of the old ways. She will be
aided by Bast and her powerful sister goddesses,
Freya and the evil Sekhmet. Once the
terrible magic of the goddesses has been released,
it will be very difficult to control what has been
unleashed. But Sirona must try, in order to
restore the old Celtic ways and to keep the
Ancient Harmonies in balance.
The World Tree is the third book in Sarah Isadore's well-imagined Celtic fantasy series, which began with Shrine of Light and The Hidden Land. Isidore has a deft hand with both character and with fantasy, and her latest book is the best yet in this intriguing series. Set against a factual backdrop of the rise of Christianity over the pagan religion in the British Isles, the story focuses on the reluctant priestess, Sirona, as she struggles to do the right thing in changing times. Full of magic, adventure and strong multi-layered female characters, this series just keeps getting better and better.
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