NO QUARTER GIVEN

Fault of Angels won the Harper Prize last year, but was, to most, a disappointing book. So it was with trepidation that the second novel was approached. It's great -- far and away a better book than the first, and with the same originality and verve. A full bodied, rich-blooded, long novel dealing with the lives of Edmund Abbey, a promising composer, his pleasure-seeking wife, her admirers, the step-son Dave, an address whose personality fills certain needs in both Edmund's and Dave's lives, and an impressive cast of directors, singers, artists, doctors and priests. Though the scope of the actual story is limited to about a year, a skilful use of flashbacks fills in the background. It's a book with a wide market. It should sell well, rent well, go well in public libraries. First and last, it reads well. The setting is Albuquerque and Santa Fe.