THE FOURTH GUARDIAN

Contemporary fantasy and the beginning of a series about the Four Stones of Power, magical jewels whose actions and owners determine the fate of the world: from the author of the weird and splendid Prisoners of Paradise (1988). In Roman times, four conspirators came into possession of the god-wrought Stone of Power and agreed to split it among themselves. Since then, each has pursued his or her independent course of action, sometimes meddling enough to change the course of history. But now, for reasons unknown, the former gladiator Corbo, latterly a Don Juan-style jungle sorcerer, has come under magical attack by one or more of the other stone-wielders. Corbo's stone, which has a will of its own, also assembles some helpers: Corbo's assistant, Elena; musician Brice; the talented children William and Violet. After various diversions, the showdown takes place on Hawaii, where a powerful Nazi, Germanicus, tricks the pimp Popillius into an alliance against Corbo and Drusilla—a battle in which Brice is possessed by an alien Yellow Cloud from another reality, all four guardians are slain, and the Stones pass into the hands of the good guys. Tumultuous, meandering, ramshackle, heavily embroidered: often entertaining but at best only half-satisfying.