Final volume of the Celtic Crusades trilogy begun with The Iron Lance (1998), in which lawyer Gordon Murray was introduced as narrator of a Scottish generational saga, with Murdo Ranulfson, son of Lord Ranulf of Dyrness, Orkney, going off on the Crusades and finding the iron lance that stabbed Christ at the Crucifixion. In The Black Rood (2000), set 40 years later, Murdo’s son Duncan came back with a piece of the True Cross. Now, in this volume, a lass named Caitríonia seeks the Rosa Mysticus, or the Sacred Cup of the Christ at the Last Supper. This leads to Gordon himself becoming the cup’s guardian, century after century. No questions that would bother Graham Greene, but those lusting for the True Path will eat it up.
Pub Date: Oct. 10, 2001
ISBN: 0-06-105031-8
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Eos/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2001
Dotted with cliché and melodrama but driven–and driven well–by good old-fashioned sci-fi storytelling.
A sci-fi adventure steeped in the lore of an ancient civilization that will appeal to children and adults alike.
Max Quick's life drastically changes after time suddenly stops. The young man of 12–harassed by bullies, living as an orphan in a violent home for boys and about to be thrown into juvenile hall–is mysteriously immune to this chrono-freeze. He soon discovers other children who are impervious as well–namely, Casey Cole and Ian Keating–and the three find themselves embarking on a thrilling quest to save the world from an all-powerful foe from outer space. Heavily inspired by the folklore of the Sumer civilization of ancient Mesopotamia, the narrative shines brightest in the chapters that focus on the re-telling of this fascinating history. Jeffrey skillfully infuses the story with an authentic historical context, and then thrusts the narrative into the future by introducing aliens, time travel and massive gems with the power to stop time and minds–a difficult task indeed, but one that he successfully accomplishes. Alas, the story does suffer from thin character development and some amateurish dialogue, which, in many instances, is plain unrealistic, with the characters' voices often coming across as affected. Furthermore, the characters tend to have thoughts or make pronouncements that belie their actual age, or take actions that do not seem in line with their previously established personalities. (Casey, age 12, vacillates constantly between a spoiled, temperamental eight-year old and a sexually conscious adolescent vying for male attention.) Fortunately, the story is compelling enough to supercede these minor quibbles.
Dotted with cliché and melodrama but driven–and driven well–by good old-fashioned sci-fi storytelling.Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2004
ISBN: 1-4116-1323-6
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Four short fairy tales with a contemporary edge, and one novella-length tale that brilliantly transforms a story of middle- age angst into a celebration of serendipity and sex. Byatt (Babel Tower, 1996, etc.) uses that parallel world of fairy tales—which closely resembles our own in motive, character, and outcome—to explore the sources of hope and imagination. ``The Glass Coffin'' reworks a traditional quest tale as a tailor seeking employment helps a stranger and, as a reward, is given a glass key and certain mystifying instructions to follow that lead him to a beautiful sleeping princess. In ``Gode's Story,'' a young woman is true, while her feckless sailor lover betrays her, only to find his happiness with a new bride short-lived when he sees her among the Dead riding the ocean waves. ``The Story of the Eldest Princess'' is a witty reworking of the quest tale as well as a low-key analysis of the role of fate, choice, and character as a princess steps out of her preordained role in life to rescue her people. And ``Dragon's Breath'' is a wry morality tale about the unsuspected ``true relations between peace and beauty and terror'' revealed when dragons destroy a village. But Byatt is at her best in the novella, about what happens when Dr. Gillian Perholt, in Turkey to attend a conference on stories, is granted the chance to make three wishes, which all come true. Troubled by visions of her mortality and her husband's desertion, fiftyish Gillian buys a dirty but striking old glass bottle and takes it back to her hotel. When she washes it, a handsome Djinn appears, who gives her the younger body she wishes for, makes love to her as she wishes, and after talk, tales, and travels, grants her her third wish. An intelligent detour with an exemplary guide through Keats's ``magic casements'' to fairy land. (Author tour)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-679-42008-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1997
BOOK TO SCREEN
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