Wit'ch War » (Reprint)

James Clemens was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1961. With his three brothers and three sisters, he was raised in the Midwest and rural Canada. He attended the University of Missouri and graduated with a doctorate in veterinary medicine in 1985. The lure of ocean, sun, and new horizons eventually drew him to the West Coast, where he established his veterinary practice in Sacramento, California. He is the author of Wit’ch Fire and Wit’ch Storm. Under the name James Rollins, he is also the author of the national bestseller Subterranean.

With Wit'ch Fire and Wit'ch Storm, two novels of extraordinary imaginative power and originality, James Clemens staked his claim to being among the finest writers of fantasy to emerge this decade. Now Clemens adds to his masterpiece in the making with Wit'ch War, the dazzling third volume in the epic saga of The Banned and the Banished . . .

Publishers Weekly

This third, stout volume recounts the dramatic climax of the quest for the Blood Diary, which holds the secret magic of the evil Black Heart. Three groups of do-gooding warriors are trying to track down the diary: Elena, the wit'ch, and her one-armed companion, Er'ril; Elena's Aunt Mycelle (a reformed shape-changer) and her motley crew; and the pirate Kast the Bloodrider and his beloved Sy-wen. Clemens tediously details each group's long journey, which concludes in a final confrontation on the island of A'loa Glen. There, the adventurers must confront the evil mage Shorkan (who happens to be Er'ril's brother). No tyro, Clemens does intelligent things with Elena and her brother, Joach, as they fight not only their enemies but also the dangers of their magical powers. He writes suggestively about shape-changing, and the final battle is so well constructed that it demands to be read at one sitting. But Clemens's decision to reveal only toward the end that the Blood Diary does not in fact hold the real key to the power of the Black Heart (thereby invalidating the purpose of the quest) produces terrific disappointment. (It does, however, suggest that he'll write at least one more novel in this series.) Although the scenario revolves around strong women and an abundantly detailed world, such a plot is hardly a novelty in contemporary fantasy fiction. Weakly executed, this book won't compel the attention of more discriminating readers. (July) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|