Andre Norton has a soft spot for cats, and she includes a wild cat and her two kittens in this latest venture into magical Escore. American Kelsie McBlair falls through an ancient stone gate in the Scottish Highlands while rescuing a wounded wild cat. She and the cat (who promptly gives birth to two kittens) are besieged on the other side of the Gate by a Dark Rider and a pack of skeletal hounds, almost before Kelsie realizes she is no longer in Scotland. (It will take the rest of the book to persuade her that there is no way back to her home world).

When a dying Witch bequeaths her true name and her jewel of power to Kelsie, the American finds herself compelled to take up the woman's sorcerous mission into the heart of Escore, where magic lies in "trembling balance between the forces of Light and those of the Dark."

"The Gate of the Cat" is a stand-alone fantasy in Norton's fabulous Witch World series. It takes place (roughly) after the conclusion of "Sorceress of the Witch World" and "Trey of Swords," since characters from both of those novels also play roles (or are at least mentioned) in this book. Yonan, a former border guard of Estcarp and the main narrator of "Trey of Swords," is one of Kelsie's companions on her reluctant quest. Their other companion is a rather nasty, man-hating witch who is known as Wittle. (Sometimes Norton attaches clunky names to her characters, but Wittle really is Wittle).

The magic and the narrative pace are vintage Norton, and she takes us into one of the vilest places of the Dark to be found in any of the Escore fantasies.

"The Gate of the Cat" is a must-read for Witch World fans.

I had high expectations of this book, as I've read a lot of Robert Bloch's work and enjoyed it. The book is very well-written, but a bit slow. Jekyll's niece, Hester, doesn't recieve her inheritance until after more than half of the book has passed. It is interesting to see what happens to the original book's surviving characters, such as Poole and Utterson. But simply too much time is taken up by Hester getting upset over slum conditions and (after getting rich) buying herself new dresses. And the ending was a big disappointment, too simple and totally unbelievable.

This books suffers in comparison with the literary giant it spawns from, but Norton and Bloch manage to create an entertaining murder mystery that also happens to examine how little times have really changed since Victorian England and Mr. Hyde's unfortunate appearence.

This is a collection of short stories. They each have a different theme but the common thread of the book is that what starts out to be a disaster or problem ends up being the best thing to happen to that person. This is a good book for the young adult but as an older person I found it a bit boring.

Just so you know: this short story collection is no relation to _Moon Called_, _Moon of Three Rings_, _Mirror of Destiny_, or even the Janus series' Mirror of Thanth.

"Desirable Lakeside Residence" - So says the sign beside the lake: one of the few remaining on the continent, where people need breathers to venture outside on the streets of cities. But something strange has been happening to it, ever since a geologist's rock collection - including lunar samples - was dumped in.

"How Many Miles to Babylon?" - A girl in our world, after suffering an apparent mild concussion in an accident with her boyfriend's motorcycle, might be developing some form of ESP.

"Moon Mirror" - Set in a world not seen before or since. This one isn't quite satisfying, although it's well written; it leads to the attempted opening of a gate, but the finale isn't really an ending. To my knowledge, the missing continuation of this story hasn't been provided in any other story to date.

"One Spell Wizard" - The only Witch World story in this book, and with a much more humorous note to it than many of its companion stories. Saystrap isn't a total failure as a wizard, but he simply can't cast a spell that will last longer than a day or so. But he's fed up with living in a cave, and takes on an apprentice to better his lot. Not for more serious spell casting, but for a sideline in fraudulent horse-trading that requires an accomplice. :) Alas, even apprentices develop minds of their own...

"Outside" - See also the earlier, shorter version "London Bridge" in _The Book of Andre Norton_. This novella-length revision tells the tale from the viewpoint of the little sister rather than the tough older brother, in a world of domed cities, walled off from the pollution and desolation outside, where the adults were lost years before to plague. As I said for "London Bridge", check out _The Girl Who Owned a City_ if the basic storyline interests you.

"Teddi" - The narrator and his little brother Joboy, two of the ever-rarer 'Nats' in a world of Littles, have been trapped, as Joboy dropped Teddi in a field during a scavenging trip out in the fields, and went back at the wrong moment to get him. The 'Nats' (naturals) are the original unaltered human stock, after laws were passed that everyone had to go through genetic alteration to become 'Littles' (a draconian solution that helped ease some of the problems of limited living space and resources). The Littles, it turns out, want slave labour - Nat children being easier to transport and direct than heavy machinery on the new planet they're colonizing. The Littles failed to take all the facts into account, though...

"Through the Needle's Eye" - Also appears in _High Sorcery_ (see my review for details).

"The Toymaker's Snuffbox" - The toymaker in question was content with his lot, and when he found a small elf woman weeping within one of his dollhouses, he insisted that it must be a dream. But he helped her out of kindness (a witch had stripped her of her hair just before a great ball, and the toymaker was quite capable of making a wig to suit). Not satisfied with his reply that he wanted no payment, she left him a gold snuffbox; and when war came and he lost his business, it proved to be more than met the eye. This really ought to be a well-known classic fairy tale, but it hasn't been anthologized much to date.

For those who have read and enjoyed the early Time Trader books (The Time Traders, Galactic Derelict, The Defiant Agents, and Key Out of Time), this book will be an enjoyable extension, with just enough difference in emphasis to remind the reader that this is no longer Ms. Norton writing alone.

After some (somewhat slow) preliminaries that help re-establish this series into a somewhat more modern time frame of post-Cold War, the story picks up the loose ends left by Galactic Derelict, with a new expedition to the final destination of that book. Although their ostensible mission is to find the missing members of an earlier Russian exploration team, the book quickly turns to unraveling the mystery of how and why all the current time denizens of the planet appear to be devolved representatives of earlier highly civilized species.

The is the best aspect of this book, as in working out the mystery, there are some fascinating portrayals of multiple different species working within an overall society that may be the ultimate in enforced harmony. There is far more emphasis here on the real sciences of the cultural, anthropological, linguistic and biological variety than was present in the original books, and the basic plot provides for quite a bit of suspense and surprise, invigorating this tale with page-turning expectations. The mind-twisting consequences of time travel are reasonably worked out here, although without really answering the basic paradox inherent in time travel capabilities.

What isn't quite as good is the basic characterizations, usually one of Norton's stronger points. Ross Murdock and Gordon Ashe don't quite seem to be the people they were in the earlier books, and most of the Russian contingent seem very sketchily drawn. Murdock's relationship with his new wife Eveleen seems very artificial. However, Saba, a new character for this book, is very competently drawn, and she pretty much carries the book.

Stylistically, this book tends to more complex vocabulary and sentence structure than Ms. Norton normally uses, which I have to attribute to her collaborator. This added complexity seems to help add some muscle and a believable tone to the story.

A competent tale and a worthy new entry to the Time Trader series, a series that helped establish Norton as one of the premier writers in the SF field long before women writers became fashionable.

--- Reviewed by Patrick Shepherd (hyperpat)

Time Agents Ross Murdoch and Eveleen Riorden are enjoying their honeymoon at the home of fellow agent Gordon Ashe in Safe Harbor, Maine when the emergency call came. The next day a helicopter arrives to take them back to the Project Star Center.

When the newlyweds arrive at the home base, they are introduced to Colonel Zinaida Vasilyeva of the rival Russians. Zinaida explains that a scientific team jumped back in time on the planet Yilayil and vanished. A combined American-Russian team will be sent back to land one century past the date the Russian scientists leaped. Ross, Eveleen, Ashe, and the Russian are to learn what happened and whether the malevolent Baldies are involved in radically changing this planet.

Andre Norton & Sherwood Smith continue to revive Ms. Norton's classic science fiction series. The duo successfully "modernized" the Solar Queen novels and now turns to the Time Traders books. ECHOES OF TIME is an entertaining tale that stays with the essence of the original series, but updates the Cold War rivalry into a more nineties perspective. Though needed, this technique slows the tale down a bit until the time travelers begin their journey into the past as the plot turns into a science fiction mystery. At that point in time, the novel turns into an exciting adventure that will electrify fans of the grandmaster Ms. Norton and have new readers search for some of the original tales.

Harriet Klausner

Around scifi conventions I've heard FIREHAND referred to as so godawful it's the perfect example of why not to buy a collaboration, and after looking at its cliche romance, its pointless plot and stupid villains, I had to agree, so I avoided these collaborations until I was given this one.

I really like how the authors have upgraded the fifties science of the old ones, and given the characters some complexity. Even the bad contributions from Griffin were included and given some life. I hope there will be more.

I really wanted to like this book.The problem is ,I didn't.It was just so terrible.It didn't get anywhere,the characters were impossible to understand,and it was so filled with pointless stuff,so that by the end when they faced the bad-guyes,there was virtually no room left.
God knows why I finished this book.I suppose it was because Norton is one of my all-time favorites.But she really blew off on this one,god knows why she thought we care about Mahart;or Willadene.If you actually want Norton books that are good,read Wind in the Stone,Breed to Come,or the Elvenbane.This book is a waste.

Andre Norton is one of those rare authors who can continue to create new characters and settings in well developed plots. The present book introduces Willadene, a bedraggled waif fostered to a distant cousin to work as a scullery maid in the cousin's inn. Her future prospects are scant, with the cousin wanting to give her in marriage to a bloated drunkard of evil character who frequents the inn - a typical medieval notion of an arranged marriage. But Willadene's sensitivity, which makes her ill working in a tavern kitchen, turns out to be an asset to a dealer in herbs and cosmetics, and even more of an asset to the Duke's household.

Events carry Willadene into a grand and dangerous adventure. The Duchy is infested with evil which must be rooted out. She becomes involved with the Duke's daughter, the chancellor, a visiting prince, and "the bat," as the story moves forward to an action filled climax. The story seems to jump forward in a few spots, and switches between actions of different characters, but overall it's a good tale.

This was my first Andre Norton book and I must say I liked it very much. Scent of Magic is a return to classic high fantasy-- with an interesting premise of people having the power to smell evil. Young scullery maid Willadene is elevated into the highest society of court for her special powers...but she is caught in court intrigues that go deeper than just evil. When the high lady Mahart is taken, Willadene sets out on a journey with the spy Nicolas to rescue her. Through all is woven scentes, both evil and good, and a story of a miraculously scented flower.

The court intrigue was done quite well, though I felt that Sherwood Smith's Court Duel did a better job. The only major quibble I had with the story was the flat characterizations. Willadene and Mahart were not very well developed at all, and I would really liked to have seen more of the elusive and enigmatic Nicolas. Still, the plot is almost enough to make up for that lack. If you like the genre of high fantasy, you will find Scent of Magic enjoyable.

The story was relatively interesting, if a bit dry. The biggest problem I had with it was the lack of continuity with the rest of the series.

This book chronologically takes place a short time after Black Trillium. That would be fine if May and Norton had discussed it, but the lines of communication apparently failed.

If May knew how Norton was to conclude her story, she must have ignored it, because the character traits displayed by Kadiyah in Golden Trillium were not displayed by her in Blood Trillium.

Overall, I prefer the Kadiyah of Golden Trillium, to her through the eyes of May in Blood Trillium. I wish that something of that had been carried on.

The World of Three Moons did not seem the same world as that in the earlier works, or the later works. The appearance of the Sidonna didn't match the reference to them in the later works. It also did not have the strength of The Trillium due to the limited role of Haramis (maybe a paragraph), and the non-appearance of Anigel.

I do not think this is the best of Norton's work. If you are interested in the ongoing storyline of the World of Three Moons, you can safely ignore this book and miss none of that storyline. If you are an ANdre Norton fan, try to find it second hand.

I have to admit I've read better books than this. It was better than Black Trillium, which I found practically nauseating, but I read through Golden Trillium only because I kept thinking the plot would pick up a little. It never did-- at least not until the very end, where a novel's worth of conflict is squeezed into about two chapters.

If you managed to plow your way through Golden Trillium and/or Black Trillium, read Marion Zimmer Bradley's Lady of the Trillium--it's infinitely better. If you haven't read Golden Trillium yet, do yourself a favor and check it out of the library, so you won't feel cheated.

I liked this book a lot, I think It can easily be one of the best of the saga, the fact that Kadiya was the only triplet in the story troubled me a little but a part from that it was great!

As other reviewers have reported, this book is not up to Andre Norton's standards. Its characters are somewhat sketchy (especially the latecomer character "Marcala,"...). Zazar seems intriguing; there are hints about her past, but little attention is paid to her in the text. The emotional focus of the book is clearly on Ashen Deathdaughter, so I was disappointed that so much of the book was spent examining other characters -- Ysa, the Queen, for example, gets chapter upon chapter of page-time, though her character seems forced and stiff.

The physical environs and cultures described in the book are somewhat better treated. It seems clear that the kingdom of Rendel is meant to resemble medieval French culture, with its intricate politics and emphasis on grace and beauty. The "Sea-rovers" are rather less convincing as Viking analogues, but nonetheless rather interesting. The Bog-culture I thought poorly handled, particularly the habit of the Bog folk to speak in ungrammatical "ugh ugh me savage, kill you good" fashion. It goes beyond the point of adding regional flavor and well into the realm of caricature.

The book's single biggest flaw was its pacing. It took an AGONIZINGLY long time for all of the disparate characters to meet one another. If you think of Ashen, Obern, and Ysa as the three main characters, I'd say about two thirds of the book passed before any one of them met any one of the others.

That said, the series might have potential. Now that each of these characters has been introduced, in the next book the authors can roll up their sleeves and get down to some actual story with all the elements that have been set up. This first book seems to me to be mainly a way of setting the stage for things to come, though it certainly could have been better done in about half the space.

I mentioned above that this book is not up to Andre Norton's standards... Notice that the book is *co-authored.* I think most of the actual book was written by Sasha Miller, and that Norton served primarily for oversight and advice.

I am somewhat doubtful of Ms. Miller's abilities based on this book; but you have to start somewhere, so I would be willing to buy and read one or two more books of hers before rendering a final judgement.

I love Andre Norton. When I discovered SF, it was Norton who turned me on. Her collaboration with Sasha Miller hasn't diminished her ability to string together a fascinating world. The land of Oak, Ash, Yew, and Rowan has the potential to be as interesting as Witch World.

In this initial book in the series, however, we are treated to Ashen who never really takes the novel into her own hands. Instead, she reacts. Reacts to Zazar, the witch-woman who raises her, to the Bog people among whom she is raised, and to the man who captures her. Prince Florian (Ashen's half-brother) is not much of a character either. All he is is greedy. Although the Sea Raiders are set up as good-guys, their cold-blooded attack on the bog people put me off.

I liked Queen Ysa. Alone among the characters in TO THE KING A DAUGHTER, she knows what she wants and sets about getting it. The fact that Ashen is in her way means little to her--and why should it? Ysa believes she is doing what is right for the kingdom and there is every evidence that she is right. At least she is making decisions and moving the book forward.

The writing and the setting are too compelling not to look forward to the next book in this series. Although I had troubles with the novel, I still found it hard to put it down. Just don't expect a WITCH WORLD.

To the King a Daughter is the first volume in the Cycle of Oak, Yew, Ash and Rowan trilogy. This new fantasy series describes the history of Rendel during the period after the strike of the great thunder-star has freed the Great Foulness. Once there were four great powers in the world -- Oak, Yew, Ash, and Rowan -- but time and war have reduced these powers to shadows of their former glory. The King of Oak is a drunken lout, the Queen of Yew is a magical schemer, and Ash and Rowan are nearly dead.

In this novel, a woman pregnant with the King's daughter, and Ash's heir, flees to the Bale Bog, there to give birth and die. The newborn is named Ashen Deathdaughter by Zazar, the Wysen-wyf who delivers her. Ashen is raised as Zazar's apprentice, doing lessons and chores and running through the boglands. Since she is an Outlander, the bog-folk would, by custom, have tossed her into the nearest bog, but Zazar protects her. As she grows older, the young men are somewhat ambivalent about her, both attracted and repelled.

The soldiers of the Yew who have followed Ashen's mother's party believe that the pregnant woman has been lost in the mire, which would surely please the Queen, for now there would be no others to dispute her son's right to the throne. Of course, the young prince is only concerned at this time with bargaining for a pony of his own and, as he grows older, he learns that visits to his ill father are worth plum pudding for desert. So like his father, Queen Ysa thinks, but there is still time to train him to loftier pursuits.

In the far north, the only city of the Sea-Rovers has been destroyed by the tsunami following the thunder-star strike. The surviving ships rendezvous with their High Chief, Snorri, in the land of the Nordens, but then sail on to establish a new city on some hospitable shore; to repay the kindness shown them, the Sea-Rovers transport a Norden emissary, Count Bjauden, to Rendel. Unfortunately, after near three years of battles, the Sea-Rovers are driven out of their new lands by a enemy from the northern ice regions and they have to flee again, this time to the Ashenhold in Rendel. Snorri's son, Obern, is sent ahead to scout and to find a safe harbor.

In Rendel, Queen Ysa spins her webs and, after she gains the four great rings of Oak, Yew, Ash and Rowan, uses their magic to forward her plots. She has virtual control of everyone in Rendel...except her own son. Indeed, the young Prince, out of spite, commissions one of the house servants to assassinate Count Bjauden and leave his body in a ruined city in the Bog.

This series is based on an archetype in many religions, the weavers of lifelines, who have been known in various times and places as the Fates, the Norns, Brigit, and other names. Certain trees are significant to most of the Western European religions, but the mythos of the Oak, Yew, Ash, and Rowan is specific to the old religions of the British Isles and France, particularly to what is now known as Wicca. Thus, the background of this story is drawn from the mythology of Pre-Christian Europe that has figured so prominently in other Norton stories. However, the story overlays this religious context on the architecture, dress, customs and mores of Western Europe of about the 14th century CE, yet with neither the influence of Rome nor the competition between England and France.

Sasha Miller has previously contributed a story to Norton's On the Wings of Magic anthology in The Turning series of Witch World related writings. She has also written Ladylord, a fantasy novel similar in plot, but not treatment, to Moore's Jirel of Joiry. Insofar as I am aware, this is the first novel that she has co-authored with Norton.

Recommended for Norton fans and anyone who enjoys war, magic and feudal politics in a fantasy setting.

I found myself bursting into laughter thoughout this book. I know some people may like the dialogue, but it really ruined the entire mood, if there was one, for me. If you want one word to describe the dialogue, it's 'inane'.

I borrowed this book from a friend who said it was pretty good (of course, she reads dictionaries for fun) and began reading. It seemed okay at first, albeit a bit boring. The further I got in this book, the more I wondered if this was some author's idea of a practical joke. The plot was crazy - there was very little of it and the little that existed was confusing and/or cliched. The characters are so wooden you could build a bridge out of 'em (sorry, random Monty Python quote).

Oh, and one of them is named Rhys. I loathe that name.

I would love to give you some examples of just how laughable this book really sounds, but I gave the book back looong ago. It's the only one I've actually returned to her within the same week I borrowed it, which tells you something. In fact, the only reason I finished it at all was that I was incredibly bored and that dialogue was hysterical.

All right, I'll stop harping on the dialogue.

The monster itself, which is not a monster after all, is thrown in there so randomly that I was left scratching my head (metaphorically) and staring at the book in surprise when I finished. Much of the plot seemed random, when I could follow it. I love fantasy, but books like these make me start to question my faith in the genre.

In closing, I hope the rest of the series is better than this...although I doubt it could be worse. If you're ever depressed and want something to cheer (or crack) you up, just pick up this book. They should rename it "How Not To Write A Fantasy Story".

This book is about an apprentice to the embroiderer Dame Araglas named Sarita and a ranger named Rhys and their adventure in Var-the-Outer.

This book is boring. It has a wonderful IDEA for the plot but Norton over-embellished and as a result, you find yourself reading about dark dank halls and the numerous sub-plots. It's as if the main plot finally figured out it wasn't being paid attention to and it ran away from it's abusing master.

Most reviews of this book were to say the least bad. I however enjoyed it. it was what I like to call brain candy. YOu don't have to think hard to read it. You just enjoy it. If you like Andre Norton's works, this is not her best effort, but it is a fun and quick read to pique further interest into scifi/fantasy reading for someone just starting to develop a taste for it. BTW, I wouldn't reccommend this for a guy. This was definitely a chick book.

I think that anyone who says that this book isn't good is a true lover of fantasy. The plot was great and well-developed, the characters strong and the scenery fantastic. It was the first book I've read by Norton and I am now a great fan of hers! I know a good book when I read it and this was definitely one of them!

I had just finished Norton's and Lackey's "Elvenborn" when I picked up "Wind in the Stone", so I had high expectations. From the start, I was unimpressed, particularly with the writing style. Probably Norton was attempting to write in a Shakespearean fashion, but it came off seeming awkward and rather detached. Throughout the book, I felt no attachment to the characters and didn't particularly care whether or not the villain triumphed in the end. The plot itself had countless holes where Norton could have expanded upon the story and the characters, but she missed these opportunities time after time. On top of that, the weak plot that was actually present was unable to hold my interest, and I found myself struggling through each paragraph, wishing it were over. By the end, all I was hoping for was a descent conclusion to make amends for the rest of the book, but I was denied even that; the end left me with no sense of satisfaction - except that I had actually struggled through to the finish.
For a seasoned author like Norton, this book came as a tremendous disappointment. The story was ultimately a cheap rip-off of "Elvenborn" with the same plot except written dispassionately and awkwardly. This was the first book I had read that was written solely by Norton, and it will be a long time before I read another.

How I treid to finsh it! I couldn't get past the first 70/80 pages or so. the only part that interested me was Irasmus. I wanted to find out more about him and his thoughts. The narrative is sometimes confusing and it is hard to empathize with the characters. It is very hard to get ino the book

I have read the rest of the reviews impatiently .Wind in the Stone is a perfectly good book.True ,it begins slow ,true Norton did put some pointless stuff in it ,but overall it was good.At first I thought it would be horendous as the previously written book ,Scent of Magic,but it was fine.As I always do when I read one of Norton's best ,I enjoyed the creatures that Norton invented .Especially the Sasqua and the gobbes.Her villain is hateable ,her characters loveable,the plot enchanting .Here is the plot :Irasmus ,the evil magician assaults the valley with his gobbes.The Dark was driven out long ago by the Wind (in this book Wind is a powerful substance)but now it has returned .Irasmus brutally attacks a family with a woman with two twins,one boy one girl .Irasmus catches the boy but not the girl .The girl ,Falice flees into the wood with her Mother .Her Mother dies but she lives and is adopted by the Sasqua,the inhabitants of the wood .When she grows into a young woman ,the Wind tells her that she must overthrow Irasmus and free her brother.