I picked up this book at a resellers shop with no cover on it or any idea what it was about.(It is hardback,not stolen).Norton is great and she doesn't let you down here.Smooth writing and great characters who you feel you know by the end of the book.My only complaint is that the book is fairly short and therefore not a terribly engrossing novel.Try it,you might be surprised as pleasantly as I was.

This is a fun book. One in a series that you just know she had fun writing! If you haven't read any of this series, this is an excellent place to start. I read my copy often.

This book is the second in the mini-saga of Andre Norton's Witch World, called The Turning. It is interesting and enjoyable, with the usual evil dangers and magic. The second story in the book would be hard to really understand, though, without reading the first book before it, Storms of Victory. Fantasy readers and non-fantasy readers will enjoy.

These stories are well rounded and interesting. They bring new ideas and flavor to the Witch World saga. Each book set here, whether by Ms. Norton personally, or a collaboration with another, "fleshes out" the place and the times. They don't have to appeal to everyone. That is one of the refreshing strongpoints to the series. She is not afraid to see new ideas or changes to the world she has created here. Just one more reason she is who she is.

While readers who are familiar with the universe that these stories are set in might be thrilled with this book, I found it very hard to get into it. This is one of the first books that I read by Norton and had bought it mostly because one of my all time favorite author, Cherryh, was a contributing author. Unfortunately, I found the stories dry and not very engaging. As works of fantasy, they are average...I think that if I was more familiar with witch world, I would have enjoyed it more.

Boyer, Cherryh, Pierce and Tarr capture WW well in these stories set in Ms. Norton's beloved realm. Very satisfying for us who have been there from the beginning and a must for her fans, fans of the WW and genre followers alike. Worth looking for. Worth adding to your library!

When I was 11, Andre Norton was my god. I think I read every Norton book in the Beaumont Public Library. I remember how shocked I was when I learned "Andre" was a SHE! Somehow the books were never the same...I had identified so strongly with all those youthful male heroes, to learn that they sprang from the female imagination was a little unnerving to my adolescently male mind.

The time travel books were awesome...Galactic Derelict, The Time Traders, Key Out of Time, all ranged wildly into strange alien technologies and vistas, and there was plenty of danger and suspense. I'm a little sad to learn that so much of Norton's ouvre is out of print.

If you catch this somewhere, pick it up.

Oh, and by the way, it wasn't an original 1979 edition as mentioned in another review here, the original was written in 1959.

I have read most sci fi books available, especially Andre Norton books they were always full of action and were hard to put down....Too bad this one is out of print so soon......I still have the original 1979 version and will read it again sometime.....

Andre Norton seems to be turning an old leaf with this one, I get the feeling that it could have been a far more substantial novel than it was, if it had been say a trilogy, with a more involved plot and sub-plots, it could have been Very good. As it is however most of the characters never have the time to start to be people; they're brought in for a scene, and then they vanish into the woodwork again in the rush to get the main plot finished as rapidly as possible. It's a distinct contrast to some of her (Andre Norton's) older books in which minor parts seem to drag on indefinitely. I suspect that this may be the result of an author trying to find a happy middle ground, but she seems to have written this one like a middle-of-the-line folk song, when she should be producing a symphony. If she keeps at it long enough to refine her skill, and makes enough money to be able to ignore her publishers demands for volume and deadlines, she could easily come to rival Eddings in his prime.

English is not my native language, and the first chapters were very hard for me to get through as I found I didn't understand many of the words. But as I advanced through the book reading became easier and I found myself emerged in the story. Truth is, I couldn't stop reading until I finished it :)
Reading this book really was worth my time and improved my reading skills :) I would recommend reading this book in English because translations usually bite.

The novel is a change of pace for readers more familiar with the author's recent science fiction, but Isaac Asimov also wrote mysteries. The setting is 1837. Persis Rooke finds herself shipwrecked and stranded on a Florida key, rescued by a wrecker/salvager of the time period. A contested inheritance, a hostile business rivalry between her savior and another sea captain, and a resident ghost all add to the plot. Life is full of surprises, and Persis encounters her share. Overall, it is a good, well written story. The author does use some archaic terms from the time period. The novel is suitable for students at high school level.

The Opal-Eyed Fan is one of my favorite Norton books, though it isn't overly endowed with substance, or is even really fantasy. It's romantic suspense, tinged with a bit of the supernatural. And while it might not be particularly intellectually stimulating, it serves a very necessary function as brain candy.

It's set in the Florida Keys, quite awhile back when wreckers-- and pirates-- still roamed the waters. Persis Rooke, accompanying her uncle on a mysterious quest involving an old family scandal and a forgotten will, is shipwrecked on Lost Lady Key. Lost Lady Key is the home of her rescuer, the wrecker Crewe Leverett, his sister Lydia, the remnants of an ancient island race, and (as implied in its name) a ghost. Persis is increasingly drawn into the intrigues of the island's inhabitants. What are Lydia and her handsome beau, pirate Ralph Grillon, planning? What does Ralph Grillon want from Persis? And what is the significance of the strange false fan that keeps turning up in Persis' possession?

Perhaps a little conventional, but still great fun. It has its high points; the take on wreckers, who are often represented unfavorably, is particularly interesting. Recommended for all who like swashbuckling, pirates, adventure, and a nice dash of romance. If this heady mixture sounds appealing, it's worth the effort to find a copy (although it will be necessary to ignore the dreadfully dated cover). For another great swashbuckler, also try Andre Norton and Rosemary Edghill's recent The Shadow of Albion.

Ailanna

Wheel of Stars has a variety of interesting themes-- a mysterious house and its mysterious inmates, standing stones with ancient Ogham carvings, reincarnation...

Librarian Gwennan is caught up in these ancient mysteries when she meets the current owners of the old Lyle residence-- regal Lady Lyle and the disturbing and young Tor Lyle. As Gwennan acquires a friendship with Lady Lyle and something rather less with Tor, their secrets become drawn in with her own fascination with the standing stones. An ancient struggle between evil and good-- but which is which? Gwennan, with her diluted Lyle blood and some uncertain powers can tip the precarious balance in either's favor...but either way has serious consequences.

Quite enjoyable, really. If you liked L'Engle's An Acceptable Time, Wheel of Stars will probably appeal.

I have an '84 edition of this book as well as this one. It is well written and enjoyable and quite different from other books she has done even though it is in the same genre. I enjoyed it a lot. I think you will too.

A Norton gem, though unjustifiably little known. The book races along at a fair pace, and has some great characterisation along the way, so that you really care about what's happening to them. It's an incredibly warm and human adventure story and the ending is particularly powerful. A great experience!

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.

Andre Norton's Iron Butterfly is the story of a girl meeting the father that she has never known--the ruler of a small country. When her father was forced to return to his own country, leaving behind the American wife and daughter that his father did not approve of, he left only an iron butterfly as a rememberence. Now dieing, he wishes to meet the daughter that he has never known. And so the adventure begins. . . Part of the mystery is WHAT does the iron butterfly mean. If she can discover this, then all will be revealed.