Gotlieb pulls in the threads of her many story lines to weave a tale unlike any before it. The characters who inhabit this unfamiliar universe are as fleshed-out as they are alien. Humanoids, under her control, bear as little resemblance to you and me and the couple next door as we do to the monsters that populate our dreams. Which is the preferred incarnation is left open to debate. The factors of empathy, duty, and love are the flip side in this richly textured construct.
Nothing comes easy, including interpretations.
Unlike the characters in the novel, no reader will struggle to be freed. It is a masterpiece that will endure. Although we are so little into the new year, it is difficult to imagine a novel appearing in the coming months that will force this one off the short list of every major award in the genre. She co-authored the 45th anniversary issue cover of MAD Magazine. Previews of her latest, as yet unpublished, novel are available at Hades Online .