The Quest for Saint Camber (Histories of King Kelson, Vol. 3)
Kurtz is queen of the prolifering fantasy subgenre that adds a magical element to dynastic historical romances. In her medieval Welsh setting, the persecution of the witch-like Deryni race is only gradually relenting as the group's members attain high positions in court and in the rigid, established Church. As part of this rehabilitation, young King Kelson, himself Deryni, hopes to restore the place of the Deryni Saint Camber. Reflecting and commenting on these central themes of ignorance and superstition moving toward knowledge and faith are suspenseful subplots of secret magical tutelage, a king's courtship, ecclesiastical elections, a murder case, etc. In Kurtz's version of a triple-decker Victorian novel, teeming with distinctive characters, fascinated by theology and genealogy, her weakness for cliches and homilies is surmounted by a rare craftsmanship with narrative exposition that is also dramatic and moving. This is the final volume of Kurtz's third Deryni trilogy, The Histories of King Kelson.Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.