Under a Velvet Cloak (Incarnations of Immortality, Book 8) [Paperback]

Piers Anthony (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 5, 2007

The eighth book in Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality series. It is the year 500 AD. Kerena, a beautiful young girl living near King Arthur's Camelot, is apprenticed to Morely the Seer. Morely teaches her fantastic magic, but when he mysteriously disappears, Kerena finds herself out on the street and must resort to prostitution to survive. Kerena prospers as a skilled courtesan until she is taken into service by Morgan le Fey, the sorceress sister of King Arthur. Kerena's knowledge of magic grows as she is required to carry out nefarious deeds for the evil Lady Fey. One of her missions is to seduce Sir Gawain, Knight of the Round Table, to prevent him from locating the Holy Grail. But Gawain and Kerena fall in love and she conceives his child, a child she discovers is cursed to die an early death. Using her Seer abilities, Kerena tries to locate the fabled Incarnations of Immortality, seeking their aid in removing the taint from her baby. Rebuffed by all seven major Incarnations, Kerena vows revenge. But revenge against such mighty immortals would require an even greater power...

Product Details

• Paperback: 228 pages
• Publisher: Mundania Press LLC (December 5, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594262942
• ISBN-13: 978-1594262944
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #99,205 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

84 of 85 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Short, and thankfully so, May 12, 2008

By 

Life-long Gamer (Arlington, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Under a Velvet Cloak (Incarnations of Immortality, Book 8) (Paperback)

When I saw an 8th book in the Incarnations of Immortality had been released, I was ecstatic. Piers is one of my top fave authors, and Incarnations is one of my favorite series of his.

That said, the 8th volume seems to have limped into existence. Primarily obsessed with sex (no surprise from Piers, yet still more so than ever before), it essentially adds a tiny bit of detail and back story to the series while recapping the events, or at least the origins of the events, of the previous 7 books.

It also explains the events of the previous 7 in a way that mutes the accomplishments of every prior protagonist as simply a manipulation of the latest.

Three stars overall if you're a superfan such as myself. Two at best if not. I'm not sad to have read it, but I'll be passing it on to another fan, not keeping it in my collection.

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not one of Anthony's best works, April 8, 2008

By 

drewg (PAC NW, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Under a Velvet Cloak (Incarnations of Immortality, Book 8) (Paperback)

Under a Velvet Cloak tells the story of the girl who will eventually become Nox, The Incarnation of Night. It starts out in the Middle Ages, and goes all the way up to modern times. However it almost very quickly develops into a soft porn novel. Like the sixth book of the series, For Love of Evil, this book tells the events we are familiar with from Nox's point of view. We find out the origin of the taint on Gawain's family. All in all the book wasn't that bad but it could have been better.

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Unreadable, September 6, 2009

By 

S. Hansen - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Under a Velvet Cloak (Incarnations of Immortality, Book 8) (Paperback)

The Incarnations of Immortality series was a favorite of mine years ago; not because its the most amazing writing, or sensibly put together, but I just really enjoyed the world and how the stories unfolded through them. When I happened across the mention of this book and the possibility to delve into the Incarnation of Night herself? I was excited. I mean, I didn't expect a lot from it, as the series tended to slightly decay in quality as progressive stories were released (with the controversial exception of For Love of Evil, which people either adore or hate). But, still.

I tried twice to read past the first chapter, and failed. That's saying something! But when a 13 year old girl uses a magical device on her genitals so she can accommodate any sized man-- I get this was taking place in the middle ages and brides were quite young, but come on. I'm not a prude-- I even (sorta) late-era Heinlein books, even when they go off the deep end. But if you have to have pedophilia, can it just be somewhat glossed over and not dwelled on entirely, please?