Amazon.com Review
The Stone and the Maiden has all the elements of a great fairy tale--a corrupt king, an evil wizard, a conniving stepsister, and, of course, a beautiful princess and a handsome soldier. Author Dennis Jones weaves an intricately threaded story around these classic characters in this action-packed tale.
The Ascendancy is rotting from the inside out. Archates, incompetent Dynast, is fearful and easily manipulated, willing to sacrifice his kingdom, his people, and even his own daughters to preserve himself. The barbarian Tathars are on the march, taking advantage of the Dynast's cowardice and slowly crushing the Ascendancy. Evil Erkai the Chain aids the Tathars with his forbidden Black Craft--the magic of death. In the middle of this desperate situation, the luminessa Mandine, uncertain heir to the Ascendancy throne, experiences a vision in which the God and Goddess instruct her to find the Signata, enigmatic tool of Deep Magic. If she succeeds, Erkai and the Tathars can be defeated. If not, the universe will be threatened by unspeakable evil. To make matters worse, Mandine's stepsister Theatana has designs on the throne and is willing to torture, kill, and dabble in the Black Craft to get it.
But never fear, our plucky heroine doesn't have to go it alone. She's got the able strength of hunky Key Brander at her side, not to mention the assistance of the mysterious forest-folk, the hemandri, and their familiars, the small dragon-like pandragore. This first fantasy novel is a terrific quest adventure and a romantic fantasy all rolled up into a delightful package--beginning Dennis Jones's House of the Pandragore series in high style--plus the complicated setup promises many sequels. --Therese Littleton
From Publishers Weekly
Despite its conventionality, Jones's fantasy debut follows a story line sufficiently compelling to carry most readers to its end. The brave and beautiful Mandine Descaris, heiress to the royal throne of the Ascendancy, faces the Tathars, a horde of barbaric horsemen who are ravaging her country. Leading the Tathars is the sorcerer Erkai the Chain, master of a dreaded form of magic: the Black Craft. In company with the valorous and virtuous captain Key Mec Brander (her eventual consort), Mandine seeks a magical talisman, the Signata, that can defeat Erkai. But the Signata has appeared only three times in the past 4000 years, so finding it promises to be a long, arduous quest. Mandine's half-sister, Theatana, meanwhile allies herself with the ambitious Lord Bardas and does her best to deceive Mandine and take the throne of the Ascendancy for herself. Jones's prose is graceful and his pacing brisk. His principal characters lack original, nuanced personalities, however, and the medieval setting never blossoms into a fully imagined, unique world. Nonetheless, the author's persuasive plot should keep most fantasy readers engaged. (Aug.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
