Warrior's Tale

What might have been a standard nautical fantasy patterned on the Odyssey reveals itself to be a charmingly subversive lesbian feminist romp about a group of women warriors who battle wizards, demons, pirates and sexism on land and at sea. Narrator Captain Rali Emilie Antero of the Maranon Guards is in charge of a legion of women who train rabidly, fight ferociously and swear off sex with men. Typically, they've been forced to stay home in Orissa and be showpiece soldiers, but after they disembowel a raging demon in front of the entire city, they are awarded a place of honor in the upcoming battle with the rival city of Lycanth. Adventure abounds as the women sail uncharted seas, searching for the Archon, or sorceror, who is determined to destroy them and rule the world. This lighthearted novel (sequel to The Far Kingdoms; Rali is the sister of that novel's hero) turns several of the standard fantasy conventions topsy-turvy. There's the twist, for example, by which Rali, after heroically saving a local princess from drowning, enters into a sweaty romance with her-just one more winsome moment in a book brimming with whopping good fun. Author tour. (Nov.)