cover image Dragon's Eye

Dragon's Eye

James A. Hetley, . . Ace, $14 (355pp) ISBN 978-0-441-01328-9

This enchanting contemporary fantasy from Hetley (The Summer Country ) explores themes of loyalty, love and family while providing escapist thrills and chills. The charmingly roguish Morgans, whose patriarchal magic has made them highly successful thieves, have lived for centuries in the down-at-the-heels coastal town of Stonefort, Maine. When Daniel, current head of the Morgan clan, falls into the clutches of a Peruvian drug kingpin and Inca brujo (or witch) who wishes to usurp the source of the Morgans' power known as the Dragon, Daniel turns for help to Alice Haskell, a member of the rival witch clan that's inhabited Stonefort "since Noah stepped off the Ark." The Morgans and the Haskells must join forces to protect Daniel's daughters in particular and Stonefort in general from the brujo 's malevolent magic. Solid writing, an evocative sense of place and delightful characters will leave readers breathlessly anticipating the promised sequel. Agent, Lucienne Diver. (Nov.)