Freeze Frames

Reading more like a loosely connected set of short stories than a novel, Kerr's latest opens in the heart of the Haight-Ashbury drug scene of the late 1960s and follows the women of one family for five generations. Each woman is presented during a moment of crisis in which she encounters the forces of evil in the form of Nick Harrison--the Devil himself--and those of good in the more subtle character of Rabbi Akiba. The narrative also includes a coup by the religious right and aliens from outer space who convert to Catholicism. Despite the disjointed plotting and some stylistic unevenness, parts of this tale are delightful, especially the penultimate--and longest--chapter, which concerns Tiffany Margaret Owens, a warm and thoughtful character who deals with her own recovery from a war injury that killed her twice and with the choice of which alternate future to live in. This launches a new series from Kerr (the Deverry series, including Days of Air and Darkness). (June)