With this book, popular epic fantasy writer Niles begins a new series, the Seven Circles trilogy. Each of the seven circles of this new world is home to a different race (the usual dwarves, trolls, goblins, centaurs, etc.), and all are ruled by the wise elven Senate at Nayve, the great city in the Circle at Center, seat of the elven College and the mystical Grove where druids and enchantresses serve the One True Goddess.

The story gets going in the first circle, when evil Delver dwarves destroy the city of Axial, ancient home of the good Seer dwarves. Fearful of rising darkness, well-meaning druidess Mirandel summons human warriors from many different times in earth's history to teach her peaceful people how to fight, but gets more than she bargained for when one of them turns out to be an insane Crusader named Sir Christopher, who is bent on razing the Circles of "infidel" Goddess-worshippers. Sir Christopher murders the Keeper of the magical Stone of Command and uses the Stone to build an enormous army of Delvers, centaurs, and others who long to overthrow the elven hierarchy.

Although Niles's characters seldom rise beyond stereotype and the climactic outcome arises thanks to a convenient (and predictable) deus ex machina, Niles's many fans are sure to forgive these flaws in favor of the detailed setting and the excitement of a brisk plot filled with derring-do. --Charlene Brusso

From Publishers Weekly
Niles follows up his popular Watershed fantasy trilogy with this first book in a new trilogy. The standard fantasy-world denizensAdwarfs, goblins, trolls, etc.Adwell peaceably, each to its own Circle niche in the Seven Circles, and are benevolently ruled by the elves of Nayve, the city in the Circle at Center, seat of the great College and the Senate, home of the mystical Grove and of the druids and enchantresses who serve the one true Goddess. This peace is shattered, however, when the keeper of the Stone of Command is murdered and the Stone stolen. Then Zystyl, an evil Delver Dwarf, leads a rebellion against the good Seer Dwarves of the sunless Underworld city of Axial, in the First Circle. In Nayve, Belynda, elven sage-ambassador to the Fourth Circle, learns that a druidess named Mirandel is one of several enchantresses who have been teleporting human warriors from Earth, hoping that the barbaric humans can teach the enchantresses' people how to defend themselves against the evil invaders. Unfortunately one of those warriors is an insane knight from Earth's Crusades, Sir ChristopherAand he now holds the Stone of Command and is using it to build an army of Delvers, centaurs and others, leading his own Crusade against the Goddess-worshipers of the Circles. Niles has again conceived a fantasy setting of great richness and scope. Although his characters rely on standard fantasy stereotypes ("noble" elves, "gruff" dwarfs, etc.), and the day is ultimately saved by a deux ex machina, his fans are sure to enjoy this spritely tale. (June) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
As chaos descends upon the perfect world of the Seven Circles, the druids who dwell at the center of the realm transport warriors from a place called Earth to fight as champions against the evil that threatens the land. An Aztec warrior, a Viking, and an Irish soldier join together in an unlikely alliance to battle a fanatic crusader and his armies bent on imposing their vision upon the world of Nayve. The author of the "Watershed" trilogy begins a new series that combines elements of standard fantasy with myths from many cultures. A good choice for most fantasy collections. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
First of a new fantasy trilogy from the author of the Watershed trilogy (War of Three Waters, 1997, etc.). Elves and druids—the latter magicians from Earth—live in the immortal realm at Circle at Center, but their idyll comes under threat from two sources. Sir Christopher, a Crusader from Earth, has obtained the powerful Stone of Summoning, killing its guardian; because of the stone's distinctive red cross, Sir Christopher's convinced that God wants him to exterminate the witches and unbelievers of the higher realm—and the stone compels loyalty in those whom it influences. In the lower realms, meanwhile, evil blind dwarves called Delvers invade the caverns of their cousins, the good Seer dwarves. Led by Zystyl and his metal teeth (think Jaws), the Delvers swarm upwards, where they encounter Sir Christopher’s crusaders and form an alliance. Belynda, an elf Sage-ambassador once raped by Sir Christopher, urges the lackadaisical elves to action, while the druid Miradel summons Aztec warrior Natac from Earth, at great personal cost, to train and lead the defense. After 25 years of war, Belynda and company figure out that to defeat Sir Christopher they must take away his Stone of Summoning. Well, duh.To Niles, the stuff of fantasy isn't “something readers can believe in” but “anything the author can dream up.” Result: storytelling beats logic to a pulp -- Copyright © 2000 Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Book Description
With his acclaimed Watershed Trilogy from Ace--and his phenomenally successful "Dragonlance" series from TSR--Douglas Niles became one of the most promising stars of epic fantasy adventure. Starlog magazine raved that Niles "writes so well that his characters come to life after only a few sentences." Now this gifted storyteller has created a rich and complex new trilogy filled with centaurs, goblins and trolls, druids, elves, and other fantastic beings who live in a world of peace--until now...

In the realm of the Seven Circles, harmony has reigned since time immemorial. That is about to change....Disaffected members of all the races are gathering into a force that may spell the doom of the Seven Circles. Strangers to brutality and warfare, the inhabitants need a champion who can teach them to defend themselves. For this, they recruit warriors from a world where only the strong survive. A primitive world where life lasts only as long as you can fight for it...

A world called Earth.

"Absolutely nobody builds a more convincing fantasy realm than Doug Niles." --R.A. Salvatore, New York Times bestselling author.

About the Author
Douglas Niles is the author of the Watershed Trilogy and co-creator of TSR's "Dragonlance" series with Margaret Weis.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In the realm of the Seven Circles, a peaceful era is about to end as members of the various races ban together to incite war. To protect the land, the Druids decide to recruit warriors from a world where war is a way of life-a world called Earth.

FROM THE CRITICS

KLIATT

Seven circles of fantasy worlds live in static harmony until a human medieval crusader destroys the order while burning those he considers witches. Even the ground quakes, reflecting traumatic change. The fantasy folks realize that other human warriors must be brought into their realms to train elves and other creatures to fight the mesmerizing crusader and his evil legions of blind Delvers. Mexican Natac is one of the "recruits" spelled in by the druid Mirabel, who sacrifices his long life for the sake of all. This complex set of characters and warring conflicts is sometimes confusing, as figures go from circle to circle, but the overall values of cooperation and loyalty remain steadfast. Some readers may question the author's apparent bias against organized religious institutions in favor of respect for a pantheistic goddess. The battles and sex scenes make this more appropriate for mature readers. (Book 1 of The Seven Circles Trilogy) KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2000, Berkley/Ace, 390p, 21cm, $13.00. Ages 16 to adult. Reviewer: Lesley Farmer; Lib. Media Teacher Svcs., Cal. State Univ., Long Beach, CA, September 2000 (Vol. 34 No. 5)

Library Journal

As chaos descends upon the perfect world of the Seven Circles, the druids who dwell at the center of the realm transport warriors from a place called Earth to fight as champions against the evil that threatens the land. An Aztec warrior, a Viking, and an Irish soldier join together in an unlikely alliance to battle a fanatic crusader and his armies bent on imposing their vision upon the world of Nayve. The author of the "Watershed" trilogy begins a new series that combines elements of standard fantasy with myths from many cultures. A good choice for most fantasy collections. Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\

Starlog

Niles￯﾿ﾽ writes so well that his characters come to life after only a few lines.

Kirkus Reviews

First of a new fantasy trilogy from the author of the Watershed trilogy (War of Three Waters, 1997, etc.). Elves and druids—the latter magicians from Earth—live in the immortal realm at Circle at Center, but their idyll comes under threat from two sources. Sir Christopher, a Crusader from Earth, has obtained the powerful Stone of Summoning, killing its guardian; because of the stone's distinctive red cross, Sir Christopher's convinced that God wants him to exterminate the witches and unbelievers of the higher realm—and the stone compels loyalty in those whom it influences. In the lower realms, meanwhile, evil blind dwarves called Delvers invade the caverns of their cousins, the good Seer dwarves. Led by Zystyl and his metal teeth (think Jaws), the Delvers swarm upwards, where they encounter Sir Christopher's crusaders and form an alliance. Belynda, an elf Sage-ambassador once raped by Sir Christopher, urges the lackadaisical elves to action, while the druid Miradel summons Aztec warrior Natac from Earth, at great personal cost, to train and lead the defense. After 25 years of war, Belynda and company figure out that to defeat Sir Christopher they must take away his Stone of Summoning. Well, duh. To Niles, the stuff of fantasy isn't "something readers can believe in" but "anything the author can dream up." Result: storytelling beats logic to a pulp.

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