Kaspar's Box (Tales of the Three Kings) FROM THE PUBLISHER
"For centuries, interstellar prospectors had searched for the fabled Worlds of the Three Kings, the lost El Dorado of the galaxy. But if any found it, they were never heard from again. The mad cyborg Prophet, Ishmael Hand, discovered the mysterious system, with artifacts indicating a superhuman technology, and he had refused to reveal its location before vanishing forever into history." "Two more recent expeditions have found the Three Kings. A starfaring evangelist - Doctor Karl Woodward, preacher and leader of the starship The Mountain - followed a clue and found it, but never returned. Then a spacegoing salvage team followed Woodward's trail, and also vanished." Now a chance encounter between what's left of the once-mighty human military with an inexplicable alien force has brought an armed expedition to the third planet of the Three Kings, Kaspar. They will join forces with the survivors of the first two expeditions, who have been marooned both by alien power and by human treachery, as they at last encounter the alien minds behind the mysterious triple planetary system - and they will face a decision that may determine the fate of the entire human race!
FROM THE CRITICS
KLIATT - Ginger Armstrong
In the final installment of the trilogy, following Balshazzar's Serpent and Melchior's Fire, the reader returns to the tale of three planets whose star system is legendary for the ships that have traveled there and never returned. The story begins with the stranded group on Melchior trying to survive the dreadful heat and damaging storms. During one of these storms, Randi Queson stumbles across a cave filled with Magi stones, jewel-like objects with powerful, mind-altering abilities. She is told by an alien force that she can be taught how to control the stones, although one of her crewmates has already been mentally damaged by them. Mastering the power of the stones and communicating with these alien beings may be her group's only hope of getting off the planet. In other reaches of the galaxy, Captain Murphy is captured by a military crew while transporting colonists to Barnum's World. These colonists possess great power including the ability to alter electronic equipment and to make themselves invisible to technology as well as other beings. Each of the colonists wears a jewel of which they are very protective. Are these also Magi stones? What is the truth behind these mythical objects? When Captain Murphy and the military outfit that captured him make contact with those stranded on Melchior, the plot moves at lightning speed to its conclusion where the truth behind the mysteries of the Three Kings is revealed. The book seems to end abruptly, yet Chalker provides the reader with enjoyable characters and a fun read. This novel does not stand alone and should be read in its intended order in the series. Recommended for readers of the series and Jack Chalker fans. (The ThreeKings Trilogy, #3). KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2003, Baen, 306p., Ages 15 to adult.
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