Norton, Andre& Susan Shwartz Empire of the Eagle Tom Doherty Assoc Llc May 1, 1995 Paperback used; excellent An exotic blend of Roman, Hindu and more distant lore informs this second c ollaboration (after Imperial Lady ) between Grand Master Norton and Shwartz . After the crushing defeat at Carrhae of the Roman proconsul Crassus in 43 B.C., the victorious Parthians lead a captive remnant of one legion, along with its eagle standard, to the distant eastern Lands of Gold. As dispirit ed captives, a contingent of Ch'in and merchants struggle through the deser t, a friendship develops between the tribune Quintus and Ch'in leader Ssu-m a Chao, who allows the Romans to win back their self-respect by rearming th em to fight bandits. After one particularly dangerous stretch, Quintus enco unters a strange old man, Ganesha, and the beautiful Draupadi who, much to Quintus's perturbation, claims that he is the reincarnation of her long-gon e hero husband. As Ganesha and Draupadi join the larger group on its journe y to ever greater dangers, Quintus learns they are being pursued by Black N aacals, immortal members of a sorcerous order. The doubting Quintus must ma ster ancient powers to save his followers and others threatened by the anci ent evil. Norton ( The Crystal Gryphon ) and Shwartz ( The Grail of Hearts ) weave a curious and convincing tale melding otherworldliness and dire rea lity. Price: 4.00 USD
