Black Body - Hardcover

Turk, H.C.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0517068893 ISBN 13: 9780517068892

Publisher: Random House Value Publishing, 1991

Synopsis

A novel of early nineteenth-century magic follows Aba--sorceress of white witchcraft--who is taken to England to protect her from the potency and consequences of her own powers, only to be cast into far greater challenges and danger

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

Narrated by Alba, a "white" witch born on the Isle of Man, this hefty novel conceals within its ornate 18th-century writing style many a serendipitous phrase and lip-licking lewdery. Unlike her mother and her cronies (who seem to belong to a different species of witch), Alba looks like any mortal "sinner" (non-witch), albeit an extraordinarily beautiful one. She also exudes an odor of sensuality that draws men to her--and to their doom, for those who have carnal knowledge of Alba lose their sexual organs and die from loss of blood. After her mother is executed, Alba is taken to London by her self-appointed guardian, Lady Amanda Rathel, who intends to wreak vengeance against a man who jilted her by marrying Alba to his son. But Eric and Alba fall in love and unite against Lady Amanda. With vivid descriptions--the witches are like the hags in Polanski's film version of Macbeth --Turk has created a frightening and disagreeable world, perhaps too much so. By midway through these nearly 600 pages, readers may easily tire of the unremitting unpleasantness.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review:

The Orlando SENTINEL: "A wonderfully intricate and fascinating tale of sorcery .. . beautiful, probing, and deliciously descriptive."

THE ATLANTA JOURNAL & CONSTITUTION: "A literate book with humor and charm.  The reader fall's under the spell of the narrative.  Mr. Turk's language and tone make BLACK BODY a highly original tale."

Edward Stewart (ARIANA):"BLACK BODY is hypnotic, eerie, erotic. An exploration into the very bedrock of sense and sexual instinct, of human good and evil, it compels the reader's admiration.... H.C.Turk possesses the touch of a poet and the skill of a shaman. ...Not only an utterly satisfying achievement, but a blood-thumping good story."

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0517068893
• ISBN 13: 9780517068892
• Binding: Hardcover