 Doomed Paradise
The ancient tales of European Man, carefully recorded by pious monks and
hedge wizards alike, are insistent about the Western Isles. One of the tales of Doubting
Thomas, the apostle, has it that he Christianized these islands and stayed there until the
end of his days. The Arthurian legends clearly state that Arthur's father, Uther, came
from the Western Isles.
Ancient and Medieval maps agree in showing them as being off the Western
Coast of France. Lyonnesse was a part of the Western Islands, as was the City of Ys,
Avalon, and the Land of Dahout.
Up until the time of the First Crusade, there are records of pilgrims
visiting the Holy sites of the Western Islands. The remains of mercantile records of those
days hint of trade with the islands of the west. Irish records and legends, which are
generally regarded as reliable back to preChristian times, have many references to great
floating islands being pushed by ocean currents and winds alike past the Emerald Isle, and
sometimes becoming snagged there for a time.
The Icelandic Eddas make similar references.
Modern sailors and travelers sometimes sight great, many tiered cities
near the ocean's horizon, but these people are rarely believed. It is easier for modern,
technocentric man to believe in an optical illusion, the Fata Morgana.
This book is about two modern, hardheaded engineers who find the Western
Islands.
"When I teach science fiction, I use Frankowski's books as an
example of how to do it right." —Gene Wolfe
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Leo Frankowski is widely known for the extremely popular "Cross-Time
Engineer" series, which has gone through six novels to date, with translated editions
in Italy, Spain, and Poland. He is also the author of Copernick's Rebellion, a
novel of a future based on a revolution in the biological sciences, of which The SF
Site writes, "I have never read anything as original as Copernick's
Rebellion . . . [it's] on my top 10 list." His most recent novel is A Boy
and His Tank (Baen). Frankowski was nominated for the John W. Campbell award for best
new writer. He has held more than a hundred different positions, ranging from scientist in
an electro-optical research lab to chief engineer to company president. His work in
chemical and optical instrumentation has earned him several patents. Currently a writer
and consulting engineer, he lives in Sterling Heights, Michigan.
Illustration by Gary Ruddell.
Cover design by Carol Russo Design. |
The Fata Morgana
