The Annals of the Chosen continues in The Ninth Talisman-- Lawrence Watt-Evans's an epic fantasy trilogy of duty, honor, and abuse of power

All the world is kept in a delicate balance under the supervision of the Wizard Lord. It is his duty to govern lightly and protect his domain…but if he should stray from the way of the just, then it is up to the Chosen to intercede.

The Chosen are the Leader, the Seer, the Swordsman, the Beauty, the Thief, the Scholar, the Archer, and the Speaker, magically infused mortals who for the term of their service have only one function—to remove an errant Wizard Lord.

The Chosen fulfilled this role when they removed the previous Wizard Lord and exposed treachery within their own ranks. Since their last adventure, the world has returned to apparent peace and prosperity. The new Wizard Lord rules benevolently...but with an eye towards modernization through technology, instead of magic.

Do such plans jeopardize the delicate balance of power?

Is a Wizard Lord who is able to rule without magic a threat to the Chosen?

LAWRENCE WATT-EVANS has been a full-time writer for more than thirty years, with more than forty novels and well over a hundred short stories to his credit. His story “Why I Left Harry’s All-Night Hamburgers” won the 1988 Hugo Award for short story, as well as the Asimov’s Readers Award, but he is probably best known for the Ethshar fantasy series. He lives in Takoma Park, Maryland, with his wife and the obligatory writer’s cat.