(Note: you can see a bigger image of the cover art by clicking on it.)Who cleans up the mess left by two centuries of careless recreational time travel? In The Last Protector, the task falls to a Ranger from the future, a bodyguard from the past, and a serving wench who doesn't believe she has the power to save the world--but is willing to pretend she does, as long as the price is right. With two weeks to reconcile the present of one world and the past of another before the streams of time cross and both worlds come to an end, the three must overcome assassins, dragons, and the demons of their own pasts. Along the way, they encounter a theme-park Cast that's waited a century for its Guests to arrive, dangerous technology like microbots and pyroviruses, and the World's Most Perfect Beer Container. They learn that sometimes the world just doesn't want to be saved, and that while duty always calls, sometimes nature calls louder and duty just has to wait. And as a budding romance threatens the brotherhood of two men dedicated to saving the world, all three must ultimately discover within themselves the spirit of sacrifice that will lead them to risk everything for what each truly loves.
At once lighthearted and deadly serious, The Last Protector deftly mixes science fiction and fantasy as it explores commitment, abandonment, vengeance and romance. This reverently irreverent adventure just might change the way you think about life, love, sacrifice... and beer.
AWW... I'M BLUSHING NOW
"This is as perfect a book as I have ever read. I could not imagine a more perfect one. Character and story development are both masterful, building from intriguing introduction to deep familiarity, without forfeiting any of the mystery. The story deepens and broadens without losing any of its richness. The story flows in and out of present time, delving into multiple threads, without ever getting tangled up in any of them. All resolve together, rather like Saughblade's tartan: torn, blood-stained, ragged, and the fit mantle for any king by the end."
--David A. Schmaltz, author of The Blind Men and the Elephant
"I put off writing this review because I was suffering from vertigo. The doctors don't know what spun my head, but it may well have been from reading the swirl of adventures of Scrornuck Saughblade, the title character of The Last Protector."
--Gerald M. Weinberg, author of The Aremac Project, The Psychology of Computer Programming and other classics of software engineering
"This is the best fantasy book I have ever edited. Or is it science fiction? I like the characters, I like the world the author built, and I love the humor. But all this is the sugarcoating: as with all great writing, under all the adventure, there are serious messages that deserve thought."
--Dr. Bob Rich
"This is the best fantasy book I have ever edited. Or is it science fiction? I like the characters, I like the world the author built, and I love the humor. But all this is the sugarcoating: as with all great writing, under all the adventure, there are serious messages that deserve thought."
--Dr. Bob Rich
