Changer’s Daughter
(formerly published as Legends Walking)
A Novel of the Athanor
Obsidian Tiger, March 20122
Avon Eos, December 1999
Cover art by Gregory Bridges
Read “Some thoughts on the biology of the Athanor,” article by Kathleen L. Curran
This second athanor novel begins about six weeks after the conclusion of Changer, but can be read without first reading Changer (although, of course, certain plot elements of the first novel will be given away; see my note under FAQs on my approach to writing series). The following material is adapted from the book jacket.
There are myths walking in the shadows among us — creatures of legend who have shared our world since the dawn of time. Shapeshifters, satyrs, merfolk, unicorns — ruled by the strong hand of Arthur the King — they have sworn to keep their existences hidden from a human race prone to kill what it doesn’t understand. These are the athanor — immortal but not invincible — and many dream of the day they can live openly.
In the Nigerian city of Monamona, a scourge once eradicated has resurfaced — a terrible disease reintroduced into the world by a fanatic who may or may not be athanor: Shopona, the onetime God of Smallpox. There are those who oppose him, and they will need the help of the shapeshifter Changer — perhaps the Earth’s oldest being — to prevail.
But Changer has problems of his own. His coyote daughter Shahrazad is testing the limits of her abilities against new realities in the human world. Nor can Arthur give the African problem his full attention. His people are revolting against centuries of constraint — a revolt that may, in the long run, be more dangerous for the athanor than the release of smallpox ever could be. When an old rival reappears, rising powers must be controlled or the athanor’s secret will be doomed.
Author’s Note: I love writing about the athanor, especially how the process of weaving their lives into ours remakes the world as we know it. Welcome to reality.
