Katherine Neville's The Eight is one of my all-time favorite books. Written 20 years ago, it is still a best seller, having been translated into over 30 languages and many continual reprints in America.
The Eight is the story of a gold and silver bejeweled chess set that once belonged to Charlemagne. It holds the power that makes those who want to obtain power thirst for it, as well as it holds the key to a formula for immortality. Quite a combination in the wrong hands, don't you think? There are 2 stories - one in present day and the other during the French Revolution, dealing with a 200 year old chess game with human players that takes place all over the world. It is a book rich in history, romance and adventure - in other words, a bibliophile's jackpot.
Twenty years after The Eight, Ms. Neville has written a sequel, The Fire. It is as exciting, if not more so than the original.
The Fire picks up exactly 30 years after the events of The Eight. The main characters in The Eight, Cat Velis and Alexander Solarin, chess master's daughter, Alexandra 'Xie' Solarin is tapped and brought 'into the game' of the next phase of the human chess game.
With characters from the earlier book, Lily Rad, and the mysterious Ladislaus Nim, it also recalls characters 30 years after the events of the French Revolution - like Talleyrand, David, Lord Byron. The right mix of present day and history to encompass a fascinating story to find what exactly this mysterious human game of chess truly means, but to try to figure who is who - are the players on the side of good, or have ulterior motives?
An exciting sequel to The Eight, The Fire can be a stand alone book. It provides much of the backstory in its pages, but I must say I did reread The Eight before I read The Fire. I think the reader who had not read The Eight would do just fine reading The Fire in its own right, although once into this amazing historical novel, thrilling adventures and romance, I would think many will want to go back and read the original that is still tweaking readers' imaginations after 20 years.
It must be a wonderful feeling for Ms. Neville to know her words past and present have brought so much richness to the reader. That timelessness is something that a reader will always remember and cherish.
ellen george
ellen george's interview with Katherine Neville is also on AuthorsDen.
The Fire will be released October, 14, 2008.
The Fire by Katherine Neville, ISBN 978-0-354-50067-0, Ballentine Books, review by ellen george
