to exhibit uncharacteristic behavior inappropriate
for their age and inconsistent with their personali-
ties. The ensuing struggle is complex and subtle,
with neither side emerging completely victorious.
The governess manages to save the girl, but in the
process the boy dies, presumably to join the valet
in the afterlife.
Given James’s more famous fiction, it was in-
evitable that this story would also be subject to
minute scrutiny, interpreted as an allegory of sex-
ual awakening, and the ambiguous ending obvi-
ously fails to clarify matters. Although the most
common interpretation is that the governess pro-
vides an accurate and truthful summary of what
happened and that the ghosts are genuine, there
are other interpretations that have been champi-
oned by some critics, including speculation that
the governess may have imagined the entire thing,
since no one else but the children seems aware of
the ghosts, and they were clearly under her influ-
ence. A third interpretation assumes that the
ghosts are real but that they are invoked by the
governess rather than the children, which explains
her ability to see them when others cannot.
James wrote a few other short supernatural
tales, including most notably “The Romance of
Certain Old Clothes” (1868), “Owen Wingrave”
(1892), and “The Third Person” (1900), but none
of his other works rivals The Turn of the Screw.
Turtledove, Harry (1949– )
Although Harry Turtledove did not become a pro-
lific writer until the middle of the 1980s, he debuted
with two sword and sorcery novels in 1979, We r e -
bloodand its sequel, Werenight,both under the pen
name Eric Iverson. They are both routine quest ad-
ventures, well written but certainly not suggestive of
the talent he would display only a few years later.
His real fantasy career started with The Misplaced
Legion(1987) and An Emperor for the Legion(1987),
the first two installments in the Videssos series. An
entire Roman legion inadvertently passes into an al-
ternate reality where magic works and after various
trials and tribulations is instrumental in ensuring
that the true ruler of the land of Videssos is installed
on the throne. Two more volumes followed quickly,
The Legion of Videssos(1987), in which the Romans
are framed and charged with treason, and Swords of
the Legion(1987). The series proved to be very pop-
ular right from the outset, a lively set of adventures
given depth by Turtledove’s historical accuracy and
strong narrative skills.
Turtledove continued to add to the series until
Videssos Besieged(1998), but many of the later vol-
umes are repetitious accounts of stolen thrones
and magical wars. Turtledove’s novels as Eric Iver-
son were reprinted in one volume under his own
name, after which he added superior sequels.
Prince of the North(1994) has an old hero come
out of retirement and battle new enemies, human
and supernatural, and King of the North(1996) pits
the ruler of a typical primitive sword and sorcery
kingdom against malevolent gods. Fox and Empire
(1998) brings back an old enemy and nearly causes
the loss of a throne.
Some of Turtledove’s best fantasy novels do
not fall within a series. The Case of the Toxic Spell
Dump(1993) is unlike any of Turtledove’s other
fantasy novels, set in an alternate Los Angeles
where magic and not technology is the key to
urban life. The protagonist is an agent of the “En-
vironmental Perfection Agency” whose job is to
prevent pollution by the waste product of old
spells. The blend of humor and a hint of a tough
detective story mesh well, and the result is one of
Turtledove’s very best books. Thessalonica(1997) is
also very good, set during the collapse of the
Roman Empire, when legendary creatures as well
as humans seek to find safer ground on which to
survive the growing chaos. Between the Rivers
(1998) has a clever premise. Some time in prehis-
tory the human race was divided into two civiliza-
tions, each dominated by a specific god. One of the
gods became lax and allowed his subjects to think
for themselves and seek new knowledge, and when
they decided that they no longer needed the help
of a god, their decision upsets the order of things.
Into the Darkness(1999) inaugurated a new se-
ries, one that was quite original in concept, al-
though the later volumes have added little to the
original premise. In a fantasy world divided into
many nations, large and small, where magic func-
tions in the place of technology, a war breaks out
between two superpowers. Flying dragons serve as
aircraft, and other magical analogies are drawn.356 Turtledove, Harry