man who wakes up one day in a strange body in a
world he has never seen before.
Perilous Dreams(1976) actually consists of four
stories with the same character, a woman who can
travel to other realities through her dreams.
Wraiths of Time(1976) is one of her best novels,
reminiscent of her earlier historical fiction. A
magic amulet conveys the protagonist back
through time to ancient Egypt, where she becomes
a pivotal player in a battle between the forces of
good and evil. The Opal-Eyed Fan(1977), Velvet
Shadows(1977), and Iron Butterflies(1980) are all
romantic adventure stories with marginal fantastic
elements, a curse in the first case and a magical
necklace in each of the others. It appeared that
Norton’s career might be turning in a new direc-
tion, but these were the last of her romantic
thrillers. A warrior with a magic sword has adven-
tures in an underground world in Moon Called
(1982), and evil sorcery threatens to overwhelm an
imaginary world in Wheel of Stars(1983).
Quag Keep(1978) is much more mainstream
fantasy. A group of people find themselves literally
living in the imagined world of a role-playing
game. Starting in the late 1980s many of Norton’s
novels were collaborations, and the extent of her
contributions is unknown. She has continued to
produce occasional novels completely her own,
however, such as The Mark of the Cat(1992), the
story of cat people, and The Hands of Llyr(1994),
whose protagonist has the power to heal with a
touch. Mirror of Destiny(1995) is one of the best of
her later novels, a story in which the friction be-
tween industrialization and conservation is mir-
rored in a conflict between humans and fairies.
Scent of Magic(1998) is another of her best efforts
and employs an unusual concept. It is set in a
world whose magic is closely linked to the sense of
smell.
In recent years Norton has collaborated with
other writers for more than two dozen novels, most
of them fantasy. The most notable of these are the
Halfblood trilogy, consisting of Elvenbane(1991),
Elvenblood(1995), and Elvenborn(2002), all writ-
ten with Mercedes LACKEY, and Imperial Lady
(1989) and Empire of the Eagle(1993), both written
with Susan SHWARTZ. Although not a prolific short
story writer, Norton has written a number of good
stories, most of which are fantasy. These have been
collected in High Sorcery (1970), Dragon Magic
(1972), The Book of Andre Norton(1975), and
Moon Mirror(1988). She will probably always be
best known for the Witch World series, but much
of her best fantasy has been set outside that world.260 Norton, Andre