cover image Harrowgate

Harrowgate

Daniel H. Gower. Dell Publishing Company, $4.99 (385pp) ISBN 978-0-440-21456-4

Lacking inspiration, painter Julian Stormer enters a seedy bar in search of cigarettes and ends up finding his muse in the form of Ashley Herrin. After a night of wild sex, Julian learns that, since her murder 10 years ago, Ashley has roamed the earth as one of the undead. She also serves as one of the guardians who monitor Harrowgate, the aperture that leads from hell to earth. Although her career has its perks, including eternal youth and superhuman strength, Ashley begins to have nagging doubts, especially when she learns that Julian has been chosen to open the gates of hell in his latest painting. Sensing his underling's wavering devotion, guardian boss Firdausi must put Ashley in her place before she ruins his plan. Julian, in turn, must summon his courage to confront the guardian masters, extricate his lover from her infernal fate and, time permitting, save the world. Although this tale's effect is somewhat undermined by a seemingly tacked-on happy ending, Gower ( The Orpheus Process ) blends elements of phantasmagoria and slapstick to yield an engrossing, comical look at the lengths to which some go to cope with boredom, fear and obsession. (Dec.)