Bluefeather Fellini in the Sacred Realm

In this sequel to Bluefeather Fellini, Evans (The Rounders) melds elements of fantasy, western, adventure and Native American lore into a fun-filled parable. Set mostly in New Mexico in the late 1950s, the story follows Bluefeather Fellini-half Taos Indian, half Italian, a prospector and WWII vet-as he undertakes a mission to locate priceless cases of wine but instead stumbles upon a subterranean complex of caverns populated by human-like ``triloids,'' fish-horses and other bizarre evolutionary offshoots. This underground realm-which Bluefeather explores with Marsha Korbell, his fiery redheaded lover; Sherry Rousset, a Harvard-educated Kenyan naturalist; and Bluefeather's cryptic spirit-guide, Dancing Bear-holds such wonders as a vast limestone palace guarded by the Olders, banished human criminals who can never return above ground. Two mad and power-hungry entrepreneurs have designs on this realm, and Bluefeather suspects that Marsha, the adopted daughter of one of them, may be spying for her father. Spiked with wicked metaphors and salty humor, Evans's entertaining allegory of good, evil and human choice captures the tang and yawp of the genuine American West. (Sept.)