Good things usually come in threes but, alas, not here. In the concluding volume of Bonanno's critically acclaimed Preternatural series, self-pity has largely displaced the wit that distinguished the first two books (Preternatural; Preternatural Too: Gyre). In the novel's opening pages, Karen Rohmer Guerreri, the time-traveling "midlist writer," happily experiences life in the form of a mud puppy, thanks to her alien lover, Govannon (time traveler and Third Thing—TQ). Then, with apologies to the "Gentle Reader," the "Narrator" interrupts the story and launches into a diatribe on the unfairness of the publishing industry to authors, segueing awkwardly into remarks on the slippery plot lines unveiled in the first two books (i.e., the S.oteri, who don't do the time-travel thing, and the TQ, who can). While clever and light in the previous books, these asides now sound whiny and intrude on a plot that's murky enough as it is, involving time-line hiccups and the dubious wisdom of falling in love with time-traveling aliens. Govannon must solve the conundrum of one of his human avatars appearing in two places at once. If he gets stuck in human form, Karen could lose him forever. Mix in the well-written subplot novel, The Amber Room, which Karen wrote and can't sell, and you have one mixed kettle of fish, or mud puppies. (Oct. 2)
