The Game

The author of After Innocence creates a smoldering, if uneven, novel with all the pomp, pageantry and quite a few of the personages of the Elizabethan era. Heading home to Ireland from the Norman convent where she has spent six years, Katherine FitzGerald is abducted on the high seas by notorious pirate Liam O'Neill, bastard son of a barbaric clan chieftain. From her kidnapper Katherine learns that her father is languishing in London under house arrest, deposed by his cousin FitzMaurice. If the pirate's report is true, Katherine's fortune and any hopes for a fitting marriage are lost, leaving her the pirate's prize. Given the stakes, she demands proof of the story in exchange for her pliancy. The pair's covert journey to London is interrupted when they are captured and brought before a furious Queen Elizabeth. Lord Leicester and William Cecil urge the queen to keep Katherine under close watch as a Lady in Waiting--an uncomfortable situation as the vain and petulant queen brooks no rivals for her favorites' affections, especially Liam's. If Joyce abuses the game motif (in part no doubt to push a Game contest aimed at retailers and distributors), this is nonetheless a lusty narrative that will appeal to her fans. (Mar.)