Deadly Medicine

In the second volume of the Mountain Trilogy, Myers ( The Mountain Made of Light ) continues the story of Jesse O'Keefe, a young American anthropologist who discovers the lost civilization of the Rixtirra while climbing in the Andes in 1921. The Heirs, one faction of the Rixtirra, have accepted Jesse as their long-awaited savior. But another faction, the rebellious Umbrage, believe a second outsider, Forster Beckwith, playboy son of a wealthy industrialist, is the one. The two men lead competing expeditions to climb the fabled Mountain Made of Light. Aeslu, the Rixtir guide, believes in Jesse, but finds herself trapped with Forster and tries, mostly in vain, to sabotage his efforts. The plot doesn't advance much, and the ending, typically for the second volume in a trilogy, is inconclusive. Still, the Rixtir world is intriguing, the characters are well drawn and unusual and Myers's handling of the conflict between Jesse and Forster offers a compelling change from the simple black-and-white of most adventure novels: even as he portrays Forster as the Mountain Land's nemesis, Myers gives his character depth. (Dec.)