The Sands of Time

Big, broad splashes of action and crude but colorful characters are Sheldon's trademarks, as he demonstrates again in a new novel probably destined to join Windmills of the Gods and Rage of Angels on the bestseller list. The backdrop for this romantic adventure story is the conflict between Basque nationalists and a repressive Spanish government in the post-Franco years. Pitted against each other in a fight to the death are charismatic Basque guerrilla leader Jaime Miro and corrupt, sadistic Colonel Acoca. When Acoca brutally sacks a convent in search of Miro, four nuns escape at the urging of Sister Lucia, who has been hiding in the cloister since taking vengeance on the men who put her Mafioso father behind bars. Beautiful Sister Graciela, tomboyish, orphaned Sister Megan and Sister Teresa, who is teetering toward a breakdown, flee into the forest with Lucia, where they are grudgingly befriended by Miro and his gang. Before crossing Spain to a rendezvous point, the group splits up to more safely evade an increasingly enraged Colonel Acoca. Lucia's predicament presents an amusing counterpoint to suspense, as Rubio, the simple peasant who accompanies her, kindly explains worldly activities to a woman who knows a great deal more than he does. Not a breath of subtlety touches these pages, but goodwill and lively subplots move the book along at a spirited pace. First serial to Cosmopolitan; Literary Guild main selection. (Oct.)