Black City Dragon

Knaak’s snappy third urban fantasy (after Black City Demon) featuring Nick Medea, the Saint George of legend and lore, adds intriguing dimensions to the Prohibition-era Chicago of its setting and the bonds among its characters, particularly Nick and the dragon with whom he shares consciousness. Nick and his shape-shifter companion, Fetch, have guarded the gates between the mortal and Feirie worlds for over 1,600 years, and their task has never been more trying. More vicious, otherworldly Wyld and Feirie refugees are slipping through daily, and all the signs indicate that Nick’s ancient enemy, Galerius, is fomenting a plan to reclaim his lost power. This plot threatens not only Nick and his reincarnated love, Claryce, but also Chicago, the gates, and history itself. Knaak builds intrigue as Nick and Claryce explore the pasts that they have endured, but though Claryce is central to the story, she remains a largely passive companion in Nick’s world of masculine action and intrigue. The novel’s complexity may challenge newcomers, but series fans will have much to savor in this adventure through Nick’s myth-laden world. (Nov.)