Last Rainbow

A fantasy about St. Patrick before he became famous by converting the Irish to Christianity, skillfully handled despite an inconsistent fifth-century-Britain backdrop. Patrick, his missionary zeal somewhat dampened by an earlier failure, comes to Scotland and finds the Prydn, diminutive, nomadic, matriarchal Bronze-Agers regarded as magical "Faerie" by "tallfolk" newcomers. The dwindling, furtive Prydn's bane is iron: they can neither handle it nor fight against it. So Patrick invokes the power of Jesus to remove the bane; soon he baptizes, then weds, the Prydn matriarch, lissome Dorelei. Then the overjoyed Prydn, full of religious fervor and their new power over iron, are tempted by an offer of land to serve as mercenaries in a southern war. The war is won, thanks to the Prydn mounted archers, but only Patrick and one Prydn warrior survive - and they're swindled out of their promised land. Crushed, Dorelei's folk have one last hope; to discover the fabled hoard of Faerie treasure, and seek the legendary paradise of Tir-Nan-Og. There are some drawbacks: the confusion between Celtic and pre-Celtic peoples; the Prydn speech, a weird dialect complete with Scottish accent ("Be nae poison to thy arrows, either. Will nae tell an thee won't."); and the ending is just plain silly (the Prydn end up in America!). Still, for the most part this is well plotted, sometimes poignant, and often absorbing work - from the author of Beloved Exile, Firelord, and a science-fiction series (most recently Wintermind) co-authored with Marvin Kaye. (Kirkus Reviews)