BHAGAVATI

Final installment of Dalkey’s historical fantasy trilogy (Goa, 1996; Bijapur, 1997). The young English apothecary Thomas Chinnery continues his unpremeditated journey into 16th- century India seeking the source of the dried blood that can raise the dead, and answers to the questions his own odd upbringing (as a boy, he was dedicated to the goddess) have aroused. This time, Thomas and his companions approach a mythical city hidden inside a mountain where, ultimately, Thomas will encounter immortal beings from Greek myth: the deadly sisters of the slain Medusa. Atmospheric historical backdrop, above-average characters, rather trite plot developments: a less than fully rousing conclusion.