The plot itself is decent enough, though it takes far too long to really get started, and the first few chapters are pretty boring. Piers Anthony is far too obsessed with sex, and his apparent view of women merely as sexual objects (the main character objects to this view, yet almost all of his thoughts dealing with women are sexual) does nothing to endear him or this book to me. Unfortunately, the rest of the series did not retain this high standard. Although his understanding of the tarot itself seems fairly superficial, to judge by the appendices, he nevertheless manages to create an interesting story here that will not annoy those with greater knowledge. Anthony explores a number of themes, including spirituality and its relationship to carnality, drug addiction, faith, the occult, and the impact of matter-transmission technology on society, with intelligence and care. Paul, a young monk from Earth, is sent to examine this planet for his Order, and to attempt to determine if the God of Tarot is real.Īnthony structures the plot around the first nine trumps of the Tarot deck, with an odd interlude for a "Ghost" card which he introduces himself, but for the most part this book appears to follow the traditional deck in a structured and interesting manner (the next book would not).
It posits a world called Tarot, which causes hallucinations in its visitors, based on their visual-emotional states, which is becoming the center of a religious movement. This book stands sort of at the precipice between those two extremes. When I was young, I devoured Anthony's fantasy fiction voraciously, and as I got a bit older, I started exploring his forays into "hard" sf, occasionally being surprised at the depth he was capable of.
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