This, along with Moonset and Eclipse, form Cooper's 'Star Shadow' trilogy, a prequel to her 'Time Master' trilogy, which is one of my old favorites...
Heavily influenced by Michael Moorcock (in my opinion.. but as a matter of fact, Moorcock had this to say: "Never has the battle of Order and Chaos been better recorded than in Louise Cooper's fantasies ... One of our finest writers of epic fantasy"), these stories chronicle the conflict between the powers of Order and Chaos, and the human pawns caught on either side...

I still think the Time Master trilogy is the best, but these were quite enjoyable. These three cover the decline and fall of Chaos on earth, due to disorganized and megalomaniac human leaders and the disinterested non-interference of their gods, the Chaos lords. The cruelty and insanity of the leaders of Chaos spawns a pro-Order peasant rebellion, but the individuals caught on both sides are neither wholly good nor evil, though each tends to be convinced that those on the other side are evil's purest essence...

Lots of complicated relationships and shifting allegiances... Cooper tries to show us multiple facets of each point of view, but I still suspect that her personal sympathies lie with Chaos!

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