What do three widely separated and seemingly unrelated individuals-Marc Levaseur, a young poet in Paris; Emily Cosgrove, a Ph. D.

student in archaeology working in Pompeii; and Demyan Yegorov, a Russian scholar-have in common? They each have a portion of an ancient inscription from the Necronomicon of the mad Arab Abdul Alhazred. Can the fourth and final segment of the inscription be found? The three explorers hope to find it in an obscure region of the Arabian desert-nothing less than Irem, the City of Pillars.

But will the cosmic forces opposed to them allow them to succeed in their daring mission?Alan Dean Foster, whose prodigious work in the realms of science fiction, fantasy, and horror has made him a legend in his own time, has written a compelling and action-packed short novel that draws upon some of the most intriguing ideas in the tales of H. P.

Lovecraft and brought them into our own time-but he has retained the atmosphere of ancient evil that makes Lovecraft's work so distinctive. Alan Dean Foster (b.

1946) is the author of dozens of novels, including novelizations of Star Trek, Star Wars, and Alien, along with eight story collections and other works. He is also a composer of classical music.

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