Playful, entertaining light fantasy from Piers Anthony, the popular master of the form, and co-author Jo Anne Taeusch.

Story Excerpt ...

It was still early when Herb got home, but it had been a full day just the same. All he wanted to do was kick off his shoes, have a drink, and take a nice hot shower. He went into the kitchenette and took down a bottle of distilled water, pouring a small amount into his glass. To that he added a dash of watercress and mint, stirring it with a celery stick. He then carried the concoction back into the combined bed and living room, flopped down on the bed, and sipped. Was this how it was going to be for the rest of his life?

"Oh," Spring squeals, bursting into the room from the shower stall. She hadn't heard him come in and was attired only in a small towel, which now fell to the floor in her surprise.

Herb was surprised too. Who was this vision? He knew it must be a vision. She wasn't even green like a real girl.

Story Synopsis ...

Herb Moss is a nice young man. He's a Vegan: a member of a genetically engineered species, part human and part plant, living on the planet New World.

It's a good life, really; he's engaged to be married to his childhood sweetheart, Lily, has a job with his father's firm, and can look forward to a solid if unexciting future. And as everyone keeps telling him, it's time to put down roots. If he happens to be bored every time he thinks about it—well, that's a normal part of growing up, isn't it?

But still, Herb's bored. Surely, he thinks, a little romantic correspondence on the side can do no harm. Especially if Lily doesn't find out ...

Meanwhile, far away on the planet New Land, a nice young woman named Spring is feeling anything but bored. She just wishes she were. Spring's been living with her widowed father Gabriel, a practicing sorcerer, keeping house and helping out with the business. It's been a good life.

But Gabriel has discovered hitherto-unknown magical secrets that can bring their possessor great riches, absolute power, and forbidden knowledge. To keep them safe, he's sorcerously locked them deep within his daughter's mind, where only her own true love—or, failing that, someone she likes a lot—can access them ... so to speak.

When Gabriel is killed under suspicious circumstances, Spring flees to the austere Order of Companions. There, grieving and lonely, she places a personal ad, looking for a pen-pal who can discuss botany. Little does she know that she's actually placed a personal ad in Play Plant magazine, and that her new pen-pal Herb thinks she's interested in romance.

Meanwhile, an ambitious wizard has learned of the existence of Spring's secrets. And he'll do anything to get them ... including the obvious.

Both authors have included Author's Notes.

Author Information ...

"PIERS ANTHONY is one of the most popular fantasy authors in the world, a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. He lives in Florida. JO ANNE TAEUSCH has been corresponding with Piers Anthony for many years now. This is her first novel."

They met at the World Fantasy Convention in Nashville, Tennessee in 1987 and have been corresponding ever since. Jo Anne was lucky enough to strike gold by asking Piers to critique her story right at the time when Piers was doing a lot of collaborations as sort of an experiment. So Jo Anne is published and the dream has come true.