Published by Snowbooks,London, ISBN 0 - 9545759.4.6 £7.99

Intriguing – in the fullest sense of the world. There are complex interactions between the people in this ‘psychological mystery’ and the story is easily strong enough to sustain interest.

It concerns; a child-woman, Marcy, who endures, and just survives, a sickening assault; an albino chess prodigy called Julian and some nuns who run an unorthodox mental institution in which Marcy and Julian temporarily abide. Marcy’s memory has been obliterated by trauma; the suicidal Julian struggles against epilepsy and dreads, above all, that he is losing his extraordinary intuitive ability to beat anyone at his board game.

The book will be of especial interest to chess-players because it is structured more or less according to a historic match which is tracked throughout in traditional notation. The contestants in the equivalent psychological contest are Julian and the wily leader of the nuns, Sister Zoe. The prize for the winner is the restoration of Marcy’s memory. ‘Ms. Zoe’ as Julian calls her, relies on hypnosis and humanistic methods. Julian, taking risks by refusing his medication, uses unorthodox strategies.

The very well-written story teeters on the edge of psychological credibility but, to an open-minded reader, it never falls off. Is ESP credible? Can there be transference of thought? Could the ‘miniature man’, the interior guardian of Marcy’s memory, truly be so coherent and powerful? The book explores issues such as these and also plumbs some metaphysical depths about time and identity.

To add spice there is the love-hate switchback ride which Marcy and Julian are on; there is also another love story in which Sister Dana, Marcy’s appointed minder, struggles, sometimes unsuccessfully, against carnal desire and her jealousy of Julian.

For those who are not familiar with chess. the sporadic appearance of the chequerboard diagrams may be a minor irritation but it is by no means necessary to follow all or indeed any of the black and white moves which can simply be ignored.

Whether or not you know chess, if you are interested in the workings of the human mind, this book is for you.

Richard Brown