Book 1

Tea with the Black Dragon

by R. A. MacAvoy

Published 1 December 1983
In this "astonishing fantasy debut," a mother and a mysterious Chinese man-who is more than he appears-search for her missing daughter in San Francisco (Locus).

Offering "a deft blend of the oldest of magicks in a dragon, and the newest of sorceries in computers" (Anne McCaffrey), this is the incomparable novel that garnered Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy, and Philip K. Dick Award nominations, and earned its author the John W. Campbell Best New Writer award.

Martha Macnamara knows that her daughter, Elizabeth, is in trouble-she just doesn't know what kind. Mysterious phone calls from San Francisco at odd hours of the night are the only contact they've had for years. Now, Elizabeth has sent her mother a plane ticket and reserved a room for her at the city's most luxurious hotel. Yet, since Martha checked in, she still hasn't been contacted by her daughter, and is feeling lonely, confused, and a little bit worried.

But Martha meets someone else at the hotel: Mayland Long, a distinguished-looking and wealthy Chinese man who is drawn to Martha's good character and ability to pinpoint the truth of a matter. They become close quickly, and he promises to help her find Elizabeth. Before he can solve the mystery, though, Martha herself disappears-and Mayland realizes that he's in love with her.

Now, a man whose true nature and identity is unknown to those around him will embark on a potentially dangerous adventure in a city on the verge of exploding with its own sort of magic as technology spreads through the region that will become known as Silicon Valley. An elegant, delightful, and unusual novel that blends ancient myth with modern wizardry, Tea with the Black Dragon is "a small masterpiece, setting a fantasy story against a contemporary background" (Booklist).

Book 2

Twisting the Rope

by R. A. MacAvoy

Published 1 September 1986
The Campbell Award-winning author's follow-up to Tea with the Black Dragon: "Wow! MacAvoy's done it again" (Anne McCaffrey, New York Times-bestselling author).

Mayland Long, aka the Black Dragon, has been enjoying a peaceful relationship with Martha Macnamara-but suddenly they face threats from seemingly every side. A wild psychic force is loose in the world; Martha's three-year-old granddaughter has been kidnapped; and one of her Celtic musician friends has been found dead, hanging by a rope of twisted grass. Now the Black Dragon must use his wits to rescue the little girl and hunt for a killer . . . even if it brings him to a horrifying realization.

In this novel, the author of The Book of Kells returns to the modern-day California of Tea with the Black Dragon, blending fantasy, mystery, Chinese lore, and a timeless love story as she so masterfully did in her debut, which earned nominations for Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy, and Philip K. Dick Awards. "MacAvoy supports her tale with a superbly drawn cast of characters . . . and her usual superior command of language" (Booklist).