THE BARBED COIL.

New York: Warner Books. Fine in Fine Dust Jacket. 1997. 1st Edition. 0446521094 . 8vo 8" - 9" tall; 612 pages; Dark red hardcover front and back with black cloth spine. Gold lettering on spine. Clean and appears unread. Dust Jacket is without obvious defect. ~~ Tinnitus sufferer Tessa McCamfrey finds a remarkable barbed ring. When she puts it on, its points pierce her finger--and the pain transports her to another world. Here, Tessa will meet new people and enjoy various adventures involving the cruel and insanely ambitious King Izgard of Garizon: He wears a magic crown, the Barbed Coil--a larger version of Tessa's ring! --that helps its wearer win wars. In this world, too, illustrations--complex illuminations like those of medieval manuscripts--exert magic effects. Amid various subplots, the old scribe Ederius paints illustrations that transform Izgard's harras troops into relentless beast-warriors. Fortunately, Tessa's own scribing talents help counteract Ederius. Both crown and ring, she learns, are ``ephemera,' ' magical objects that tumble in and out of reality. An ancient and mighty illumination binds the crown, preventing it from falling away into another world. So, somehow, Tessa must scribe an even mightier unbinding illumination to free the Coil and allow it to vanish, thus frustrating Izgard's dreams of conquest. .