If I Pay Thee Not in Gold
Mercedes Lackey & Piers Anthony
In the age of the Mazonians women rule through magic - and men suffer what they must. Magical creations only last for a single day (magical food is great for dieting), but that is quite long enough for casting a giant wet blanket (if you're feeling kind) over a would-be rampaging male - or a block of granite (if you're not). No uppity males in Mazonia!
But then as now some people rise above what they've been taught. One such is Xylina; somehow she has always understood that being of the wrong gender, or even lacking magical power, is no reason for stripping a human being of dignity. How ironic, then, that the Queen has ordained that in order to avoid execution Xylina must use her magic to publicly conquer the most glorious male Mazonia has ever seen - and how doubly so that together he and Xylina will transform their world.
In the first book of a brilliant new series that rivals Xanth, fantasy superstars Anthony and Lackey join forces to create a marvelous fantasy quest that examines the war between the sexes and the ethics of desire.
First published July 1993