The Particolored Unicorn

by Jon DeCles

A Beloved Classic Returns to PrintHere, for a new generation of readers, is the exciting (and witty) tale of Piswyck, a young nobleman not quite ready for the world of magic and his Particolored Unicorn (it has bad it farts, and worse, it speaks in iambic pentameter), and their quest to rescue the beautiful Miranda, who has been carried off to Far Bermuda by her wicked Uncle Smagdarone (the Great?) and is held captive there in the magically-moved castle of Mad King Ludwig (Neuschwanstein), which said wicked wizard has surrounded with an impenetrable wall of man-eating gelatin.There are trolls, hang glider battles, great green sharks, gymnastics in swordplay, Black Elves, a giant chartreuse septapus named Ralph, and a war in which the most important weapon is perhaps the umbrella.Humor, lots of action, and a truly amazing cast of characters."The Particolored Unicorn most certainly does run through a full spectrum of adventure." --Esther Friesner, author of Harlot's Ruse."Jon DeCles...wrote this delightful humorous romp of a post-apocalyptic fantasy that I shelve right next to The Last Unicorn. His style is light and irreverent while allowing his characters to be serious or angry. I wish he'd write a sequel." --The Library of Gothos"I ran across this book on my mother's shelves, and devoured it in a single sitting. It both is, and is not, a quintessential 'find the princess, reclaim your lost kingdom' sort of story. Some of its undeniable humor comes from how little it takes itself seriously (which doesn't mean it's internally inconsistent or stupidly self-referential - think Scream or Spaceballs, not Scary Movie). Off-the-wallrealities of its fictional world are presented completely deadpan (unicorns produced by magical genetic engineering; an Evil Wizard -- the protagonist's fiancee's uncle -- who transported Neuschwanstein to Bermuda and lives in it, surrounded by a protective moat of carnivorous pink jelly) in a way I find most appealing; almost a British sort of sense of humor is at work here.If you like Pratchett, Asprin, or Holt, give this book a try." --eloisebd, on Amazon

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Unicorns, Science Fiction Fantasy

188 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1987

Reviews

[Emily Mishler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw this book title at the bottom of a stack of used books and when I pulled it out and got a look at the cover I was sold. Then I actually read the book. I have already recommended it to at least 5 other people and found a second copy online so I can lend one out. It is one of those books that will require multiple readings to pick up on all the layers. It is absurd and clever and just a good read overall. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a story packed with fun. As you go along the world building keeps getting more cohesive as more and more details are revealed. I will definitely find the second book in the series (Storm Wars!) and I really hope the author is still writing the series. He's definitely found a home on my bookshelf with this one.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A random book that I picked up in a used book store... I've bought it again online THREE times because I've read it so many times the spine has given out. Witty and sarcastic, the humor is just my style. The plot is fantasy but with many wacky twists. It's not a long book, so it's often one I grab when I'm going out of town for the weekend and want something to keep me busy in the car. Great book.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absurd, witty, hilarious, and absolutely not what I was expecting. The book surprises with each chapter. Did I mention it is ridiculous? Thanks for the recommendation, Mish!

[Jeff Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book. Thanks Emily! The best part was in my used copy, I found Leslie Lippincott's 8th grade schedule from 1988 that someone had used as a bookmark. Stillwell Junior High in West Des Moines Iowa...

[Lois · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my all time favorite books. I found it when I was around 13 tucked in a pile of used books. I picked up as I loved fantasy and unicorns. It was like finding buried treasure as I still love it years later. I still have the original one I had found. I drag it wherever I havd moved over the years. I inevitably seem to pull it off the shelf once a year. I find it refreshing for the fantasy genre as it pokes fun at the typical fantasy epic with great humour! The sassy intelligent particolored unicorn is definitely my favorite character accompanying the handsome and whimsical Piswyck on this delightful adventure.

I recommend that everyone read this novel at least once!

[Shelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

When I started this I really liked the action, but while they had a goal for the climax they had a lot of side action. This in itself was not bad, however, I do not feel there was not enough narrative to understand the land, roles, or characters that Piswyck and his unicorn came in contact with. I did get 100 pages in which I’m glad I was trying to give it a chance. I just did not see myself wanting to finish it anymore.

[Kryssy Claremont · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first this was a little hard for me to get into, I felt that had to do with the age of the book. Writing style and choice of words were a little different than what I'm used to.
There was a lot of up and downs, parts I had to read through and parts I couldn't set the book down. Some parts where left to the imagination.
The ending made me realize this was part of a series, can't wait to read the next!

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review in Progress:

So I've been on a bit of a mission lately: Find obscure fantasy titles written in the 70s - 90s and give them a read. I *may* have read this as a teenager. I certainly remember the wonderful Darrel K. Sweet cover art in any case.

Wasn't expecting much when I picked this up. The blurb on the back makes it sound humorous and whimsical, and while it certainly possesses both of those qualities, there's a significant amount of darkness and violence right from the get go.

Mild spoilers ahead:

The main protagonist, a prince/heir with the unfortunate (perhaps intentionally so) name "Piswyck" is not initially given much of a back story. He's a spoiled princeling and we aren't given much more than that... however his character is quickly revealed to be kind of heart with a strong sense of justice. Furthermore, and completely surprising to me, is the fact that he's a capable fighter (and a dirty one at that).

The titular unicorn is a bit vainglorious, but then that's kind of to be expected I guess, and serves as a companion to Piswyck, who (very quickly) finds his posh existence utterly destroyed. The book starts off strong, and is the first of a projected 12 book series according to the author - who is thankfully still with us.

This book never hit any sort of mainstream popularity though, and I have only been able to find a single sequel and a blurb by the author who says that book 3 is well underway. While it is unlikely that the proposed 12 volumes will ever see the light of day, I am glad that the adventures don't end with the first volume.

Recommended to anyone who enjoys a good high fantasy adventure with likeable characters in a whimsical world with sharp edges. Looking forward to seeing how this all turns out.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up on a whim and at first loved the adventure, but liked it decreasingly the more I read. I finished it but will now be donating it. It was okay.

[Mary Ann Seidman · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a book that has unicorn in its title, there isn't enough of the unicorn in it. The summary talks about the quirks of Lifesaver, but in the actual book it hardly mentions anything about them. It was more about the tumbler and his adventures which were on the boring side.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly I think this book should have been two. Or even three. There was so much crammed into it, (and it really felt crammed,) it made what should have been a carefree adventure seem rushed. So, for this tiny novel, there was just too much going on. The Appearing Egg, the alphabet names for Piswyk's family, the Countess' plans, the sea elves, Kimowatt, Bethzda...all these are examples of events or items that were introduced, not fully explored, and then ignored. I felt like there were too many unanswered questions.

I did not appreciate receiving both Miranda's full description, and then pages later an even fuller description of her evil uncle. Especially with Miranda, the reader could have been fed her physical details during Piswyk's fond recollections of her throughout the story.

Despite the somewhat awkward and rushed literary style, there were a few moments of genuine wit and humour, and the plot twists were almost interesting.

And considering the violence and casual attitude towards sexual relations, someone should give me a medal for scooping this out of the children's section of the rummage book sale.

[Gmc · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Particolored Unicorn (Paperback) by Jon DeCles
All the young Marquis Piswyck needs is beautiful Miranda, who has been carried off to Far Bermuda by her wicked Uncle Smagdarone (the Great?).
To rescue her he will have to get passed an impenetrable wall of man-eating gelatin. Of course he gets help and hindrances along the way from an outrageous cast of charters. There are trolls, hang glider battles, great green sharks, gymnastics in swordplay, Black Elves, a giant chartreuse septapus named Ralph, and a war in which the most important weapon is perhaps the umbrella.
And best of all he has written the sequel "Storm Wars!" I can't wait to get my hands on it:) ***** (5 stars)

copy and paste this link to listen to pod cast read by author... it gets 5 stars too... Enjoy:)

http://unicorn.libsyn.com/webpage/cat...

[M— · Rating 1 out of 5]

I made it to the part where the prince and the unicorn donned gliding wings and found it necessary to sing loudly to each other in order to avoid crashing while flying within low-laying cloudbanks, whereupon I lost all interest. I put the book down and didn't pick it up again, even to just flip straight to the ending. I didn't care that much.

Still, this book wasn't crap and was rocking a two-star rating until Goodreads crashed my Edit Review page and lost my review. One star has been subtracted due to the frustration of typing this over again and of needing to thinking about this damn book for five minutes longer.

[Katicate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up for a used book store thinking it was going to be ridiculously horrible but I was actually surprised. It was a light, easy read with a good since of humor. It really didn't take itself too seriously.

It had its flaws. Like others have mentioned, it was a bit rushed. It seemed like the characters never really settled down to reflect on what just happened; it was always on to the next thing.

All in all, I'd recommend this to someone who likes fantasy and satire whose looking for a quick book to read.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tale of a young price who wants love, the thrown and the unicorn of course. He can't have any of them at first due to his Wizard dad being alive, his love was held hostage by his Uncle and the unicrons wasn't his to have. He goes on a journey to find them all and is not giving up until he has all that he dreams of.

[Tatjna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rollicking, entertaining, light reading. Sets itself up for a sequel but apparently there isn't one. Would have been nice if every woman in the story didn't fall into bed with Piswyck on sight, but I can't help feeling maybe the author was taking the piss out of adventure fantasy tropes the whole way through anyway.

I enjoyed it, fun and not hard work.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Long ago, and far away.....No seriously, Decles was a common frequent figure in the Bay Area scifi conventions in the 80s and 90s.
I loved the humor, prose, characters and ha reread it multiple times. I only wish he wrote more novels. I think this was a one hit wonder.

[Nicole]

Piswyck, the son of a wizard, and his variegated unicorn go on a quest to seek his inheritance and Miranda.