The core of the Novarian series is the "Reluctant King" trilogy, consisting of "The Goblin Tower" (1968), "The Clocks of Iraz" (1971), and "The Unbeheaded King" (1983), all collected as "The Reluctant King" (1985). The trilogy is the story of Jorian, a native of Kortoli chosen by a gruesome lottery to become the king of Xylar (he caught the head of Xylar's previous monarch as it was thrown into a crowd). As the date of his own beheading approaches, he decided to escape from Xylar and its fatal crown, following his plan to recover his true love before settling down into obscurity for the ideal life as a simple craftsman. During his quest he travels across all of the known world, rescues a consignment of maidens destined for the executioner's block, romances a serpent princess, steals a chest of ancient spells, matches wits with gods, escapes being sacrificed by beast men, avoids being sold into slavery by nomads, joins a revolution in a priest-ruled city, becomes embroiled in the sorcerous politics of a magicians' guild, repairs the clocks in a famous lighthouse, saves a besieged city from four enemy hosts at once, braves a perilous flight in a demon-powered bathtub, negotiates with an unreliable magician, spirits a woman away from the city that has sworn to kill him, and exorcises the ghost of a cursed baron. Early on, there is also a short excursion into our world, in which Jorian is frightened by a passing giant truck, has a mutually uncomprehending encounter with a police officer in a patrol car, and is very glad to get back to the familiar dangers of his own world.