Queenmagic, Kingmagic

From the front flap of the Gollancz first edition: "In another world, somewhere in space and time, two nations, Bellogard and Chorny - are locked in perpetual war, conducted by magic. Each of the main members of the two countries' courts - King, Queen, Prince, Bishop, Knight and Squire - has their own form of magic, and special ways of moving magically. A war may continue for centuries, until one side succeeds in killing the other side's King, at which point the whole world vanishes, only to reappear and have the cycle begin again... Pedino is a young Bellogardian who is sent to uncover a Chornian spy. During his adventures he meets and falls in love with a whore, Sara, and Pedino's whole world is threatened with extinction. There have been many stories modelled on chess games, but none so ingenious and enjoyable as Ian Watson's latest novel. And the story of Bellogard and Chorny is only the beginning. When Pedino and Sara manage to escape the destruction of their universe, they find themselves in a series of even more bizarre worlds operating under still stranger rules, as they seek to discover the purpose of their existence, and the meaning of their universe."