In the Forest House of ancient Britain live the last remaining Druid priestesses, practicing ancient rituals and attempting to keep peace between their people and the Roman invaders. Primary to the struggle is Eilan, herself the lover of Gaius, a half-Celtic Roman commander. Eilan's twin (well, actually, aunt, but they look so much alike their own families mix them up) is Dieda, another priestess, beloved of Cynric, leader of the vengeful Ravens, who are half-Roman offspring of raped Celtic priestesses. Somehow, the two bloods and the two religions must meld in order to form the sacred background of Arthurian legend, so richly mined by Bradley in The Mists of Avalon. Getting that job done is sometimes tedious (Gaius is sent to Rome to observe the Senate, married to a Londinium girl for dynastic purposes, sent off to war against the Germans) and sometimes thrilling (Eilan goes into a deep trance to encounter the goddess, and Gaius becomes the Year King in sacred sex). The second half of the book introduces far too many subsidiary characters for the reader's comfort, yet on whole this is a compelling goddess tale that should draw quite an audience. Pat Monaghan

Offered on the International Reverse Wish List relay on

Sent today to RayneQueen.

Thanks for sending this! I have read it before, but it was a long time ago. I am intrigued because the cover looks very similar to one of my favorite books ever, Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Mariiler, so I am curious as to how I will like this one.

This has been sitting on my shelf for so long I think it's time to let it go. I'm donating it to the used bookstore run by the Friends of the Georgetown Library, and hopefully it will find a new home.