The Village of Bones by Mary Mackey reviewed by Jonelle Patrick:
Built on meticulous research, this prequel to Mary Mackey’s “The Year The Horses Came” delivers a fascinating and believable glimpse into what life might have been like in long-ago Europe, in a society where the gods are female and women rule. It’s a page-turner of a journey, steeped in ancient beliefs and prophetic visions, given an all-too-human urgency as the priestess Sabalah faces an enemy whose fierce, unstoppable technology could destroy her society’s way of life.
Jonelle Patrick, is the author of The Last Tea Bowl Thief and the Only In Tokyo mystery series.
The Village of Bones reviewed by Kate Farrell:
Ever since I read Merlin Stone’s book, When God Was a Woman, I’ve been fascinated with goddess cultures and what became of them. So, when I discovered Mary Mackey’s Earthsong Series, I devoured every one of the four books and always did wonder why Sabalah lived so far from her home, why she had traveled to the northern shores of Brittany. Now, in Village of the Bones, we discover the reasons for her perilous flight: to protect her child, a maid who would become the savior, as foretold by many oracles. The splendid scenes of ancient times when all of creation was fluid and forming are enchanting; they seem like magical realism with historical research at their base.
We sense we are at a turning point in human history, or at least among cultures, a pivotal point that draws a straight line to our present day dilemma, that of the suppression of the feminine divine.
I applaud Mackey for lifting the veil of eons to show an ancient, but peaceful culture, a place of peace, so yearned for in our time. The world of pre-history Mackey gives us was closer to nature, of course. We journey there by primitive boat; wander through villages and forests, fraught with danger and touched by magic. But it is the universal virtues of truth and compassion, along with the instinctual strength of motherhood that triumph. An exotic adventure, and a fulfilling drama,
Kate Farrell is a storyteller, author, librarian, and founder of the Word Weaving Storytelling Project. She has published numerous educational materials on storytelling. She has contributed to and edited award-winning anthologies of personal narrative.
Mary Mackey and Kate Farrell will give a talk about story telling on February 10, 6:30 pm PST at Writers Forum.
