The Priest's Wife - Isle Fincara Trilogy (2): Visionary fiction set in a simpler world

Disgrifiad Saesneg / English Description

Newly widowed and grieving, Morag sets out on a quest to uncover her hidden maternal lineage. She returns empty-handed but for her meetings with Sorcha and Wolf, unrecognised heralds of her way. When the new priest seeks to suppress the Islanders' sacred earth-centred traditions, it is Morag's profound spiritual initiation among the Island's Guardians that brings protection to her community.

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Bywgraffiad yr Awdur / Author Biography

A G Rivett is a retired public health doctor and priest. He was ordained deacon in the Anglican church alongside the first group of women deacons. The next year, at his ordination to the priesthood, the women were conspicuous by their absence and this inspired him to write the story of a woman who grows into spiritual leadership against the norms of her culture. His years in Scotland not only included time on an off-grid peninsula, but also brought him into contact with the ancient Celtic tradition of the Céile Dé or Culdee, as well as the spiritual community of Findhorn. All these experiences feed into his trilogy. He now lives in Ceredigion, West Wales, with his wife, Gillian, who works with him on his books as creative editor. He has three daughters and two grandsons.

Adolygiad y Cyhoeddwr / Publisher Review

What is hidden beneath the surface whispers in the wind. Flickers and flames in the hollow of the hills. The glimmer of a radiant darkness. “A vividly imagined journey through an alternative Celtic reality which skilfully combines intriguing narrative with lyrical description and spiritual depth.” —Maggie Hamand, author of Virgin and Child and Creative Writing for Dummies “Suspenseful and engaging. Challenges the assumptions that hold us back.” Isabel Clarke, author of Madness, Mystery and the Survival of God “Beautifully written. Well paced.” The Herald “Unique in its voice.” Maddy McGlynn “A profoundly notable trilogy, to be savoured.” Fiona Alison ***************** EVOKES THE CULTURE OF ITS TIME... “This is a misty, green world, where the Otherworld of the Sidhe is not so distant from life among the living.” Set on a fictional island between Ireland and Scotland sometime ‘early in the second millennium,’ this series qualifies as historical fantasy but reflects real historical tensions. THE NARRATIVE When Morag’s husband Hugh, the priest, dies, her adopted son Dhion—a time-traveller from the future introduced in Book One, The Seaborne—his wife Shinane, and the other villagers help her with her loss. Shinane is carrying new life: twins. Having lost her husband, Morag will have to vacate the priest’s house. She feels she has lost her place in the island’s society. She travels to Kimmoil, her birthplace two days’ north, to discover the identity of her own mother and embarks on a spiritual awakening. Her welcome in Kimmoil is less than warm; the town is suffering from an outbreak of scurvy. She meets the daughter of her half-brother, Sorcha, as unloved as she had been, and brings her back with her. After Hugh’s death, the villagers look to Morag for pastoral and ritual care, but when the new priest, Aidan, arrives, he tries to pull them away from their traditional druidic beliefs and customs, now deemed heretical, and butts heads with the shareg (headman). ATMOSPHERE The novel is beautifully written and evocative of the culture of the time; no anachronistic language intrudes upon the beautiful picture. This is a misty, green world, where the Otherworld of the Sidhe is not so distant from life among the living. A doctor, crofter and ordained minister himself, Rivett understands the tight relationship of the peasants with the land and the seasons and their religious ideas and practices. The contrast between ‘nature-affirming’ faith and ‘nature-denying’ is very much part of the dynamic between Aidan and Morag. —Susie Helme, Historical Novel Society ***************** THE RECOGNISABLE FANTASY TROPE… “of an unremarkable person having revealed to them a heritage and destiny of which they were unaware.” The Priest’s Wife follows the recognisable fantasy trope of an unremarkable person having revealed to them a heritage and destiny of which they were previously unaware, through a combination of inner journeys and meetings with otherworldly strangers. It’s a beautifully written, well-paced exploration of Morag’s growth, her struggle and eventual acceptance of the new opportunities and responsibilities that lie ahead of her. Rivett does an excellent job of putting us inside her head, to the point that we start to feel we know her intimately. THE THEME OF POWER He’s managed to breathe life into the township of Caerpadraig too, filling it with people to whom caring about one another’s welfare comes as naturally as breathing. It’s a positive portrayal of a Christian community clinging to its pagan origins, playing up the virtues of their rootedness in the Earth, their belief in balance between male and female and the joy they derive from their spiritual lives, while contrasting it sharply with a bureaucratic, patriarchal church intent on standardising and regulating worship across the world. —Alastair Mabbott, The Herald ***************** ALWAYS PITCHES UP SOME NEW CREATIVE TWIST This novel is unique in its voice, storytelling and setting. A slow burner, it’s a novel that feels warm and personal and very gentle. It isn’t driven by action or adventure, yet still has a sense of pace and purpose, and it always pitches up some new, creative twist. —Maddy McGlynn, maddyreadsherstory blog FROM SEVERE DEPRESSION TO FULL PERSONHOOD The book explores mental breakdown (Aidan’s) and severe depression (Morag’s, at the mid-point of the story when she finds herself at an impasse). It reflects religious tensions that have existed historically. It celebrates the natural world and the resilience of the human spirit in resisting a coercive authority. In doing so, Morag steps into her full personhood. —My Reading Corner I FELT I WAS INSIDE MORAG’S HEAD I felt I was inside Morag’s head. The characters are well fleshed out and the way the author weaves religion into the novel makes it a layered and interesting read. The exploration of mental health is another sensitively handled subject. A novel that’s well-written, with sensitivity but also bravery. —Sharon Rimmelswaan, Beyond the Books blog BEAUTY OF PLACE AND OF COMMUNITY Evokes a profound sense of the beauty of place and of the community that is bound to it. The reader is drawn in, and in a way joins the characters on their journey. If the setting is a thousand years in the past, the underlying themes are quite contemporary. —Daniel Morphy OSB in Pluscarden Benedictines MORAG WAS SUCH A STRONG CHARACTER Despite not being religious myself, I enjoy reading about this era where Christianity was just evolving and the contrast between the traditional paganism that existed previously and the new ideas coming through. The topic of mental health was sensitively done and well written. Morag was such a strong character and although set in a completely different time, she was very relatable. Her journey to discover her identity and find a place in this new world was profound and moving. —Sonja Charters A SPIRITUAL FABLE OF FEMALE AGENCY The Priest’s Wife is like a spiritual fable of female agency, and trust that those you love will stand by you in the worst of times. To have a wider and more fulfilling experience of character, time, place, and environment, I recommend reading The Seaborne first. A profoundly notable trilogy to be savoured. —Fiona Alison Given a Literary Book Grant by the Books Council of Wales. ***************** ADDITIONAL PRAISE A NOVEL THAT TOUCHES THE SOUL The Priest’s Wife investigates the profound themes of identity, faith, and transformation. A G Rivett’s storytelling is rather remarkable, and the narrative's emotional resonance will leave an impression on readers. This is a novel that touches the soul and invites introspection into the intricate webbing of our own lives. —Kevin, on NetGalley and GoodReads A BOOK FOR RE-READING Both books of the Isle Fincara Trilogy want to be read several times: first as a good yarn, a page turner, books for staying up all night to find out what happens next. Then, as a story for reading aloud and slowing down into into the fabric of time and place. In the third reading, ask questions of the book, and find answers from the different characters, for our time, our lives, and our world. —Katharina Kroeber LIKE MOVING FROM THE ILIAD TO THE ODYSSEY I loved the previous book in this series, The Seaborne. I loved this one too. The most striking difference was the female viewpoint in this second book. It was rather like moving from the male viewpoint of Homer's Iliad to the home fires of his Odyssey. The courageous, generous, and spiritual widowed protagonist captured my heart. —Violet Elizabeth Grayson MORAG IS MAGNIFICENT The Priest's Wife was all I had hoped for, and more. The isle and the island-life of the community so beautifully imagined in The Seaborne, continues to draw me in. Morag is magnificent. Watching her story unfold was a gift. I await the final book in the trilogy with great anticipation. —Shirley Barr SEARCH FOR THE DIVINE FEMININE Perhaps this intense spiritual search for the divine feminine is the aspect of the book which would connect us, in the 21st century, most easily with the Isle Fincara characters. —Gelda MacGregor STRIKING A CHORD WITH MODERN READERS It makes for compelling reading and leaves the reader impatient for more. This book will strike a resonant chord with modern-feminist readers and, in a post-Christian society, those interested in alternative ancient faith traditions. —Benedict Thwaite BEYOND GOOD AND BAD What a treat! We enjoyed the glimpses of how a strong woman in difficult circumstances finds her place and power within a very patriarchal society, how a holistic spirituality interacts with a restrictive religion. The characters are described with a nuance that moves the reader beyond ‘good and bad’ and allows a common humanity to be seen, even in ‘villains’. We loved it! —Cornelia Featherstone and Sylvia Robertson A HAVEN FOR THOSE IN NEED I particularly liked Morag’s finding the waif, Sorcha, and how their new, isolated home became a haven for those in need. A story like this, so rooted in nature, community, spirituality and intuition makes me wonder what we miss in our busy, noisy, compartmentalised lives that are dominated by facts, individuality and materialism. I found myself going to bed ridiculously early to discover what happened next. —Anne Veronica Watkins CELEBRATING THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY AND THE POWER OF FAITH How good it was to read this thought provoking and timeless tale that celebrates both the importance of community and the power of faith—so relevant in today’s challenging times. —Chrisanthe Georgiou A BOOK TO ENCOURAGE A tour de force! Poignant and sensitively told, A G Rivett’s wide vision and inherent knowing gives birth to a book that expresses deep truth about the significance of our times. A book to encourage those who teeter on the brink of claiming their place within the whole. —Romany Buck THOUGHT-PROVOKING SITUATIONS I was captivated by the characters, the landscape, the Celtic spirituality and the thought-provoking situations. There are similarities to be drawn with our present troubled and confused times and much food for thought. —Ann Barr IT MADE ME THINK It made me think. I loved the characters and could easily have read more. —Michelle Wilde I WILL BE HUNTING THE THIRD BOOK DOWN I am looking forward with great anticipation to the third in this series. I will be hunting it down! —Moonkiszt