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2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
A good ancient, mythical story Jul 20, 2007
Based on Icelandic myths, this story takes place in the distant past, when trolls and elves still walked the earth. A woman lives alone in a cottage, far from anyone else. It is full to overflowing with books, parchments and scrolls, many written in languages that were dead even back then. She yearns to return to the stars, but her broomstick refuses to function, for she has lost the magic.
A raven-wizard gives her three tasks, in order to help heal a broken world. The woman must return a runic sword to its proper owner, a knight who has been dead for many years. She must, single-handedly, defeat a hideous wyvern living in a huge lake (think of the Loch Ness Monster, but with a nastier disposition). Then, the woman must find and return a large blue gem, the Stone of Antariel, to its rightful owners, a race of elves. It's not as easy as it sounds; the forces of evil are keeping a close eye on the woman and her progress.
This story has a different, almost mystical, feel to it, and it's really good. It's a short novel, about 100 pages, and anyone who enjoys ancient, mythical stories will enjoy this one.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Inner demons May 31, 2007
Reviewed by Susan Pettrone for Reader Views (5/07)
In this somewhat slim volume, a world of mystical, magical life begins. Set in an icy world filled with wintry beauty, we meet a woman on the first page of "The Woman and The Raven," who though strong in her independence, is caught within a nightmare of her own making. Though she seems satisfied carving a life for herself out of what the wintry land around her offers, still she dreams of more. Her dreams, incantations and legends interwoven within this book, are simple yet so complex, that at times the reader isn't sure what is happening is within the present, the past or possibly the future. Her nightmares become reality as she is faced not with the demons and monsters most are afraid of, but terrors which are hers alone.
There is no doubt in the mind of the reader that this woman is fantastical in many ways, but as the story grows, the legends and magical life of this woman create a tapestry of such contrast between beauty and horror that the ending of the book leaves the reader realizing that the monsters she battled were not of the real world around her but were monsters created of her own fears. These fears are those which live within her heart....fears which she alone must face and overcome.
The mood set within the pages of "The Woman and The Raven" is also touched by this woman, for her experiences had the ability to take this reader from a small room in a home amidst a big city and transport her to a fortress of elves within a far away land. This was a book where I found myself enraptured with the story within while feeling an odd sense of internal connection while visiting this land so different from my own. Perhaps it was because this woman was battling demons not unlike many we battle each day or perhaps it was because she seemed to be someone we all have known at one time in our lives. Whatever the reason, "The Woman and The Raven" was a book this reader will not long forget and which will I expect, be one drawn from the shelves and experienced over and over again, each time anew as the woman within makes discoveries, not unlike those many of us make every day.
 Mythic fantasy about Iceland Apr 18, 2007
This brief book reads like a mythic tale out of Icelandic folklore--and perhaps it is. The author spent time as writer in residence at the cultural center in Gunnarssfnun, Iceland, and thanks the people for their songs and stories.
The story takes place at a time "when trolls and elves roamed the earth." The unknown woman heroine, the chief character, is a magic-user, but she can no longer fly to the stars, our ancient home. She is set on a difficult path by a Raven-Wizard: she must use a runic sword, slay a vicious wyvern and recover a lost Elven gem, which gives our world its light. These seem impossible tasks, since she must oppose the Shadow Sorcerer, the evil one loosed upon our world.
The writing has a lyric mystical quality about it, even though it uses simple words; and in a few sentences it reminds us that men can make of Earth either a heaven or a hell.
Armchair Interviews says if mythic fantasy is your forte, then you will want to read this one.
 Icelandic alchemy Apr 13, 2007
This tale from the Icelandic Eastfjords takes the readers by the hand and leads them through a magic realm of sparkeling snow and colorful skies into legendary lands. As you wonder through winter's wonderland the wind searches your bones, the heart yearns for life light as the stars and you drift into tales within tales, some of them as ancient as archaic fears. Despite the songs and stories contained within a story the tale is not just that. The adventures of the reluctant heroine beset with doubts only serve as a fable - much like Paolo Coelho's Alchemist - for the reader to look inside and change the little voice that we all carry in our head so that it may speak of freedom and success and no longer of defeat and failure.
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
original and exciting Mar 27, 2007
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this original and exciting adventure among trolls and elves. People of legends and sagas come to life and you get to know them as well as your next-door neighbor.
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