Moyra Caldecott reveals the many levels of her own life as a writer and the extraordinary events and experiences that have inspired her life and writing. In more than thirty published books, some of them continuously in print for thirty years, the novelist Moyra Caldecott has transported her readers through ancient history and into other worlds. Her writing is a manifestation of her lifelong quest for meaning and wisdom. Now, for the first time, she reveals the many levels of her own life as a writer and the extraordinary events and experiences that have inspired her life and writing -- through which reality became stranger than fiction.

It is 72 AD, and most of Britain is under Roman domination. At Aquae Sulis, a place of pilgrimage and healing, hot waters gush ceaselessly from the earth. Since ancient times the waters have been associated with the supernatural, and are under the protection of the Celtic Goddess Sul. The Romans have renamed her Sulis Minerva, and have tamed the steaming waters to form a complex of public baths. A statue of the hated Emperor Claudius is being erected in the precincts of the Temple of Sulis Minerva. The centurion Decius Brutus, a Celt, is ordered to return to his home town to protect the statue and prevent trouble. But the local people, led by his proud father and his fiery daughter, Megan, are threatening rebellion... Meanwhile, Megan's twin sister Ethne is torn between her destiny as Oracle of Sul, and her love for Lucius, who is caught up in his own quest for spiritual enlightenment, with the help of the Orphic priest Demosthenes. Twenty miles away, on Glastonia Island, a small Christian community struggles to establish a new religion in a hostile land, away from Roman persecution. Cults from Rome, Greece, Egypt and Judaea vie with the native Celtic beliefs and form a rich backdrop to the human dramas that unfold. The Waters of Sul is set in a time of transition and adjustment, when beliefs are questioned and loyalties are tested. Love and hate, conflict and reconciliation, troubled romance and an uneasy traffic with the supernatural all feature in this brilliantly conceived novel from a masterful storyteller.

The Eye of Callanish is set at the beginning of the twelfth century on the Island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland. It tells the story of a young girl, Mairi, who is persecuted for being in league with the Devil. She believes that she is able to communicate with the ancient people who built the temple of Tall Stones at Callanish. Mairi is aided in her escape from her persecutors by Neil and the hermit Brother Durston, who we first met in Weapons of the Wolfhound. On the way they face many dangers and frightening situations. But just who are these ancient people that Mairi is communicating with? Where did the beautiful white horse appear from? And whose is the dead body in the cleft? Neil is fascinated by the search for Truth ... and at the same time terrified of it...

Ierii, the daughter of the chief gardener at the palace, is in love with Thyloss, the son of the keeper of the Queen's bulls. Thyloss, who is looking forward to a future as a bull acrobat - a position of great importance - finds his feelings for Ierii gradually changing. But their hopes are shaken by events beyond their control. The Minoan civilization, one of the greatest the world has known, suddenly and mysteriously came to an end sometime during the period 1600-1450BC, baffling present day historians and archaeologists alike. One of the most persistent theories is that it was fatally damaged by the immense volcanic eruption on the nearby island of Thera (Santorini). This story charts the dramatic events during the last days of Ma-ii, a city on the north coast of Crete.

Who dares challenge the might of the Priests of Amun? A group of people are drawn inexorably together, and impelled by forces unknown to travel to Egypt to investigate what happened to the pharaoh Akhenaten who lived more than three thousand years before. Jack is fighting strange and powerful dreams. Finn is convinced he is a reincarnation of Akhenaten and has a personal interest in denying that the ghost exists. Emma believes she was Akhenaten's youngest daughter in a past life and longs to release her beloved father from the curse. Bernard, a medium, channels the voice of Akhenaten, pleading for help. Eliot won't have any of it and does everything in his power to cast doubt on their beliefs. Mary draws the threads together, describing her own compelling and mysterious encounters with Akhenaten. Their adventures are not what any of them expect, and have far-reaching consequences in their lives.

Viviane, a beautiful Celtic princess, unwittingly unravels the spell that binds the spirit of the evil Idoc within a circle of tall stones. Once released, the sorcerer-priest uses his powers to deliver vengeance upon those responsible for his original enslavement - including the Princess Viviane. With Idoc in possession of the body of Prince Caradawc, her betrothed, Viviane can no longer judge safely between friend and foe, between this life and previous incarnations. Yet to rescue Caradawc from his nightmare, she must risk everything to reach the dreaded dark tower where Idoc waits. And, to ensure victory over evil, she must seek out Lucifer's Emerald. She journeys through dreams and nightmare, beauty and horror, good and evil to save her lover and destroy the sorcerer-priest. This is a quest for spiritual grace which is beautifully depicted and includes all the timeless ingredients of legend.

For readers of The Night Circus and Station Eleven, a lyrical and absorbing debut set in a world covered by water As a Gracekeeper, Callanish administers shoreside burials, laying the dead to their final resting place deep in the depths of the ocean. Alone on her island, she has exiled herself to a life of tending watery graves as penance for a long-ago mistake that still haunts her. Meanwhile, North works as a circus performer with the Excalibur, a floating troupe of acrobats, clowns, dancers, and trainers who sail from one archipelago to the next, entertaining in exchange for sustenance. In a world divided between those inhabiting the mainland ("landlockers") and those who float on the sea ("damplings"), loneliness has become a way of life for North and Callanish, until a sudden storm offshore brings change to both their lives--offering them a new understanding of the world they live in and the consequences of the past, while restoring hope in an unexpected future. Inspired in part by Scottish myths and fairytales, The Gracekeepers tells a modern story of an irreparably changed world: one that harbors the same isolation and sadness, but also joys and marvels of our own age. — Finalist, Lambda Literary Award