Priestess of Avalon

Avalon is revisited by a daughter of three "true" mother. Eiland goes to Avalon as a very young girl. She becomes a rival to the head Pristestwhen she switches places with the young woman who who according to the current Leader. of Avalom' After switching places with places witch the "ckosen one", she is banned from Avalon.. This is the stooy of Eiland's time away from Avalon. The man she leaves lon Avalon for becomes for Empor of the Rome Empire. Her son follows in her "husband's" her foot steps, and becomes the Emporer Constantine. This is her story as the mother, Helena, the mother of Constantine, who become a Çhristan, and changes the face of Rome from a pagan worship to Christianity. We come along as "Helena" plays her trpart in changing from the pagan go'sds to the "One God" of the new religion. This is wonderful read on one aspect of how Christianity changed not only the Rome Empire's influence across the know world at this time. percus

The title of the book is a bit misleading, Elian, or Helena as she's know for most of the book, isn't just a priestess of Avalon sent out into the world to do the work of the goddess. In fact, the book deals mostly with her life outside of Avalon, first as the wife/concubine of Constantius, and later as the mother/empress of Constantine.The book is carried out in the same style as the other Avalon books, although I can detect a bit of Paxton's writing as well. All in all, it's not a bad book, if you take it from the view that it doesn't center around Avalon, but on a priestess who makes a life for herself after losing the blessing of Avalon. If you're looking for another novel about Avalon, King Arthur, or the Forest House, you're out of luck. In fact, the book fits into the time line around the time of the high priestess Dierna and Teleri's marriage to a man not of Avalon in Lady of Avalon.I wouldn't recommend this book to people who aren't familiar with at least Mists of Avalon, unless they have plans to read it. It's not the same type of book as Mists, it's more like The Forest House, which struck me as a totally different kind of book than mists, a historical romance instead of a retelling of a legend. All in all though it's not a bad book, and if you've read the other three books, you should probably read this one as well.

Priestess of Avalon is a rich story of color, flavor, and texture. The details given make it so I felt that I had seen and heard as the main character did. The story is told in first person--a change from the rest of the books in The Mists series--that I find effective, and somewhat more insightful. I could almost feel myself age with her, as she was a girl in the beginning, growing through her life, then as mother, and finally as crone.The placement of this book is rather tricky in "The Mists of Avalon" series. I tried very much to figure out whether I should be reading this book before "Lady of Avalon", after, or before "The Forest House." I found that it actually falls in between the first and second sections of "Lady of Avalon." The whole series starts with "The Fall of Atlantis," then continued in "Ancestors of Avalon," a break of time then, but the following novel is "The Forest House" which is immediately followed by the first part of "Lady of Avalon." The story in "Priestess of Avalon" starts the story that is continued in the second part of "Lady of Avalon" which actually follows Dierna's story once she becomes a priestess. I hope that helps others figure out the order if they are trying for a chronology as I was.

Priestess of Avalon is a rich story of color, flavor, and texture. The details given make it so I felt that I had seen and heard as the main character did. The story is told in first person--a change from the rest of the books in The Mists series--that I find effective, and somewhat more insightful. I could almost feel myself age with her, as she was a girl in the beginning, growing through her life, then as mother, and finally as crone.The placement of this book is rather tricky in "The Mists of Avalon" series. I tried very much to figure out whether I should be reading this book before "Lady of Avalon", after, or before "The Forest House." I found that it actually falls in between the first and second sections of "Lady of Avalon." The whole series starts with "The Fall of Atlantis," then continued in "Ancestors of Avalon," a break of time then, but the following novel is "The Forest House" which is immediately followed by the first part of "Lady of Avalon." The story in "Priestess of Avalon" starts the story that is continued in the second part of "Lady of Avalon" which actually follows Dierna's story once she becomes a priestess. I hope that helps others figure out the order if they are trying for a chronology as I was.

Many years ago when I was into reading fantasy, I read The "Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley. It was a nice memory. So when this book was mentioned at a woman's conference, I listed it as a book I would like to read. It started out lovely with all the mystical stuff that I find fascinating, but as the book goes on the heroine becomes like a normal woman. She takes a mate, has a child and leads a life like most of us. Full of challenges and loves lost and found. I recommend it, since it is written well. My disappointment is that so much of her is lost in the details of her lover's rise to power. I kept waiting for something to happen wonderful and fulfilling for her, but it doesn't. In the end she is satisfied with acceptance of her lot. It was after all during the rise and fall of the Roman Empire! Still, I went away with a good feeling about the book, Because I realized that our triumph as women in today's world is that we now have the freedom and the knowledge and support to achieve our own power and no longer live our lives in the shadow of our mates.

Yes, enjoyed this very much. Quite interesting to learn about aspects of history at the same time. though i preferred the earlier books.

I bought several books in this series having enjoyed the first one so much. Sadly not as good

Excellent as always but not much about Avalonbut I do hate having to write a minimum amount of words for a review!

I love it! My fave author... really cheap book!

Thís fourth "Avalon" novel tells the life story of Eilan, a Priestess of Avalon, who becomes the wife/concubine of the Roman soldier Constantius Chlorus and mother of the legendary Emperor Constantine the Great, who later will be worshipped as a Christian saint. Known as Helena to the Romans, Eilan has to leave the isle of Avalon, because she wants to follow her heart. Her way leads her to Roman Germania, Rome and eventually the Holy Land. But her true home is elsewhere. Bradley's novel is a careful reimagination of a historical character that sometimes captures the reader with its atmospheric descriptions and lush storytelling. Written from Helena's first person point-of-view, Bradley adds another chapter to her popular series of pre-Arthurian historicals. Most of the time it is an entertaining read, but really too much happens off-stage or is simple recounted in dry sentences. Helena's story would have had the potential to rival THE MISTS OF AVALON, and it would have demanded a truly epic treatment. There are far too many time jumps and too much is left out. I think this novel could easily have been twice as long. Overall, this is a good book for MZB/Avalon fans, but not for people who have yet to encounter the magic of Marion Zimmer Bradley.And although Bradley died in 1999, there will be yet another chapter in her Avalon series, namely THE ANCESTORS OF AVALON (to be completed by Diana L. Paxson), which will link MZB's mythic THE FALL OF ATLANTIS with her novels in the Avalon sequence. Expect publication sometime in 2003.