At the heart of Ryhope Wood, Steven and the Mythago Guiwenneth live in the ruins of a Roman villa close to a haunted fortress from the Iron Age, from which Guiwenneth's myth arose. She is comfortable here, almost tied to the place, and Steven has long since abandoned all thought of returning to his own world. They have animals, protection and crops. But this idyll cannot last. The hunters who protected Guiwenneth as a child have come to warn her she is in danger. Yssobel is dreaming increasingly of her Uncle Christian, Steven's brother, who disappeared into Lavondyss, and Jack wants to see 'the outer world' more than anything. Events are about to overtake them.
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[Ryhope Wood is an ancient as the Ice Age, primal, undisturbed for twelve thousand years, and it is semi-sentient] ***(Gollancz, 23 July 2009, 352 pages, ebook, bought from Amazon)
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I haven't completely enjoyed the last couple of titles in the Mythago Wood cycle. However, Holdstock is back on top form with this, the last book and a sequel to the first book.
Given the title, I thought this book would be more related to the author's Merlin series (similar to Merlin's Wood) but thankfully, this wasn't the case. Avilion brings the story of the Huxley's and Guiwenneth full circle.
I was hooked from the start of the book until the final page. I remembered why I'd fallen in love with the series in the first place. The book is crammed with action, tension, drama, revelations and heartache - exactly what you want from a series finale. I loved it.
Interestingly enough, much of Avilion is set firmly in the world of Ryhope Wood and the Mythago's. This is a similar to the last book, Gate of Ivory, Gate of Horn. However, I didn't enjoy this the last time but it works much better in Avilion. Maybe because the Huxley's are back?
Avilion is a fantastic book.
