“No,” Nimue said bitterly. “You’re right.”
I didn’t understand their words. “Why not?”
Andraste grimaced oddly, casting a passing glance at Nimue. “There is thunder, lightning, and rain. Now, where is Graymalkin?”
“By the cauldron,” Nimue replied.
We went back to the courtyard. Andraste came to stand before the space where Sid had stood. Opening her arms wide, Andraste whispered secret words and a portal opened. Black smoke swirled in a spiraling oval. It made my hair blow all around me. From within, I swore I could smell the scents of earth and rain.
Nimue pulled me into an embrace, kissing me on the cheek. “When shall we three meet again?” she asked, turning to Andraste. Her eyes were welling with tears.
“When the hurly-burly’s done. Now, the world of man calls,” Andraste said, and taking my hand, she led me to the portal. “My girl, remember, what’s fair is foul and foul is fair,” she said with a sympathetic smile. Her expression both surprised and worried me. “Now on with you into the fog and filthy air.”
I turned and looked into the portal. I was going home. The Morrigu had set me free. Taking a deep breath, I entered the portal. I felt a strange pull as I was swept back to my world. But in the split second before I left Ynis Verleath, I heard Andraste speak. Her voice was full of sorrow.
“Something wicked this way comes.”
Thank You
I hope you enjoyed Highland Raven. If so, would you mind leaving a review and let other potential readers know you enjoyed the story? Great reviews really help to bring visibility to a series. Other readers want to know what you think. Thank you so much.
Continue The Celtic Blood Series with Highland Blood:
Again, many thanks (seriously, see the Author’s Note that follows. Thank you. Mean it!)
Best,
Melanie
Author’s Note
Did you know that Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is usually referred to as The Scottish Play because many believe the play is cursed? There are numerous superstitions surrounding Shakespeare’s tragedy. Some say the witches’ lines are a real spell, others say the Goddess Hecate cursed the play because of how she was depicted (which leads many productions to exclude her character and lines), and others believe, very simply, that the play is unlucky due to all the deaths, theater closings, and unfortunate events that have surrounded its production. If you are an actor in the play, you must never say Macbeth inside the theater. It curses you. But not to worry, if you make a mistake it can be mended. You can spin around three times (note the number) or leave the playhouse then reenter to get rid of the curse. Regardless, Macbeth is a tale with power lying just under the words. Many times, I felt like my version of Macbeth was jinxed. And even in the hours before this book reaches launch, things are still going wrong. Hecate, take it easy, sister.
Bringing Highland Raven (formerly titled Lady Macbeth: Daughter of Ravens) to light has been a labor of love. In 1997, when I was a student at Penn State, I took a Celtic history class with renowned scholar Dr. Benjamin Hudson. When he lectured about the real Macbeth, it poured water on the seed of an idea. This wasn't the first time I’d thought about writing a novel on Lady Macbeth. My high school English teacher and I once discussed my idea. Was the real Lady Macbeth misunderstood? Could she be presented more sympathetically? How might Lady Macbeth’s changing times relate to Shakespeare's vision?
I started writing and researching this novel in 2000. I won't claim this novel is an exact historical retelling. The amount of historical information on Gruoch is limited, and scholars disagree about some aspects of her lineage. I've done my best researching and piecing information together, but also I didn’t want to drown the story in unnecessary historical detail. This saga contains the important elements of Gruoch’s real life in addition to my creative embellishments.
I finished writing the novel in the early 2000s and started querying agents. I got a lot of encouraging responses. One agent, however, told me they had a client who was working on a similar book and couldn’t consider me. A few years later, the talented Susan Fraser King published Lady Macbeth: A Novel. At the time, I was totally crushed. King (as a diligent researcher should) even consulted my former professor for her research. I was done. The jinx got me. I stuck my novel in a drawer and forgot about it.
In 2005, I shared an excerpt from this novel in a writing workshop. It got a positive response. I started working on the novel again. I knew King’s Lady Macbeth novel was different from mine. My novel was about love and magic. My novel was fantasy. I got back to work and worked, off and on, (even during a long stretch of writer’s block…jinxed again!), over the years.
In 2012, I published my first novel, The Harvesting, a dark fantasy/zombie mashup. Publishing was a great experience, and Gruoch still held a special place in my heart. I decided it was time for her to come onstage. I spent a year revising The Celtic Blood Series (formerly The Saga of Lady Macbeth.) In earlier versions of this novel, I called Gruoch by the nickname Gru. Thanks to Despicable Me (which came out in the interim), Gru was never going to work. Jinxed. Gru became Corbie (though I still call her Gru in my head).
This novel is a bit different from my other works. Highland Raven is the first flame in a slow burn leading to an inferno. I thought it was important for readers to see Gruoch from the beginning. Her early life, growing up rough and devoid of love save for Madelaine’s, profoundly impacts the decisions she makes in this book (where she is a rash 16 year old) and later in the saga. Gruoch is someone who desperately wants to be loved. That need, sometimes unconscious, blinds her to many things. In some ways, she is an unreliable narrator. She doesn’t really know herself very well. Highland Raven also shows Gruoch just beginning to access her power. In later books, readers will see her wrestle with the dark forces inside her. And, of course, we will see Macbeth very soon. I look forward to sharing the next two books in this series with you.
In the playhouse, there is another way to remove the Macbeth jinx. If you cite some lines from another Shakespeare play, the curse can be lifted. So, without further ado (or, perhaps, this is much ado about nothing), let me just say:
If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme,
No more yielding but a dream
~William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 5.1.423-428
Addendum to the Author’s Note
Summer 2015
The jinx won’t go away! As the first edition of this novel went to publication, several major things went wrong. There were issues with the ebook, the paperback, an early review, and someone close to me telling me I shouldn’t publish the book. I’ll have to go back and look, but I think I must have tried to launch during a Mercury retrograde. Many, many tears were shed. Regardless, I pressed on. My fans, may the Goddess Cerridwen bless them, embraced the book. Great! But the problem was, the book just stalled. In a market where Outlander (I am forever a fan girl of Diana Gabaldon!) is big, why would a Scottish novel sink out of sight? I spent the next several months watching sales, considering branding, and wondering why Gruoch couldn’t get off the ground (despite the wings).