The Priestess of Camelot – Prequel to the Heirs of Camelot series
Anya, a pagan priestess of the Nordic Rus tribes, leaves her home country and arrives in Britain. There, she joins the sisterhood of Avalon, headed by the scheming Morgaine. When Anya runs afoul of the Avalonian high priestess she is sent to Camelot to spy on the court while acting as healer. But there, she falls in love with the High Druid, Merlin, and King Arthur, bearing sons to both of the great men of her time. After losing both of the men she loves to Morgaine’s treachery, she embarks on a plan that unfolds over the next 1,500 years to return Goddess worship to the island nation and save it from a danger Anya can see but cannot understand. The Priestess of Camelot is the prelude to the Heirs to Camelot series, and sure to thrill fans of Arthurian lore.
“Drawing on the rich panoply of British history, myths and legends, The Priestess of Camelot weaves its tapestry from threads of traditional tales and imaginative fiction. [The book blends] Celtic mystery, magic, romance, and spiritual growth, with dark-age dangers, intrigue, and lust for revenge. A unique and refreshing take on the Arthurian story. Follow it with your heart.”~ E.M. Swift-Hook, co-author of the Dai and Julia alternate history mysteries.
About Jacqueline Church Simonds (Reno, Nevada Author)
Jacqueline Church Simonds is an author and publishing consultant. Her first published book was CAPTAIN MARY, BUCCANEER, a historical adventure novel loosely based on the real pirate women Ann Bonney and Mary Reade.
Simonds has done the usual authorly wanderings in life: she was a lady’s companion, a sound and lights roadie for a small Southern rock band, and managed an antiques shop. She’s sold everything from computers to 1950s pulp magazines to towels and baby clothes. The one constant in her life is a love of words, books and writing. She sold some short stories and poetry early, but didn’t pursue it.
It was a return to college in her thirties that rekindled her desire to write. She submitted a novel for her honors project at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She was also the fiction editor for the school’s literary magazine, Bartleby.
After the debut of CAPTAIN MARY, Simonds became deeply involved with small presses and the marketing thereof. She opened a small press with her husband and eventually published twelve books. They also provided publishing services and helped in the production of thirty-seven books, many of them national award winners. Because distribution is difficult for small presses to acquire, they opened a distribution business that at one point handled forty-three titles.
But all that distracted Simonds from writing. Once the distribution business was closed and she went to full-time consulting, she had time to return to her first love. THE MIDSUMMER WIFE is the first book in "The Heirs to Camelot" series; a prequel, THE PRIESTESS OF CAMELOT has also been released. Books 2 (THE SOLSTICE BRIDE) and 3 (MISTRESS OF THE ROSE MOON) are due out in 2019. All the books are published by Strange Fiction Press/Vagabondage Press of Florida.
She lives in Reno, Nevada with her husband and beagle.
