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The Book of Kells
A contemporary couple journeys back in time to ancient Ireland in this delightful fantasy by the author of Tea with the Black Dragon. John Thornburn is an artist, mild-mannered and nonviolent. To make ends meet, he teaches some courses in Celtic design. And although his background is half Micmac Indian, he lives in Ireland for two his far more confrontational and warrior-like girlfriend, Derval O’Keane, and his fascination with the beautiful illuminated manuscript known as the Book of Kells. But he’s about to take a journey to a far more distant place, one that he could not have imagined. Along with Derval, John will find himself in an ancient Celtic realm, where a Viking attack begs to be avenged and a fantastic—and sometimes terrifying—adventure awaits . . . From a master of magical fantasy, the author of the Damiano Trilogy and a winner of the John W. Campbell Award, this is a tale of warriors, love, danger, and Irish history that will cast a spell on anyone who dreams of discovering treasures in long-lost worlds.
370 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 1985
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About the author
R.A. MacAvoy
18 books198 followersRoberta Ann (R. A.) MacAvoy is a fantasy and science fiction author in the United States. Several of her books draw on Celtic or Taoist themes. She won the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 1984. R. A. MacAvoy was born in Cleveland, Ohio to Francis and Helen MacAvoy. She attended Case Western Reserve University and received a B.A. in 1971. She worked from 1975 to 1978 as an assistant to the financial aid officer of Columbia College of Columbia University and from 1978 to 1982 as a computer programmer at SRI International before turning to full-time writing in 1982. She married Ronald Allen Cain in 1978.
R.A.MacAvoy was diagnosed with dystonia following the publication of her Lens series. She now has this disorder manageable and has returned to writing. (see http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/non...)
R.A.MacAvoy was diagnosed with dystonia following the publication of her Lens series. She now has this disorder manageable and has returned to writing. (see http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/non...)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 178 reviews
February 4, 2017
This has got to be one of the worst books I have ever attempted to read. It's poorly written, the POV and voice jumps around to a point where you can't follow exactly whose head you're supposed to be in, the characters are poorly developed and, frankly, completely unlikeable, and the story itself is poorly told. I had hoped to find a pleasant distraction while awaiting the next Outlander book, but instead I found a chore, a disappointment, and only the third book in four years I have put down without finishing.
January 24, 2012
This is one of my favorite books EVER. While clearly a work of fantasy, her portrayal of life in Viking Dublin is both compelling and well researched. This is one of the few novels I've ever read (King Hereafter being the other big one) that actually do a decent job of describing everyday Viking life.
That aside, the story is great, and as fantasies go you can't ask for much more.
That aside, the story is great, and as fantasies go you can't ask for much more.
March 6, 2014
Found it,along with some others I'd completely forgotten about, lurking on one of the shelves in the bedroom.
You have to take it as read that some 'shelves' are actually floor spaces lol
Hah! As it turns out I have read this, and I can remember exactly where I read it, which was by a pool in Porec (pronounced porridge) Istria.
Disregarding the way my tastes have changed, this is rated to reflect how I loved it twenty odd years ago.
You have to take it as read that some 'shelves' are actually floor spaces lol
Hah! As it turns out I have read this, and I can remember exactly where I read it, which was by a pool in Porec (pronounced porridge) Istria.
Disregarding the way my tastes have changed, this is rated to reflect how I loved it twenty odd years ago.
May 30, 2014
People love this book. I'm not one of them. Why? Well:
Dull main characters who just never seem properly wowed by their time travel predicament.
Sloppy editing.
Maybe because I just finished the highly detailed Hild but MacAvoy's ancient Ireland just didn't do much for me.
Even the time travel element seemed lazy and amateurishly conveyed.
I didn't care what happened to anyone here. Not one bit.
Dull main characters who just never seem properly wowed by their time travel predicament.
Sloppy editing.
Maybe because I just finished the highly detailed Hild but MacAvoy's ancient Ireland just didn't do much for me.
Even the time travel element seemed lazy and amateurishly conveyed.
I didn't care what happened to anyone here. Not one bit.
November 27, 2017
I really wanted to love this book. I like historical fiction and I love all things Celtic, Ms. MacAvoy knows her Celtic history, and the time travel put a bit of fun into it. While the first several chapters did hook me, I became bored with it, it seemed to just drag and go nowhere. I can't really say why, it just didn't keep the hook in for me. I also hated John's character, you don't need to emasculate a man to have strong female characters.
October 20, 2014
Its like "Timeline" meets the Epic Rap Battle Of History with a horny, spineless idiot who ends up with a minor. Still, not half bad since I actually read it in one go.
August 15, 2017
Weak. Flat characters, confused story line... Didn't work for me. 2 stars (and not 1) only because I love Gaelic culture and folklore.
April 8, 2019
Time travel to Ireland in 950ish. Struggled with this, didn't find the character or the plot engaging.
February 5, 2015
A well-told tale with a unique twist. While some might call it a fantasy and others a science fiction tale, it’s neither and both. Intentional, predictable time travel figures prominently in propelling the plot forward, but it’s invoked by neither science nor magic. The means of the time hopping (and the fact that the jump is consistently one thousand years) drives the intrigue. (No, I’m not telling.) Yes, the historic Book of Kells figures in the plot.
Well done. The characters and settings are well developed and, if not believable, at least consistent to the point that the reader is willing to go along with the fun.
Warning: Has unexpected soporific power. Three times while reading it, I fell asleep. Several more I almost nodded off. It’s not a boring story: honest. But it had that effect on me.
Well done. The characters and settings are well developed and, if not believable, at least consistent to the point that the reader is willing to go along with the fun.
Warning: Has unexpected soporific power. Three times while reading it, I fell asleep. Several more I almost nodded off. It’s not a boring story: honest. But it had that effect on me.
April 30, 2011
I read this first when I was in high school and have re-read it many times. An absent-minded artist and his driven girlfriend time travel back to medieval Ireland after a naked, wounded medieval Irishwoman appears in his house apparently out of mid-air. In medieval times they travel to the King in Dublin to seek his aid against invading Vikings, falling into adventures both realistic and fantastical. One of the best time-travel books I have read, with many quotable passages.
January 14, 2013
Life in Ireland in 1000 AD was short, violent, and well, close to the ground. MacAvoy doesn't pull any punches in this regard, but at the same time presents a time of mystery and beauty, while exploring the legacy of Celtic tradition in art and music. One of the better time-travel novels I've read.
January 6, 2022
This is fantasy based on real history. Two late-20th-century individuals time-travel to 10th-century Ireland, and while concerns about timeline paradox are formally raised by the protagonists themselves, it doesn't really prevent them from whole-heartedly jumping into historical events because, of course, despite their carefully cultivated cynical exteriors, they are suckers for courage, justice, friendship, and love. The book is funny and optimistic and if there is a nit, it is that one gets the sense that the author is unable to get truly dark, despite the violence swirling around the main characters. But so what?
I don't know why the author isn't more well-known than she is. She knows her history and she knows how to spin a compelling yarn. I found the book while idly searching online for something on Celtic religion beyond the earnest primers written by its latter-day practitioners. The religion of the real Book of Kells is of course Christian, not Celtic, but it was fashioned in a Celtic land where the old religion (if it could be described as such) was fading. One of the Celtic autochthonous deities has a guiding role in the story somewhat akin to Athena's in the Homeric epics; but she is poignantly aware that she won't be sticking around for much longer. The real conflict is between Norse and Christian worldviews. During the time of the novel, given the overwhelming military dominance of the Vikings, it couldn't have been clear to anybody that Christianity would so completely supplant Odinism in only a few short years.
The book includes a very amusing explanation for why Viking artifacts show up in eastern Canada.
I don't know why the author isn't more well-known than she is. She knows her history and she knows how to spin a compelling yarn. I found the book while idly searching online for something on Celtic religion beyond the earnest primers written by its latter-day practitioners. The religion of the real Book of Kells is of course Christian, not Celtic, but it was fashioned in a Celtic land where the old religion (if it could be described as such) was fading. One of the Celtic autochthonous deities has a guiding role in the story somewhat akin to Athena's in the Homeric epics; but she is poignantly aware that she won't be sticking around for much longer. The real conflict is between Norse and Christian worldviews. During the time of the novel, given the overwhelming military dominance of the Vikings, it couldn't have been clear to anybody that Christianity would so completely supplant Odinism in only a few short years.
The book includes a very amusing explanation for why Viking artifacts show up in eastern Canada.
January 9, 2021
This is so different from the other book of MacAvoy's I've read and it took some patience to get into it which it seems many other reviewers could not have. I'm glad I did.
Yes, it moves slowly. That reflects the era in which most of it is set. Time to think, and fear, and hurt, and hope, and conspire. So different from the swirl and whirl of today.
It was worth the time I spent with it and I am specially glad it was a single book and not one of those endless "historical" series so many writers sink into for want of new ideas!
Yes, it moves slowly. That reflects the era in which most of it is set. Time to think, and fear, and hurt, and hope, and conspire. So different from the swirl and whirl of today.
It was worth the time I spent with it and I am specially glad it was a single book and not one of those endless "historical" series so many writers sink into for want of new ideas!
March 24, 2019
Loved this as a kid but found on re-reading some stuff that hasn't aged well; however the deep excitement around Irish history and art are lovely.
February 19, 2019
I could not believe how bad this book was.
I hated the characters! The development of them wasn't bad, they were just developed into unlikable people. (Ailesh wasn't bad, but not good enough to redeem anything)
I often found myself going a few pages back to see what I had missed, because all of the sudden the story would make no sense, only to find that I hadn't skipped a page or two at all, that's just how poorly the story lined up. The POV also bounced all over the place, as did the plot.
I feel like this story had potential, but the author got completely in over their head.
The ending was dumb and poorly explained, and John hooking up with a minor, regardless of the norm of the time, was just disgusting.
I hated the characters! The development of them wasn't bad, they were just developed into unlikable people. (Ailesh wasn't bad, but not good enough to redeem anything)
I often found myself going a few pages back to see what I had missed, because all of the sudden the story would make no sense, only to find that I hadn't skipped a page or two at all, that's just how poorly the story lined up. The POV also bounced all over the place, as did the plot.
I feel like this story had potential, but the author got completely in over their head.
The ending was dumb and poorly explained, and John hooking up with a minor, regardless of the norm of the time, was just disgusting.
March 5, 2018
I had great hopes for this book as the author is generally well thought of and I had quite enjoyed a couple of earlier, much shorter novels. Unfortunately, something about the weird dragging pacing of the beginning and the characters who came across as completely unattractive, put me off completely and I couldn't face reading the rest of such a long book. So it became a rare 'did not finish' for me, and I can only award it 1 star on that basis.
June 7, 2012
Have read this many times, and each time I love it - even though I could shake John till he wakes up a bit! Packed full of history, facts, and colouful descriptions, this is a book to savour, not a gallop-through read.
Currently reading
June 25, 2020–comments after reading 46 pages–
Listen, I have already vented to friends about the ridiculousness that is one of the characters going from not recognizing what's being spoken as old irish (it's actually middle irish, or, it's supposed to be if you look at the time period (and it's called middle irish once, in the book, but old irish the rest of the time (..ok it's also called medieval irish and gaelic), but there are some sentences given in irish (before the character who supposedly is now fluent in old irish understands all of it) and they clearly use Old Irish grammatical constructions that are lost in the Middle Irish period so.... it's a mess) to "understanding every word" in like... 30 mins. I made it 20 pages before this happened and that's just going too far. Ok, she may have a PhD in medieval Celtic studies. But like. I know people who do, too, (and I may not have a PhD in it but I have 6 years of Old Irish and two degrees in it behind me and I can't even read it easily without a dictionary) and none of them would be able to suddenly understand "every word" of a conversation with someone from 10th century Dublin. I doubt actually speaking modern Irish would make that much of a difference there, too so... yeah. For one, we don't actually know for sure what Old Irish (Middle Irish, I still haven't figured out which one it's supposed to be exactly, here) sounded like. And then there are the numerous verbal forms and infixed pronouns (though those got rare by the middle irish period) and the pre-verbs and the syncope...... there's just no way.
A weird hill to die on, maybe, and I will keep reading the book, but this just made me so annoyed.
Listen, I have already vented to friends about the ridiculousness that is one of the characters going from not recognizing what's being spoken as old irish (it's actually middle irish, or, it's supposed to be if you look at the time period (and it's called middle irish once, in the book, but old irish the rest of the time (..ok it's also called medieval irish and gaelic), but there are some sentences given in irish (before the character who supposedly is now fluent in old irish understands all of it) and they clearly use Old Irish grammatical constructions that are lost in the Middle Irish period so.... it's a mess) to "understanding every word" in like... 30 mins. I made it 20 pages before this happened and that's just going too far. Ok, she may have a PhD in medieval Celtic studies. But like. I know people who do, too, (and I may not have a PhD in it but I have 6 years of Old Irish and two degrees in it behind me and I can't even read it easily without a dictionary) and none of them would be able to suddenly understand "every word" of a conversation with someone from 10th century Dublin. I doubt actually speaking modern Irish would make that much of a difference there, too so... yeah. For one, we don't actually know for sure what Old Irish (Middle Irish, I still haven't figured out which one it's supposed to be exactly, here) sounded like. And then there are the numerous verbal forms and infixed pronouns (though those got rare by the middle irish period) and the pre-verbs and the syncope...... there's just no way.
A weird hill to die on, maybe, and I will keep reading the book, but this just made me so annoyed.
November 7, 2023
I think this was intended to be a more serious version of MacAvoy's other works, however it still came off as contrived and syrupy. There's a strong female lead, a goofy and yet somehow invincible male lead and vague supporting characters. The relationship of the main characters is fairly clear, however they both fall for others which comes off as strange and unlikely. I identified with the main characters but the supporting characters came off as arrogant and one dimensional in one case, and robotic in the other.
Again, I think it's trying to be serious with these horrible antagonists running around doing what they do, however the main characters are never in any danger. When a character can suddenly do their magic thing any time they want, it comes across as too convenient and contrived.
Also, why is everyone naked all the time? The author claims that it's normal for the time, however it comes across as a bad romance novel.
It's really too bad as there was plenty of opportunity for deep world building. The author clearly has a strong handle on Celtic culture and lore. I did enjoy the Irish language, locations and dress. The book reminded me of "The Doomsday Book", however more so because I wish it was like that than that it actually was like it.
Again, I think it's trying to be serious with these horrible antagonists running around doing what they do, however the main characters are never in any danger. When a character can suddenly do their magic thing any time they want, it comes across as too convenient and contrived.
Also, why is everyone naked all the time? The author claims that it's normal for the time, however it comes across as a bad romance novel.
It's really too bad as there was plenty of opportunity for deep world building. The author clearly has a strong handle on Celtic culture and lore. I did enjoy the Irish language, locations and dress. The book reminded me of "The Doomsday Book", however more so because I wish it was like that than that it actually was like it.
February 16, 2018
This is not the best time travel book I ever read, but it's still readable. As with any time travel, you do have to suspend belief on the mechanics of getting to the other place and time, but once there, you can still appreciate the place and time if well researched and described. I actually like learning history this way. It's much more enjoyable that reading stuffy history books. This book takes you from 1985 Dublin to 985 Ireland, not far from Dublin, by way of tracings of images in the ancient Book of Kells, a religious book from even before that time. The descriptions of life in medieval Ireland are rendered convincingly. Norsemen torch villages and kill all the people in them in sacrifice to Odin. A girl escapes one such sacking by being thrown by her father through the cross he is carving and lands in the room where the modern tracer is tracing a drawing from the Book of Kells. The description of John, the tracer, makes him seem like someone on the high functioning end of autism. His lover, Derval, is an equestrienne who studies the medieval Irish era. She even speaks a little old Irish. Of course, she has to return with the poor girl to her time ... just for a bit.
July 5, 2022
Artist John Thornburn was busy drawing in his Dublin apartment when a naked girl, screaming like a banshee, suddenly burst out of his bathroom. Never quite sure what to do in circumstances like these, he called his friend and mentor, Derval O’Keane, a medieval scholar. Derval could follow enough of the girl’s old Irish speech to understand her cries that she (Ailesh), her village and the nearby monastery had all been ravished by Vikings. By a peculiar trick of the rose light accompanying Ailesh, all three were drawn back in time to tenth-century Ireland. Determined to petition the king for the ‘murder payment’ due her for his lack of protection, Ailesh and her party (including a poet who also survived the raid, his foster mother, and a Norseman whose life John had saved in a bar fight) set out, followed by the same Vikings who had attacked her village. However, an unexpected turn of events led to a somewhat surprising but satisfying ending.
The story is character-driven rather than plot-driven, not action-packed, but with a quiet charm. As I drew closer to the end, I could hardly wait to find out what happened.
The story is character-driven rather than plot-driven, not action-packed, but with a quiet charm. As I drew closer to the end, I could hardly wait to find out what happened.
October 7, 2025
I really wanted to love this book! I was really excited - layed down in bed, had my kindle ready and settled in for what I thought was going to be a wild ride into an historical era that I love.
Alas, after 30 minutes, the only thought in my head was "wtf am I reading?". I got up to page 45 in those 30 minutes; it took me so long because I kept having to reread passages to make sure I had not missed anything and the leaps in the plot were not a figment of my imagination.
Perfect example of this is when Ailish's (sp?) name is revealed- the name just appears on the page without the actual character communicating her name and the other 2 characters just suddenly start addressing her as such in their POV's...what??
Which brings me to the POVs- it is all over the place - if Schizophrenia had a literary example, it would be this book
So anyway, I leapt to the last chapter because at the page 45 mark I knew I was going to DNF it and I felt vindicated to say the least! Thank the lords that I did not perservere.
The only positive about this book is the cover art with the Celtic cross
Alas, after 30 minutes, the only thought in my head was "wtf am I reading?". I got up to page 45 in those 30 minutes; it took me so long because I kept having to reread passages to make sure I had not missed anything and the leaps in the plot were not a figment of my imagination.
Perfect example of this is when Ailish's (sp?) name is revealed- the name just appears on the page without the actual character communicating her name and the other 2 characters just suddenly start addressing her as such in their POV's...what??
Which brings me to the POVs- it is all over the place - if Schizophrenia had a literary example, it would be this book
So anyway, I leapt to the last chapter because at the page 45 mark I knew I was going to DNF it and I felt vindicated to say the least! Thank the lords that I did not perservere.
The only positive about this book is the cover art with the Celtic cross
November 2, 2017
Do you know what it's like when a 5-star chef whom has cooked for you before and given you a meal to remember for life, who now has all the right ingredients and does all the right things, but the meal still doesn't quite satisfy? I cannot fault MacAvoy's characters, plot, historical research (which looks to be really extensive), and writing. It's all there, and it's all solid; but I just... I just didn't like the book or, really, the characters that were in it. I honestly don't think it's her fault? I have the feeling that it's like me not quite being able to taste all the nuances of a truffle or appreciate all the richness of foie gras or tell the difference between an 18-month-old oolong and a 6-month-old oolong... but I'd loved her Tea with a Black Dragon so much, and this one just fell flat for me.
January 16, 2017
You have to accept that through a mystical process that the two modern protagonists are transported from 1985 Dublin to 985. The "mechanism" is very much in the vein of medieval catholic mysticism. Once you can buy into that it is an interesting book. MacAvoy does a good job in creating a believable world of Viking Age Ireland. To be honest the characters are not really likable, "perfect" people. But in the end their failings make the book more interesting.
Part of the attraction of this book is my interest in the period. So the descriptions of Viking age Dublin were a highlight for me. For others it might not work. :) That said I can't vouch for the historicity of the book. Still, all in all, if you enjoy Viking age history and a good adventure tale to boot I recommend this book.
Part of the attraction of this book is my interest in the period. So the descriptions of Viking age Dublin were a highlight for me. For others it might not work. :) That said I can't vouch for the historicity of the book. Still, all in all, if you enjoy Viking age history and a good adventure tale to boot I recommend this book.
September 6, 2023
This book takes a present-day couple, living in Dublin, back through time to 10th century Ireland. I did not find the main characters very engaging but enjoyed learning more about medieval Ireland. There were times when the author really lost me with the Middle Irish language (often with no explanation of what the words meant) and I was amazed that the one main character, who admitted that he wasn't good with languages and had not even really learned current Irish, picked up the language very quickly. I also found it strange that people from ancient times had no commentary on the jeans and tennis shoes that he always wore. I was totally lost in some of the magical goings on toward the end of the book and no real explanation was given.
May 22, 2018
For the bit of historical story I was able to actually follow in this book, it was okay. Otherwise this book had very few things going for it. The flow of the story is stilted and uneven to me, and the "time travelers" two university professors(I think) were quite unlikable and so blase' about time traveling back to Ireland in the year 985(?) that I really didn't care much what happened to them. The two main Irish characters came off much better and I did finish this to see what happened to them. I skimmed large chunks of the second half of the book due to boredom with all the Gaelic terms and names, boring protagonists, etc. Quite a let down of an ending, too.
May 25, 2018
Too much talk about naughty bits and jerking off. All of it seemed incredibly irrelevant to the story. It was like the author was obsessed with pubes. The characters were all pretty much unlikeable (except maybe Ailesh and Snorri). And I hated the ending. The Book of Kells itself doesn't even feature into the story very much, only for a couple of scenes, that have absolutely no bearing on the actual events in the story. It felt like a bunch of irrelevancies muddled up in a semi-interesting plot. I didn't love it, I didn't hate it, but I probably won't read it again.
Two stars, but giving an extra one because I really liked Snorri and wish there was more of him in it.
Two stars, but giving an extra one because I really liked Snorri and wish there was more of him in it.
March 5, 2019
This was not what I expected.
It is a time travel book so the interest of historical fiction was there. However, the author does a weak job of relating much history. I was hoping the travelers would spend time examining the Book of Kells. I would have liked the story to delve more into the original scribes who created the plates.
I have seen the actual Book of Kells and I know it will never be digitized. However, seeing it on display, turned to two open pages with a secure glass case housing it for humidity and anti-theft or destruction. I would love to find a book that showed more plates than the one I saw.
It is a time travel book so the interest of historical fiction was there. However, the author does a weak job of relating much history. I was hoping the travelers would spend time examining the Book of Kells. I would have liked the story to delve more into the original scribes who created the plates.
I have seen the actual Book of Kells and I know it will never be digitized. However, seeing it on display, turned to two open pages with a secure glass case housing it for humidity and anti-theft or destruction. I would love to find a book that showed more plates than the one I saw.
September 28, 2020
Enjoyed.
First third of book was AWFUL. Poor writing, errors, jumping from POV with no warning. ONLY reason that I pushed through was the subject matter.
I didn't much like most of the characters. The actually Book of Kells doesn't make an appearance until the last quarter of the book. A lot of it is quite confusing. And I was very uncomfortable with the relationship of two of the characters (at end of book). There was no context for old Irish words - dictionary at the END of the book. I thought Brat meant sausage for a whole chapter.
Somehow, still enjoyed it with all of its MANY faults. Not great fiction, mind you. But entertaining.
First third of book was AWFUL. Poor writing, errors, jumping from POV with no warning. ONLY reason that I pushed through was the subject matter.
I didn't much like most of the characters. The actually Book of Kells doesn't make an appearance until the last quarter of the book. A lot of it is quite confusing. And I was very uncomfortable with the relationship of two of the characters (at end of book). There was no context for old Irish words - dictionary at the END of the book. I thought Brat meant sausage for a whole chapter.
Somehow, still enjoyed it with all of its MANY faults. Not great fiction, mind you. But entertaining.
April 4, 2021
Reviews of this book are all over the place. In the end, I fell in with those who founded it disjointed. As someone noted, the narrator is all over the place. And the point of view would change regularly, enough so that I actually went back a couple of times to figure if I had skipped some part of the story or not (I hadn't). I wondered if the version I read on my Kindle was formatted incorrectly, changes were that sudden. I gave it a two because it wasn't a hopeless cause, but only barely. I did finish it. Still not clear on what happened at the end and I'm not sure it was believable, even for a book of historical fantasy. Oh well.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 178 reviews