The Medallion: Book One: The Prophesy

I am a specially carved Medallion within my carvings are special symbols that protect the wearer from harm. Before the person chosen to wear me is born, another has predetermined their destiny. In this case, the legacy of the person is a young girl named Anwen. She will receive this Medallion and promise never to remove it no matter what. Her future has been set and her life preordained by the ruler of the Isle of Tiernay de Ochern, Lady Glynis.

As our story begins Cathbad the storyteller gathers the young ones around and relates the tale of Anwen and Alana to a captive audience. Storytelling is how many tales; myths and legends got passed down through the ages. This is the story of two sisters, who were not separated at birth, or by their parents, but by circumstances beyond their control.

The story begins with their parents receiving a visit from a wizard who comes from the Sacred Isle of Tiernay de Ochern and bestows the Medallion with its beautifully engraved and carved symbols on it. The wizard explains that the ruler of the Isle saw a vision in special watering pool that foretold her of the destiny and future of one of their soon to be born daughters.

When Anwen is born the Medallion is placed around her neck and little does she or her parents know the hidden powers it holds within. But, before her parents learn the prophecy or legacy behind it, raiders that enter their village and pillage it until nothing is left kill them. Anwen escapes whether because she happens to be down at the pool getting water or just because of the powers of the Medallion. We do not know. Alana is not so fortunate and is captured and enslaved by the raiders and finally sold to a mean and dangerous man. Both sisters, determined to live and to find each other go on a never-ending quest to survive but not in the same way.

Anwen seeks out her Grand Mama and hopes she will take her in. Her Grand Mama, being a healer or their form of a medical person in the Middle Ages, is proud to have Anwen as an apprentice and she soon becomes an asset to her in her own right and a great healer as well. Alana is ravaged and tortured by this man named Black Jack and finally escapes and winds up in an inn owned by two very special and kind people. Taking her in as if she were their own daughter she is nursed back to health and decides to stay and help them. But, that safety net is short lived when raiders come to the inn and kill Gandolf the owner and his wife succumbs to illness.

Anwen loves working with Keelin her Grand Mama and Ifan the man she hopes to marry. But when she is summoned to the Isle by the ruler, everything in her life will change and her destiny is no longer her own. The meaning of the Medallion will be made clear and it will be up to her what her fate will be. Or so she thinks! Her Lady takes her on a tour of the Isle and shows her the many places that no one else knows about including the special pool where she can come and contemplate and see her visions for the people and for her future. But, that is only the beginning. She insists on going home and seeing her Grand Mama and Ifan and asking them to come and live with her on this Isle. But what happens will surprise you and the answers she gets will astound the reader. Just how loyal is Ifan to her and what will her Grand Mama’s fate be in all of this?

Alana, after the death of the two innkeepers, decides to run the Inn with the help of some travelers who show up at her door right after their deaths. Added to the mix is a girl named Nesta who is also a healer and has been, unknown to her, chosen to take Anwen’s place as the healer in Crichton Green. Could this be fate or could this be the way the sisters are finally reunited after many years of wonder and being apart? Each one with their lives set and each one with a different destiny. But, both determined, filled with inner strength and love and loyalty for those who have helped them survive. Never realizing that she might find more than just her Grandmother, Alana decides to accompany Nesta while leaving the inn in the capable hands of Dylan and his family. Selia, Nesta’s apprentice, will become the new healer.

What happens when they arrive will keep you on the edge of your seat? What happens when the sister’s finally reunite and what unresolved issues are left hanging this reviewer will not divulge?

However, the reunion is short lived and the truth about Anwen’s fate is revealed? Will Ifan leave his family and live with Anwen on the island? Will her sister go back to her life in the inn or go to the Isle with Anwen?

But, who is Selia, the new apprentice to Nesta, and what are her hidden secrets that she is so readily willing to embark on a life as a healer with limited training? Who is the helpful Blacksmith named Brady who befriends her and is willing to make a bargain to learn more about Alana and Nesta at any cost?

What is the legacy and what is the meaning behind the Medallion? You will have to read this book to find out what happens next, when and if Anwen takes over as Lady of the Isle. Even this reviewer does not know and if I did I would never tell. What does the future hold for Alana and Anwen only Sunni Morris knows. All of the answers to these and other questions will have to be answered when the author writes Book Two.

This book is not only about the two sisters and their different destinies in life. It is about courage, persistence, bravery and determination. The determination to survive, live and never give up on life, each other and having the faith in others too.

Only the Medallion, our author and I know the true destiny of all of these people. Only I hold their lives and destinies within my engravings and more. What will happen will be foretold when the storyteller resumes her tale in Book Two.

I give this book FIVE GOLD MEDALLIONS with Candor’s special safety symbols on them to keep our author and her characters safe from harm. ( )