A parallel universe to our own, a mistaken intrusion from our world to theirs and the unintended consequences that ensue. That in a nutshell is the premise of Lawhead’s Song of Albion series, but that hardly tells you how full and dynamic that new world is, or the way the characters pull us into their lives and befriend you. Although these books were published in the early 1990’s, they have retained a timeless quality and still resonate today.

Lewis Gillies, an American graduate student in Celtic studies at Oxford University, needed to be preparing for his meeting with his adviser, but instead found himself roaring up the M6 in his roommate’s Jaguar to confirm the sighting of a massive auroch in Scotland. Simon, his roommate, always seemed to pull him into these larks, but it was Friday, and driving towards an adventure was much preferable to having to acknowledge how little progress he was making on his research.

After reaching the village where the auroch had been sighted and getting directions to the farm where it had appeared, Simon and Lewis are surprised to discover that rather than this being just the normal sleaze reported in sensational rags along with alien sightings, this seems to actually be true. Soon Simon and Lewis are focused on the small ring of stones and cairn that exists on the farm as the locus of where the animal seemed to appear. While at the stones, Lewis gets distracted talking with some other researchers who are also investigating the stones, and realizes that Simon has disappeared.  Hoping that Simon will turn up full of his adventures, Lewis remains in Scotland for a few days but when he does not show up Lewis returns to Oxford. In the middle of Lewis’ turmoil over what has happened, a small scholarly man named Nettles who is deeply steeped in Celtic lore appears and encourages Lewis to return to site of Simon’s disappearance to see if he can find out more specifically what happened. This time with Nettles’s assistance, Lewis enters the cave like structure at the center of the ring and is pulled into another universe: Albion.

Although there are many books that talk about parallel universes to our own, most notably The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, or more recently Outlander or Dark Matter, Lawhead’s series explores the idea that one universe has a direct impact on the health and welfare of the other. In this case that the welfare of Albion and its people has a direct impact on the health and welfare of England itself. Thus Albion is not only a separate universe, but it is also the lodestone or the “soul,” if you will, of England. It is a  fascinating idea and it makes the story of Lewis that much more urgent and pivotal. Lawhead is a consummate writer, giving us a richly imagined world and characters like Lew, Simon and others who are interesting and multi-dimensional. Addictive and entertaining, these books also have a deeper message about what guides us, and how our choices have significance beyond what w might understand. A message that we need now more than ever!

Brenda’s Rating: ****(4 Out of 5 Stars)

Recommend these books to? Lauren and Marian.

Book Study Worthy? yes

Read in ebook format.