Realms of the Round Table/ Voyages with the Celtic Saints -John Matthews

Immerse yourselves into the spellbinding world of contemporary magician and bard, John Matthews, and embark with him on a fantastic journey through time to Celtic Britain and Ireland and the misty world of the Arthurian cycle.

Realms of the Round Table is John's fully illustrated collection of rare and previously unpublished tales of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, retold for a new generation, introduced by Sir John Boorman, director of the classic film, Excalibur, and illustrated with paintings and drawings by celebrated Tolkien artist, John Howe.

It is a time of magic and adventure, of chivalry and courtly love, when great evil must be met with heroic deeds. It is a time of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.

Realms of the Round Table presents for the first time an extensive collection of forgotten tales, retold for a new generation of readers by the modern-day Merlin and Arthurian authority that is John Matthews. Contained within are a rich feast of Arthurian love stories and tales that delve deep into the darker mysteries of the Great Wood and the denizens of fantastic lands beyond.

Here also is a heady mixture of magic, faery lore, wisdom and mystery – capturing extraordinary tales of Camelot’s greatest knights, such as Sir Lancelot and Sir Gawain, and others less well known, and soaring from high adventure to mystical accounts of the Grail. There is even an Arthurian Christmas tale!

These age-old stories, companions to those collected in the sister-volume, The Great Book of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, honour the work of Thomas Malory in his legendary Le Morte D’Arthur. They are dramatically brought to life by the luminous paintings and drawings of internationally acclaimed Tolkien artist, John Howe, to present a glorious reimagining of the most influential work of English fantasy ever written.

Voyages into Vision recounts the inspired lives of the Celtic saints, who carried the torch of the new faith of Christianity to the wild tribespeople of Britain and Ireland. Finding many parallels between their own wisdom and that of the Druids and other teachers of the Celtic people, they adapted their own teachings to include and reshape that of the older wisdom.

The book features stories from the lives of 14 inspiring Celtic saints who lived between the third and seventh centuries CE. Acclaimed esoteric scholar John Matthews retells and provides commentary on these stories, making them relevant and accessible to modern readers, providing meditation notes and questions at the end of each chapter for those wishing to deepen their understanding of the stories and question their own voyage.

Voyages is updated from its prior edition with new illustrations by renowned artist Joe Machine and two additional entries on women saints, St. Gwenfrewi and St. Goibniu. It also includes an inspiring foreword by David Spangler, one of the founding figures of the modern New Age movement.

Don't miss this one!