From the Publisher: “Follow Cora as she works to restore the matriarchal society her uncle destroyed in this epic feminist fantasy by debut author and womens’ rights activist, Catherine Raphael. Tired of reading male-dominated fantasy stories, Raphael set out to create Journey to the Heart Stone (Sparkpress, Sept 27, 2022), where a young woman vows to bring together three female-led tribes in hopes of abolishing her evil uncle and restore their peaceful existence.
In the beginning, the Goddess danced the world into existence. Peace reigned for generations through matriarchal rule within the Minca, Dute, and Carroo tribes. But then one man’s lust for power destroyed this balance: Vestor assassinated his sister, Mother of the Minca tribe. His army ravaged the Dute and Carroo tribes. A once-idyllic world was thrust into war, famine, and despair.
Yet today, there is hope. Vestor’s niece, Cora, has a vision: if she can convince an emissary from each tribe to rendezvous at the Heart Stone, she can overthrow her evil uncle, take her rightful place as Mother Minca, and restore harmony.
But the Dutes have disappeared deep into their mountains. There are rumors that the Carroos are extinct. And Cora must move swiftly—lest Vestor learn that she’s pregnant with the Mincan heir. For fans of Priory of the Orange Tree, readers will root for Cora as she makes her way to the Heart Stone and hope for peace in a chaotic world.”
More info About the Author: “Catherine Raphael grew up in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and has a bachelor’s degree in fine arts/metalsmithing. She worked as a jeweler in Pennsylvania for sixteen years, during which time she also traveled to Arizona to do construction work on Arcosanti, Paolo Soleri’s ‘City of the Future.’
She is one of the founding mothers of the Women and Girls Foundation of Southwest Pennsylvania, and she has served on the boards of the Ms. Foundation for Women and the Women Donors Network and volunteered with other progressive women’s rights organizations. In 2014, she attended a master class at Hedgebrook, and the friendships she made there coalesced into the Roving Writers, her writing group. Pre-COVID, she was a regular attendee at the Iceland Writers Retreat in Reykjavik, Iceland.
Her stories have won prizes in Writer Advice and the Ageless Authors competition, and her work has been short-listed in Women On Writing and long-listed in Bumble Bee. This is her first novel. She currently resides in Pittsburgh, PA.”
The table looked beautiful. Tiny clay birds that Cora, Kip and Steff had made when they were children encircled a vase of summer flowers. The cerulean blue ceramic dishes and crimson cider–filled goblets sparkled in the afternoon sun. During the cold winter months, Cora and Rilda had embroidered new linens with chains of pink and yellow wildflowers for the Summer Solstice. Flatware polished to a high sheen sat by the dishes. A loaf of hearty brown bread was on the table, adjacent to a block of creamy butter and a tureen of spicy summer vegetable soup.
Cora and Steff sat on one side of the table, Rilda and Dov on the other. They held each other’s hands. Cora, in her role of Mother Minca, gave the blessing.
“We are grateful for the love and friendship that brings us together.
We are grateful for the food and the nourishment it provides.
We are grateful to Kameeth, Mother of us all.
May peace be with us on this Summer Solstice eve.
Earth, Air, Fire, and Water.
Blessed be.”
Cora sank back in her chair and asked, “Dov, is something wrong?”
“We can talk later, dear one.”
“What is it?”
Dov glanced at Rilda before turning to Cora. “You asked me to find out about Kip. We will talk—”
“You know how he was killed? Tell me.”
Dov took a deep breath and reached for her hand. “Kip and two others were rescuing a young boy, Ebru. This child was one of our best spies and a close friend of Kip’s. It’s a miracle Ebru and the others got away. Kip sacrificed himself to save them.”
“I should have been there, Dov,” Cora said, pulling her hand back. “Why did I listen to you and Rilda? I should have gone with him.”
“Cora, when your parents were killed, you became Mother Minca. Rilda and I are honor bound to keep you safe,” Dov said.
“But we’ve been in exile for almost thirty years.”
“You’re Mother Minca,” Rilda said.
“Exactly.” Cora clenched her hands in her lap as she regarded Dov and Rilda.
“Dov, I can shoot a bow as well as you can. Rilda, you taught me to wield a knife. I can fight. I can think. It’s time for me to use these skills for a better purpose. I am done with sitting around waiting. For what? By all rights, Evil V should have relinquished his leadership to me years ago, but he will not cede power. I should be fighting with the Resistance. Fighting for my place as Mother Minca. Fighting for my people.”
“She’s right,” Steff agreed. “We should both be with the Resistance.”
“Vestor is destroying our world and blamed the Carroos and Dutes for killing our parents.”
“We know it was his doing,” Steff said.
“Cora, please . . .” Rilda began.
“Enough,” Dov said, running a hand through his hair. “We’ve talked about this bef—” Lali barked in the kitchen. They all froze at the clatter of horses arriving in the yard. Rilda jumped up and rushed to the kitchen window.
“It’s your uncle,” Rilda called out.
Outside, Vestor and his companions dismounted. The youngest man took charge of the horses while Vestor and a second came to the door. Vestor entered without knocking and aimed a kick at the growling dog. Nodding at Rilda, he entered the dining room and saw his young relations sitting at the table with Dov.
“Ah, Dov,” Vestor drawled, “I thought you were dead.”
This excerpt from Journey to the Heart Stone is published here courtesy of the author and the publisher and should not be reprinted without permission.
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