Mark F. Ettin

Merlin's Calling Mark F. Ettin

Dr. Wallace Branford receives a mailing from the alluring Philemont, purported to be Merlin's diary. Trapped beneath earth and under a spell cast by his paramour Nimue, the seer reveals his life, times and practices. A modern day Grail search ensues, with truth about Merlin and the wisdom he holds for the coming age as its aim. Merlin's prophetic voice and subtle second narration provide a plot within a plot. Questing characters scour the summer country of England, the northern mountains of Wales and the rocky coast of Cornwall for clues and inspirations. Eventual meetings are at once tense, exciting, soulful and magical. Protagonists battle their own demons and histories as dark, reactionary forces attempt to usurp or discredit the find. Merlin's calling becomes urgent when he senses turbulence in the surface world and circumstances that might free him. The story builds toward conclusion with a shamanic ritual at Stonehenge.