Gwen, a computer engineer and skeptic of all things esoteric, takes us on a wild journey of self-discovery in this new novel. We follow Gwen from Spain to France, through chapels and labyrinths, to Turkey and then back again to France, all the while contemplating the symbolism of everyday objects and the depths and layers of their meaning.

The story entwines itself with Gwen's mysterious visions—a 13th century red-haired maiden who disguises herself in men's clothing—which come to her during a ritual on the night of All Hallows Eve and continue to haunt her during her dreams and waking hours alike. Unsure whether to seek help from the local brujo that led the ritual or from a shrink, Gwen unwittingly decides to travel the same path as the woman of her visions. Following a 40-day, 500 mile trek across Spain on the Camino de Santiago, Gwen finds herself sitting in front of the Tomb of St. James where she was sup­posed to feel a sense of accomplishment, an answer, some resolution to the confusion of her life. Instead she weeps with disappointment.

This book has been compared to Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code most likely because of its long discussions of possibilities and theories concerning the multiple symbols and artifacts that are revealed along Gwen's journey. Midway through the book these explanations become quite long-winded, but mostly the author is able to provide a pleasant balance between the cultural anthropology of the mythologies in question and the story itself. Rather than Brown's Holy Grail murder thriller, the quest that we are invited to join here is more reminiscent of Carlos Castaneda's The Teachings of Don Juan (without the peyote).

Not only does Elyn Aviva tell a wonderful tale, she shares with us multiple cultures and allows us to experience a new world. "Dinner began with an assortment of . . . crunchy, cheese filled pastries . . . followed by remarkably fresh sea bream and fried egg-plant topped with thick, tangy yogurt. Dessert was an unfamiliar but delicious concoction of honey and pistachios and shredded wheat, accompanied by thick, sweet Turkish coffee." The Journey is an excursion across the heart of one woman's soul where you cannot help but compare her lessons to your own.

Aviva's dissertation for her Ph.D. was the first concerning the anthropology of the modern-day trek across Spain's Camino de Santiago, an expedition she has completed four times. Her spiritual training includes a Master of Divinity degree and hospital chaplain studies, and she served as an intern minister at the First Universalist Church of Denver. A student of Sufism and a labyrinth facilitator, Aviva is the author of two other books about the Camino, Dead End on the Camino (a mystery) and Following the Milky, Way: A Pilgrimage across Spain.

—Celeste Bondt in Southwest Book Views

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