MEGGE Of BURY DOWN: Book One of the Bury Down Chronicles by Rebecca Kightlinger – Historical Fiction, Paranormal Fiction, Coming of Age

Megge, a young girl living in thirteenth-century Britain, struggles to find her own path in Megge of Bury Down by Rebecca Kightlinger.

The daughter of a healer with both practical and spiritual abilities, Megge should by rights have become her apprentice on her sixth birthday, as had others in her family before her. Megge should have become a woman of Bury Down, the sacred burial site of the previous owners of The Book of Seasons and The Book of Time. Her mother, one of two twin girls, had been entrusted with The Book of Seasons, an ancient tome of knowledge of the physical world created and maintained by mystical seers. Brighida, Megge’s cousin and the daughter of her mother’s sister, has been charged with keeping and inscribing The Book of Time, a celestial guide.

The girls, almost identical in age, are expected to take up the mantle as protectors. However, while Brighida is an obedient and skillful apprentice, Megge fears the power contained within her mother’s book.

Megge hears strange voices and feels frightening sensations whenever she touches the Book of Seasons. She refuses her destiny, much to her family’s confusion and dismay, and chooses instead the life of a shepherd and weaver. The only person who seems to support Megge’s choices is Morwen, the elderly bard and shepherdess who lives with the family, but even she, with her cryptic messages, seems to be pushing Megge toward another terrible fate.

However, when dangerous strangers start spouting hate and disturbing the peaceful village near Megge’s home, she may have no choice but to embrace her role. As destiny and fate work against her, Megge must decide whether to take the easy path or become the person everyone else believes her to be.

Megge’s fear underpins the story, stemming from the unknown, the fear of what happens to her when she first touches the book but also the fear of the fate for which everyone thinks her destined.

This novel follows Megge’s growth as she grapples with that fear throughout her early years. Initially, her determination not to become a healer seems to her mother to be nothing but childish stubbornness. However, with age and a series of misfortunes, her fear transforms into worry over what she may inadvertently do to injure her family.

Her fear, and Brighida’s perfection – both physically and as an apprentice – create a level of self-consciousness that makes Megge doubt her every ability. As a plain, shapeless girl, Megge thinks herself beneath the role of a seer, choosing instead to hone her skills in the field and at the loom. Though her work helps give the family much-needed funds, it is far from the mystical beauty that her family expects of her.

She doubts her path as a Shepherd, with an unshakable voice inside her saying that she truly is a protector.

Megge sees glimpses of what she might become. This second-sight angers and confuses her as it both confirms her abilities and brings into sharp focus her role in destroying the ideal life she enjoys with her family. She often debates following her mother just to feel loved, as though she belongs in this family of exceptional women with astounding abilities. But the fear of her looming disaster weighs more heavily than any rejection could.

The world-building in this series is exceptional. The reader is immediately immersed in the complex environment of Bury Down.

As the daughter of twin caul bearers, Megge and Brighida should be sworn protectors of twin books at once the same and yet vastly different, just like the girls themselves. Their family obligation dates back one thousand years, and the novel begins with a scene from that era. Herbalism combines with spiritualism to create a world where both work seamlessly together in a completely plausible way.

The history of Murga, the first seer, weaves with Megge’s present in a retelling that allows the reader to learn of Megge’s important role just as Megge does. The rich tales spun by Morwen also develop the plot and create engaging moments of realization. It’s a world that will leave the reader thinking about Megge’s story long after closing the novel.

Megge of Bury Down by Rebecca Kightlinger won First Place in the 2021 CIBA Paranormal Awards for Supernatural Fiction.