R.A. MacAvoy won the John W. Campbell Award for best new writer of 1983. Her debut novel Tea With the Black Dragon was festooned with awards and nominations* and launched a career replete with highly acclaimed, imaginative and original fantasy novels.

With publication of The Book of Kells, the Damiano trilogy and The Third Eagle - her only science fiction novel – E-Reads offers the complete works of this uniquely gifted writer. You may purchase the downloads or wait for the print editions to appear, which are in production as I write this (keep an eye on this page for updates).

Set against the turbulent backdrop of the Italian Renaissance, the Damiano trilogy takes place in a world where real faith-based magic exists. Its hero is a wizard’s son, an alchemist and heir to dark magics. But he is also an innocent, a young scholar and musician befriended by the Archangel Raphael, who instructs him in the lute. To save his beloved city from war, Damiano leaves his cloistered life and sets out on a pilgrimage,seeking the aid of a powerful sorceress as he must walk the narrow path between light and shadow accompanied only by his talking dog. But his road is filled with betrayal, disillusionment and death, and Damiano is forced to confront his dark heritage, unleashing the hellish force of his awesome powers to protect those he loves. The further volumes of this tale are Damiano’s Lute and Raphael.

The Book of Kells treads the border between realism and fantasy. It centers around one of the most famous and beautiful illuminated manuscripts in history, the legendary (but entirely real) Book of Kells. Celtic history blends with magical fantasy for a strange and immersive tale of adventure.

A lovely review by D. D. Shade in the Lost Book Archives captures the essence of MacAvoy’s evocative and haunting style:

Roberta Ann MacAvoy applies words to a page as delicately as Monet added water colors to canvas and with the economy of Scrooge. When reading a work by R. A. MacAvoy, there is a deep sense of being in the hands of a master craftsman. There is also a touch of wonder. Clute and Grant note that most of MacAvoy’s novels are witty tales that cover unfamiliar ground. As such, her little known books make delightful, refreshing reading.

* Locus Magazine Award – 1983
Nebula Award Nomination – 1983
Philip K. Dick Memorial Award Nomination – 1984
Compton Crook Memorial Award-First Novel Nomination – 1984
Hugo Award Nomination – 1984
Locus Reader’s Poll-Best Fantasy Novel – 1984
Locus Reader’s Poll-Best First Novel – 1984
World Fantasy Award Nomination – 1984
Modern Fantasy-The Hundred Best Novels – 1988