Read The Mysteries, A Novel of Ancient Eleusis Page 1
The Mysteries
A Novel of Ancient Eleusis
by
David Sheppard
Complete in One Volume
Previously published in two volumes:
Daughter of Darkness
and
The Dadouchos
Copyright 2012 by David Sheppard
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 978-1-4764-2558-0
ISBN-10: 1-4764-2558-2
Cover Illustration and Map by Richard Sheppard
Book Web site:
https://www.themysteriesofeleusis.com
FOR
All the brave women throughout history
whose stories have never been told.
Acknowledgements
The concept of this book is the outgrowth of a conversation I had with a friend of mine several years ago at a coffee shop in Boulder, Colorado. After listening to me talk obsessively about Herodotus, she suggested I write a novel set in ancient Greece. The essence of the story came to me immediately. She also midwifed it through the first draft. My sister-in-law, Nancy Sheppard, read it in episodes as it was written and offered encouragement. The expertise of my editor, Marilyn Mueller, has once again been indispensable. A special thanks to Richard Sheppard for the map and the cover design and illustration.
Author's Note
I am the author of Novelsmithing, The Structural Foundation of Plot, Character, and Narration. I used the methods of Novelsmithing to write The Mysteries. I have researched the time period religiously. Practically all sources are a part of my home library. Anyone interested in the size and content of my library can find it listed at:
For field research, I visited Greece twice, once for ten weeks in October 1993 and then for sixteen days in October 2009. I took a considerable number of photos and video clips, some of which I've provided for viewing at www.themysteriesofeleusis.com.
My readers may follow me on twitter at user name "SheppardDavid" and on my blog www.novelsmithingblog.com. When I travel, I post at
https://www.palehorseblog.com
Ancient Greece in the 5th Century BC was a collection of separate city-states, loosely bound by a common language and religion. The ancient Greeks called the encompassing geographical area Hellas, and its people the Hellenes. No one called it Greece. I have used both: Greece/Greeks for narration and Hellas/Hellenes for dialogue.