Book excerpt: Only daughter of Ireland's ruling queen, Isolde has always known that she will take over the rule of the sacred Island of the West when her time comes. Until then she practises her skills as a healer and struggles to hold back her mother, a passionate, headstrong woman under the sway of her champion, Sir Marhaus, who is determined to make war. Attacking Cornwall, Sir Marhaus wounds the king's nephew, Sir Tristan of Lyonesse, so badly that he can only be saved by Isolde, the most noted healer of the isles. And when the King of Cornwall decides to marry Isolde, unaware of the young couple's growing love, the stage is set for the mythic tale of star-crossed lovers that the world knows so well. Like Arthur's queen Guenevere, her friend from their girlhood days on Avalon, Isolde is fated to a lifelong struggle between duty and desire before finding peace. Tristan too relies on his dearest friend at the Round Table, Sir Lancelot of the Lake, as he strives to balance his loyalty to his king against the dictates of his heart. Set in Ireland, Cornwall and Camelot, ISOLDE offers a compelling new version of the familiar legend rich in Celtic magic and mythology, yet firmly grounded in the well-loved Arthurian world. Merlin, Arthur, Guenevere, and all their knights appear once again to delight those who enjoyed Rosalind Miles's previous forays into this enchanted terrain.