Elixir: In the Valley at the End of Time

I am a great fan of Kapka Kassabova's writing and in this her latest, she does not disappoint. This is the most ambitious work so far. Its scope and breadth is awe inspiring drawing in material from anthropology, psychology, botany, and alchemy yet weaving them together in such a skilled and subtle way that they become like illuminating threads in her often poetic beautifully written prose. Her ability to evoke the atmosphere of a little known corner of Europe has already been more than adequately demonstrated in her previous books but in this one she conveys the sadness emptiness and despair of a disenfranchised people, while simultaneously painstakingly recreating a disappearing world in which plant knowledge and harmony play a central role and the whole being more than the sum of its parts is quite exhilarating. The fact that she as a Bulgarian expat living in Scotland can keep one foot in and one out allows an unusual depth to the writing. This is not a light read but rewards come to those who persist! Wonderful and magical.

A spellbinding book. Poetic, woven with love and tragedy. The most profoundly moving book I've read in years.

Dire, absolutely dreadful