The manuscript is back from the beta readers, and I’m hard at work on the edits.
Edits of what, you may ask? This:
Tales from the Labyrinth is a collection of stories about the Minoan deities as we’ve gotten to know them in Ariadne’s Tribe. If you’re not already familiar with these fascinating divine beings, you can find our full pantheon here.
Our mythology is intricately interwoven with our sacred calendar, so the majority of these tales follow the Minoan wheel of the year, including the equinoxes, the solstices, the Minoan version of the Eleusinian Mysteries, the sailing season, and more. You’ll also find a creation myth or two (yes, more than one!) as well as stories about the Horned Ones, the Hands of Great Skill, the Dancers, and other “specialist” deities.
Here’s the Table of Contents, to give you a taste of what’s included:
The Path The Gift The Beginning The Realms The Horned Ones The Hands of Great Skill The Dance The Blessing of the Ships The Sailing Therasia’s Power The Summer Confluence The Water Mirror The Feast of Grapes The Mysteries The New Year The Return to Port The Depths of Winter The Divine Child The Blessing of the Waters The Harvest The Blooming Time
Each myth begins with a full-page, full-color illustration to set the mood for what’s to come. While I’ve taken a little inspiration from Art Nouveau for the cover, the interior illustrations are more purely Minoan in style, though still with a modern vibe. The Minoan frescoes would have been so much more colorful 3500 years ago than they are now after fading for so many centuries, and I wanted to capture some of that vibrance in my art.
Here’s the illustration for “The Return to Port,” the story about our sacred festival of Harbor Home at the end of the sailing season:
As you may have guessed, this illustration is inspired by a Minoan fresco, specifically the Flotilla fresco from Akrotiri. All the interior illustrations are inspired by actual Minoan works of art, though of course I’ve added my own style to them as well.
I’ll share more art as we move closer to the release date (21 June 2025). This is the most fun I’ve had with a book project in a long time.
I hope you enjoy reading these stories as much as I’ve enjoyed writing and illustrating them!
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About Laura Perry
I'm the founder and Temple Mom of Ariadne's Tribe, a worldwide inclusive Minoan spiritual tradition. I'm also an author, artist, and creator who works magic with words, paint, ink, music, textiles, and herbs. My spiritual practice includes spirit work and herbalism through the lens of lifelong animism. I write Pagan / polytheist / magical non-fiction and fiction across several different subjects and genres. My Minoan entry in the Moon Books Pantheons series is now available for pre-order and will be released on 26 August 2025. While that process percolates along, I’m working on an illustrated book of modern Minoan myths. I’m also an avid herb and vegetable gardener and living history demonstrator.
Sounds very promising.
This all looks wonderful!