The Falling Woman

The Falling Woman, Pat Murphy, Tor Books, 1986

Elizabeth Butler is the leader of an archaeological dig on the site of an ancient Mayan city in the present-day Yucatan Peninsula. She basically ran away from home years before, leaving a husband and young daughter, because she was very uncomfortable with the domestic life. One day, Diane, her daughter, shows up at the site to try and connect with the mother she never knew, and to tell Elizabeth of the death of her ex-husband. Because of Elizabeth's inexperience as a mother, the relationship between the women is strained.

Meantime, Elizabeth has the ability to see shadows, or ghosts, of the people who lived there centuries before. She is actually able to converse with one of them, a Mayan priestess whose skeleton Elizabeth finds in a crypt.

The Mayan calendar consists of several cycles at the same time. The very bad part of the calendar is approaching; to appease the Mayan gods, a human sacrifice is expected from Elizabeth.

This is an excellent novel. It is a very good mixture of myth and reality, of ancient and present-day culture, with a bit of fantasy and horror included. Here is a brilliant piece of writing.