Matt McAvoy Book Review

I’ll be honest, I imagine this book is going to appeal to a niche market.  Don’t get me wrong, I genuinely enjoyed it, and Victoria is a superb talent, with a wonderful heart and personality.  She is also an exceptional writer, more about which shortly.  In truth, though, I struggled a little with the second half or two-thirds, not necessarily because it was difficult to follow, but rather because in this stage the book is strongly focused on the horoscope angle of Venus.  It is a fascinating read, for sure, and I learnt an intriguing fact in the beautiful trajectory of the 8-year orbit of the planet, and its influence on modern and ancient belief systems.  However, the astrology aspect, if I’m being honest, went a little over my head.  That’s not to say you won’t enjoy it – I think you will – but my suggestion is that those without a belief in the horoscopes may find it a little more difficult to engage.  Victoria also uses celebrities as context to support her astrological offerings about the effect and impact of Venus.

The first third is far more my cup of tea, as we learn some awesome theology and ancient history; think the work of Leonardo da Vinci, and particularly the Vitruvian Man, for the depth of study of Venus’s geometry throughout time, and the celestial and spiritual presence it had in one age of civilization after another, including our own.  The author clearly has tremendous love for Venus and credits it with a huge amount of influence over her life.  It is fascinating to see the hope and gratitude afforded to this one yellow light in the sky by our ancestors.  The adulation from this author intensifies throughout, and by the close of the book you can clearly see that she affords the influence of Venus enormous power, even so far as suggesting that if we all embraced and accepted it in harmony, there would be a world without conflict.  I’m not saying the book will only appeal to those who fawn over its subject matter, but clearly those with an acceptance of it, or at the very least a curiosity, will benefit a good deal more.

Vitoria Pilcher is wonderful and a gifted author.  Her love, respect and undeniably hard work for this project are truly admirable; you can see the graft in every page, every revelation, every narrative and every new approach or context.  She doesn’t just write what she loves, she writes what she knows and passionately believes, and undoubtedly took great efforts to learn that which she didn’t.  The outcome is a composition of tremendous quality, a definitive guide to the topic the likes of which you are unlikely to find elsewhere with any great ease.  For that, the author deserves tremendous note, and for you to give her book a fair crack – assuming your interest in the subject matter is that way inclined.