Drawing on twenty-six years of experience as a Jungian analyst, the author shows how the stories and images of ancient mythology can illuminate the depths of the psyche. In particular she shows how those in the grip of addiction confront the great Irish goddess Maeve, whose name means "the inebriating one" and whose drink was the sacred mead. Maeve represents the profoundly human and archetypal need for experiences of ecstasy and sovereignty.

Written with passion and clarity, the author gives us Queen Maeve in full, and invites us to comprehend the wildness of the Celtic imagination. She brings with her the sensitivity of a psychoanalyst who has companioned many souls suffering the dislocations and addictions of modern life. For those who have had to battle with their own addictions or with those of their loved ones or clients, this book offers the promise of understanding how that battle is suffered, fought, and won.