Official Website of Fantasy-Adventure Author
(and creator of gaelS Rule World-Builder)
James Raquepau

3-D front cover for Blades of Destiny by James Raquepau

Lann Dàn - Blades of Destiny Revised Edition II | Dàn Cycle One

The arrival of a brutal band of pre-Viking Norse raiders entwines the Mother Goddess of Celtic Ireland in a desperate bid to rid her island of the invaders turned settlers. Danu and her fellow Tuatha Gods draw Breanna Ban Morna, a Gaelic warrior with blood from both sides, into a quest to find the missing Lann Dàn, one of three pieces of magic needed to remove the Norse leader and his ilk from their land. Check out my Blog for a link to the video trailer for Cycle One on YouTube.
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Lia Dàn - Stone of Destiny Revised Edition I | Dàn Cycle Two

Ćroí Dàn claims Breanna Ban Morna as Erin’s Hero after freeing her chief but failing to slay her Norse father. The Heart of Destiny leads her Hero to seek out Lia Dàn while evading the Dreadlord’s pursuit. Having acquired the Stone of Destiny, Breanna must wield the magic of the Triple Dàns to remove her father and his ilk from her land, a feat that will warp the Emerald Island’s fabric of time—and claim Breanna’s soul! Check out my Blog for a link to the video trailer for Cycle Two on YouTube.
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Ćroí Dàn - Heart Of Destiny | Dàn Cycle Three

With memories of Breanna Ban Morna’s previous life as a Gaelic and Norse half-breed, a new destiny drives Erin’s Hero, where she seeks the Tuatha All-Father to discover what she has become. Having wielded the magic of the Triple Dàns, she must learn to walk Erin’s Cycle of Time and transform herself into the Tuatha Goddess of Time, to be the one who saves all Gaels and Celts from ruin at the hands of powerful One God-driven dynasties like the Romans and Britons!
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Laoch Dàn – Warriors of Destiny | Dàn Cycle Four

In Laoch Dàn – Warriors of Destiny, Dàn Cycle Four, Breanna Ban Morna leads her band of warriors and druids across time to ensure Gaels Rule! But where should they start? Maybe in Egypt, before that country fell to Rome? Maybe with early One God follow, where they ensure a different path is followed to allow the Gaels and Celtics control their destiny?
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Leannáin Dàn – Lovers of Destiny | Dàn Cycle Five

Lovers of Destiny is just a dream at this point, but is planned to be a collection of personal stories about Breanna and Eoin as they lead their Band of warriors and druids through time.
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Warriors of Destiny Shield Crest
Author James Raquepau with Stone of Destiny - Dan Cycle One

About James

James Raquepau is the American author behind the Dàn Cycle, a captivating series set in ancient Celtic Ireland. In this series, legends come alive, and Gaelic heroes, gods, and Druids fight to shape the Emerald Isle’s fate. Each novel scores an impressive eighty-six rating based on Quantifiction’s predictive Iris AI-based analytics, inviting readers to step into a rich reimagining of ancient history, blending myth, magic, and adventure.

From the Author:
I grew up on a small lake in the upper Midwest of the USA and explored the nature surrounding me, with miles of trails, rivers and creeks branching out from my family home on that lake. I could travel across my lake, slip into a tributary creek or river, and go up or down it for hours with my small boat and its little outboard motor. My trusted dog sometimes joined me, standing at the prow like a warrior sentinel. Other times, he would rather sleep in the comfort of his home.

He was often fickle like that,sometimes deciding he needed a “Canadian Walkabout” in the neighborhoods around the lake and getting into trouble. Our family is of a long line of Quebecers,where the women of our line applied such a euphemism to describe their men who would go roaming about the land in search of adventure. Anyway, I remember the little rascal fondly.

Like many at the time of my youth, I experimented with some forbidden things, things that quickly grew old. Esoteric matters caught my attention for a time, and I found a young lady whohad similar thoughts about reincarnation and karma. As I pursued college and tried my hand at fine arts, I found my left hand was not so good at the fine part. With that same lady, we married, and I fell into the technology sector to make a living. Then, I switched my major from Fine Arts to English - Creative Writing.

After a failed first attempt at writing a set of great fantasy novels, work, raising a family, and life took over my time. Writing faded as a priority. Yet it resurfaced years later with a Gaelic adventure based in Celtic Ireland that started as a dream - literally. We traveled across the pond to see that land, and their people captured my heart and imagination.

That was when I wrote the first edition of Stone of Destiny and self-published it. Thw version was frankly not very good. As we moved from the Upper Midwest to the Great Northwest for an opportunity to keep working in the tech sector, the Irish still held my heart. After twenty years, I took up the notion to rewrite that first effort, I realized not only was the prose not very good, the story was rushed. Thus Destiny Cycle was born and one book became three books! And, now, most likely four books, possibly five.

That was when I wrote the first edition of Stone of Destiny and self-published it. That version was frankly not very good. As we moved from the Upper Midwest to the Great Northwest to keeping working in the tech sector, the Irish still held my heart. After twenty years, I took up the notion to rewrite that first effort, I realized not only was the prose not good, the story was rushed. Thus Destiny Cycle was born and one book became three books! And, now, most likely four books, and maybe five.
James in Ferguson colors.

After getting the first two novels in the cycle copyedited, I launched them as the First Edition. Then with more feedback, I found a (fantasic) new content editor, and Blades of Destiny Revised Edition II has now been released, along with Stone of Destiny of Destiny Revised Edition I. Both novels were professionally edited by Holly Atkinsen and Bridget Wilde at Evil Eye Editing.

In the process of this rewriting and expanding the storyline, the Gaels seeped deep into my psyche. Being a quarter Scottish of Clan Ferguson (see the picture of me in my colors above), the Gaels became my people; their history, legends, and mythologies became mine; the Celts of Europe, where the Gaels originated, became mine; the druids and their gods became mine; and the injustices inflicted on my people be came a vision.

What if the Gaels of Ireland could change the history of the world by changing the Isle of Erin’s timeline? And Britain's, starting with Rome’s first-century invasion?

It would take a Hero and the Tuatha Gods who backed her to make that happen.  Welcome to Dàn Cycle (aka Destiny Cycle)!

I hope you enjoy reading this adventure as much as I did writing it. It is where Gaels Rule!

Destiny Cycle Reviews

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Review on Reedsy Discover & Goodreads

Destiny
Cycle
One Revised
Edition II

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Review on Reedsy Discover & Goodreads

Destiny
Cycle
Two
Revised
Edition I

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Reviews Coming 2025


Destiny Cycle
Three (coming
in early 2025)

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Events

Planned Book Signing Events - Comming this Spring

Latest news

True Hearts Beat from Heart of Destiny Preview

True Hearts Beat Music from the upcoming third novel - Heart of Destiny due out in early 2025!
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Lia Dàn – Stone of Destiny Revised Edition II | Dàn Cycle Two - Video Trailer!

Lia Dàn - Stone of Destiny Revised Edition II: Dàn Cycle Two | Video Trailer
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Discover Stone of Destiny Quantifiction Score

Discover Stone of Destiny - A Fantasy Adventure Worth Exploring based on its Quantifiction Score!
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Do you want to get news updates about what's happening in Destiny Cycle world? I plan to create a newsletter for occasional updates, advanced storyline directions, and fan-only content (no spam, I promise).

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Note: For more information on the Tuatha pantheon and their Gaels, there are many online sources, such as Wikipedia, to explore the mythical and historical settings of Ireland that authors have used over the years to engage in fantasy world-building. Likewise, in Britain, with Arthurian myths and legends, as well as Celtic and Roman ones. If you have questions about how I came up with aspects of the world in which Destiny Cycle takes place, get in touch via this page.