The long awaited sequel
The Extraordinary Awakening of Annabel Jones is a series like no other. Journeys, the second book in the trilogy, is now ready for publication
Whether Annabel is scaling mountains in Norway on a quest to heal her ancestors, confronting her sexuality by studying tantra in Austria, or assisting shamanic journeys in Provence, her quest across countries for love and happiness is as insightful as it is profound. This series is guaranteed to make you laugh, cry, and take you deeper within yourself.
Journeys is one of the most interesting books I have ever read
— Elizabeth Gage Jewelry Designer
Andrena Woodhams
Author of the Annabel Jones trilogy
Andrena is a Kansas born, Brazilian raised writer that has lived in seven countries and speaks six languages fluently. Andrena worked as a reporter and presenter for BBC World Television. In the last two decades she has produced visionary travel events while engaging in deep shamanic, tantric and spiritual inner work.
The Extraordinary Awakening of Annabel Jones Trilogy
A feast of honesty and sophisticated drama with purpose. This waking up of a contemporary woman made this a book I couldn’t put down
— Constance Walsh
Book 1: Fire
First book of the trilogy, Annabel’s journey to womanhood, from the darkness of death to the sacred sexuality of tantra, is a book to be devoured. Buy now on Amazon.
Book 2: Journeys
Ready for publication, Journeys begins with Annabel losing everything that is dear to her. Join her as she embraces the magical reality of her past, encountering living ancestors and the divine feminine along the way.
Book 3: Love
Andrena’s life fuses with Annabel’s when Eugen appears in her life—in real time.
Testimonials
Read this book for a deeper understanding of tantric practice, appreciating it for the love, healing, and deep forgiveness it provides. Superb story, deeper truths.
A O’Loughlin
What a fabulous book from a new and exciting author. Her writing style alone will catch you and soon you will not be able to put the book down. We will definitely be reading it at the book club I facilitate.
R Coker
A damned good book, well-written and engaging. It’s written with a real insight into human nature through the eyes of tantric therapy. I personally found it to be a therapeutic read and will no doubt read it again.
M Horsnell
Frequently Asked Questions
The Series
It is a fictional narrative of my spiritual journey. Ironically, what most people think is fiction is real and vice-versa. The storyline and the characters—with the exception of Cassandra in the book Fire—are fictional. Most if not all of the magic, however, is real.
Wherever I went, I saw a black cat. This didn’t mean I was looking for black cats—or that I was hoping to see one, but everywhere I went there really was a black cat. This in itself had me and all my friends scratching our heads in wonder, but when I began to have bats following me I knew something was up in the moon and the stars. And then when my ancestors began to appear on hilltops, to me and also to my family, well, that’s when I realized that magic is real. We don’t need to understand something to allow it into our lives. The more present I became, the more I began to accept what was being offered to me, no matter how crazy it appeared. And when I spent years organizing international events, this same acceptance of magic and miracles allowed for hundreds of people to experience this too. Magic and mystery and possible in everyone’s lives. All it takes is a change of perception and a willingness to go beyond what the mind understands is real.
No, but I wish she was. Annabel has far more courage than I ever did. When I was a script editor many years ago at the BBC, when I questioned why a certain character did certain things, a writer told me he didn’t have any choice. At the time I thought it was nonsense, but now I know it’s true. I didn’t invent Annabel, she created herself. However, as the years have gone by (over a decade has passed between writing the first and the second novel) the two of us have fused and I have become her—something I like!
I did write the entire story in three separate manuscripts over a decade. I wrote it initially because I couldn’t believe what was happening, and I kept re-writing it as my understanding of what was happening deepened. As the years passed, more and more strange things began to happen. I began to realize that I’m living the story that I wrote over fifteen years ago. It’s a bit like magical realism in reverse. No wonder my publisher who suggested I write fiction because no one would believe me.
Fire is the Series version of the original book, which was originally entitled The Extraordinary Awakening of Annabel Jones which was a new abridged version of The Extraordinary Ordinary. It’s taken decades to live this story and even longer to write it!
The Philosophy
Much of what I write is based upon my sixteen-year apprenticeship with a contemporary shaman, who I have called Cassandra in Journeys. Her teachings have profoundly shaped how I see the world. Like Carlos Castenada who wrote about his training in shamanism with Don Juan in the bestseller series The Teachings of Don Juan. For a while I entertained the thought that I was becoming a Don Juan and I realized I needed to record what was happening to me.
Yes, but only as a part of a sacred ceremony and under the tutelage of my spiritual teacher though institutes like John Hopkins have performed clinical, double blind studies that confirm the therapeutic benefits of entheogens, this is still cutting-edge therapy. Ayahuasca it is a tool, not the destination, and is not for everyone. Although journeywork with ayahuasca is the cornerstone of my teacher’s wisdom, it’s only a small part of her teachings. The focus is consciously returning home to the body. Everything else is a distraction.
The first thing people think about when tantra is mentioned is Sting’s comment about tantric sex. Tantra is an ancient philosophy which is about energy, spirituality and sexuality. Sex is only 10% of tantra, and in Buddhist Tantra there is no sex at all. Since the West doesn’t know much about energy, that’s why it gets caught up in all the sexual parts. Tantra is about embracing everything in life—including the more challenging bits such as anger and sexuality. For a tantrica—tantra is female based, so a woman is a tantrica but a man is someone who studies tantra—sexuality is sacred. In Tantra, which means to weave, sexuality is a way not to just receive an orgasm, but to enjoy the union of the energies between both partners during sexual union. This union of the male and female energies, called shiva and shakti, can connect a person with their higher self or God. I come from a conservative traditional background so it’s ironic that my path ended going into the dark feminine, first tantra, then shamanism, to find my way home. They say God has a sense of humor, and all you need to do is read the black skid marks that I left behind me as I was dragged along my path to know it’s true.
I had a difficult time looking for a word to describe this. It has been called the Sacred Feminine, or the Divine Feminine, but I didn’t want to use this because I didn’t want people to confuse this with being a woman. I like the Great Mother because it is how the ancients saw our planet, which is as a living entity that nourishes us and gives us life. Basically it is an understanding that we are part of our surroundings, not separate from them. It is about what connects us all, rather than what separates us, and embracing this leads to a profound shift of awareness that brings peace.
All of our lives are magical if we see them in a different way, a more open way than we have been raised to see them. I have learned, not from reading books, but from experience, that this sense of magic and wonder is available at all times to all of us, no matter what is happening in the outside world. It’s all a question of perception. People say that reading my books makes a difference in their lives, and when I hear this, it makes it all worth it.