A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica by Ruth Downie, Kate Quinn, Stephanie Dray, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, Russell Whitfield & E. Knight

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: November 14, 2015

Britannia: land of mist and magic clinging to the western edge of the Roman Empire. A red-haired queen named Boudica led her people in a desperate rebellion against the might of Rome, an epic struggle destined to consume heroes and cowards, young and old, Roman and Celt... and these are their stories. A calculating queen sees the sparks of revolt in a king’s death. A neglected slave girl seizes her own courage as Boudica calls for war. An idealistic tribune finds manhood in a brutal baptism of blood and slaughter. A conflicted warrior hovers between loyalty to tribe and loyalty to Rome. A death-haunted Druid challenges the gods themselves to ensure victory for his people. An old champion struggles for everlasting glory in the final battle against the legions. A fiery princess fights to salvage the pieces of her mother’s dream as the ravens circle. A novel in seven parts, overlapping stories of warriors and peacemakers, queens and slaves, Romans and Celts who cross paths during Boudica’s epic rebellion. But who will survive to see the dawn of a new Britannia, and who will fall to feed the ravens?

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Image copyright Emily Hare,
used with artist's permission

Historically speaking, anthologies haven’t worked well for me, but books like Grand Central and A Day of Fire have slowly changed my opinion of the format. I wouldn’t consider myself a true fan just yet, but I’m not outright opposed that’s saying something considering past experiences.

Though a novel in an of itself, the book is structured with the reader in mind. Should any section fail to interest, the audience is free to move ahead without losing the primary story line. I personally wouldn't recommend it as each section has certain merits, but I appreciate the effort put into the construction of the novel just the same.

Much like A Day of Fire, A Year of Ravens centers on a particular noteworthy event. The stories featured in the anthology are set against Boudica’s Rebellion and while I’ve seen the drama fictionalized before, I couldn’t help appreciating how these seven authors captured it from so many uniquely diverse points of view.

Each contribution is characterized by the author's individual style, but each is linked by both characters and contents. The end result is as multifaceted and varied as the writers themselves. Violent and striking, this is not a story for those opposed to brutality and bloodshed, but that said, I found it exceptionally well-drawn and historically satisfying.

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The Queen by Stephanie Dray

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I had trouble with Dray’s contribution, but please, hear me out before you jump to any conclusions. The short features Queen Cartimandua and illustrates rising tensions between the tribes and the Romans. It’s informative, emotional and engaging. Problem is, Dray’s interpretation of Cartimandua is a force in and of herself, she’s worthy of more than the few pages she receives here and I was genuine frustrated at not being able it indulge in more of her story as written by this particular writer.

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The Slave by Ruth Downie

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Ruthie Downie was a new author for me, but one I greatly enjoyed getting to know through her contribution to this anthology. Her style and tone drew me immediately into Ria’s story and I was quickly lost in the experiences of the all but invisible slave girl. Ria circumstances give her a unique perspective of the royal family and I liked the contrast it created in the fabric of the novel. Ria’s emotional journey is also worth mentioning as it’s probably one of the most complex of the entire book.

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The Tribune by Russell Whitfield

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Russell Whitfield is an author I’ve wanted to read for quite some time, but his contribution to A Year of Ravens marks my first experience with his work and it was definitely worth the wait. Agricola proved an interesting narrator for a number of reasons and his journey to the island of Mona marked one of the high points of the collection. His story felt more drawn out than the other contributions, but I ultimately enjoyed where Whitfield took his contribution and the themes he highlighted in it.

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The Druid by Vicky Alvear Shecter

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Nothing I say about Vicky Alvear Shecter’s The Druid will do it justice. I’ve read the author before, but the drama she created for Yorath and Felix literally sent chills down my spine. I enjoyed each of the preceding stories for different reasons, but this selection jumped from the page and took hold in way the others hadn’t. I hate sounding like a gushing fan girl, but I loved everything about this short and am not shy to admit it my favorite of the anthology.

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The Son by S.J.A. Turney

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S.J.A. Turney was another new author for me which is funny as his story features Andecarus, a character who first caught my eye in Ruth Downie’s The Slave. I went into both pieces not knowing what to expect, but found both satisfying in their way. Turney’s interpretation of Andecarus is both compelling and thought-provoking and I enjoyed the perspective he captured in someone who felt divided loyalties during the conflict.

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The Warrior by Kate Quinn

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I’m almost afraid to comment on Kate Quinn’s contribution. I’ve never made any secret of my appreciation for her work and while I try to remain objective in my analysis, I’d like to point out that it isn’t my fault that she keeps hitting the ball out of the park. Her illustrations of both Duro and Valeria had me hooked from page one, but it was the way the story drew the others together that stands out in my mind. The other stories linked here or there, but I felt this particular effort was the most comprehensive of the book.

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The Daughters by E. Knight

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I love E. Knight’s work and looked forward to it when I first picked up the book, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit my enthusiasm for The Daughters grew over the course of the book. Keena and Sorcha dance in and out of the other stories. They tease the reader and of all the characters, I felt it apropos that theirs be the last installment of the anthology. Knight’s interpretation is powerfully drawn and stands as a commanding and poignant footnote to the epic battle that inspired all seven authors to put pen to paper.

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The Oblate’s Confession by William Peak

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: December 15, 2014

England, the 7th century. Petty Anglo-Saxon kingdoms make war upon one another and their Celtic neighbors. Christianity is a new force in the land, one whose hold remains tenuous at best. Power shifts back and forth uneasily between two forms of the new faith: a mystical Celtic Catholicism and a newer, more disciplined form of Catholicism emanating from Rome. Pagan rites as yet survive in the surrounding hills and mountains. Plague sweeps across the countryside unpredictably, its path marked by death and destruction. In keeping with a practice common at the time, an Anglo-Saxon warrior donates his youngest child to the monastery of Redestone, in effect sentencing the boy to spend the rest of his life as a monk. This gift-child, called an oblate, will grow up in the abbey knowing little of his family or the expectations his natural father will someday place upon him, his existence haunted by vague memories of a former life and the questions those memories provoke. Who is his father, the distant chieftain who sired him or the bishop he prays for daily? And to which father, natural or spiritual, will he owe allegiance when, at length, he is called upon to ally himself with one and destroy the other? These are the dilemmas the child faces. The answers will emerge from the years he spends in spiritual apprenticeship to a hermit who lives on the nearby mountain of Modra nect – and his choices will echo across a lifetime.

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I'm not sure what I expected from William Peak's The Oblate's Confession, but the book proved a pleasant surprise. I found the introspective tone of the narrative intriguing, but I felt Peak's decision to write from a child's perspective a stroke of genius. The questions Winwæd asks about faith and the things that capture his interest within the monastery are fascinating, but watching him piece these concepts together as his understanding matures allowed me unique insight to his situation.

On that note, I really appreciated Peak's treatment of religion. I feared the subject might overwhelmed the narrative, but was delighted to discover the author's subtle handling of the material allowed it to flow naturally through the story as easily as the social hierarchy of the monastery or the politics of the day. I was similarly impressed with the Winwæd's inner conflicts and appreciated the authenticity in his emotions over the course of the narrative. 

Peak's writing was a little difficult for me to get into and the pacing was tad slow for my particular tastes, but I certainly enjoyed the time I spent with this story. The Oblate's Confession isn't my usual fare, but it is a thought-provoking piece that I'd certainly recommend to fans of medieval fiction. 

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"Simple people—rustics, fools—see this as proof the man is special. They think he is a holy man, some kind of saint.” Father looked at me. “Foolishness, vanity. Everyone wants to think they know a saint, it makes them feel important."

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Check Out All the Stops on William Peak's The Oblate’s Confession Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, December 1
Review at Broken Teepee

Tuesday, December 2
Spotlight & Giveaway at Passages to the Past

Wednesday, December 3
Review at Back Porchervations
Review at A Fantastical Librarian

Thursday, December 4
Spotlight at What Is That Book About

Friday, December 5
Interview at Back Porchervations

Monday, December 8
Review at A Book Geek

Tuesday, December 9
Review at The Writing Desk
Spotlight at Historical Tapestry

Monday, December 15
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, December 16
Spotlight at Bibliophilic Book Blog

Thursday, December 18
Review at 100 Pages a Day…Stephanie’s Book Reviews
Guest Post at Books and Benches

Friday, December 19
Review at Book Nerd
Review at bookramblings

Saturday, December 20
Interview at Forever Ashley

Monday, December 22
Spotlight at Let Them Read Books

Tuesday, December 23
Review at Just One More Chapter

Wednesday, December 24
Review at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book

Monday, December 29
Review at The Never-Ending Book

Tuesday, December 30
Spotlight at Historical Fiction Connection

Friday, January 2
Review at Library Educated

Monday, January 5
Review & Interview at Words and Peace

Tuesday, January 6
Spotlight at CelticLady’s Reviews

Wednesday, January 7
Review at A Bibliotaph’s Reviews

Thursday, January 8
Review at Impressions in Ink

Friday, January 9
Review at The True Book Addict
Review & Interview at Jorie Loves a Story

Veil of Time by Claire R. McDougall

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Netgalley

Read: January 11, 2014

A compelling tale of two Scotlands—one modern, one ancient—and the woman who parts the veil between them. The medication that treats Maggie’s seizures leaves her in a haze, but it can’t dull her grief at losing her daughter to the same condition. With her marriage dissolved and her son away at school, Maggie retreats to a cottage below the ruins of Dunadd, once the royal seat of Scotland. But is it fantasy or reality when she awakens in a bustling village within the massive walls of eighth-century Dunadd? In a time and place so strange yet somehow familiar, Maggie is drawn to the striking, somber Fergus, brother of the king and father of Illa, who bears a keen resemblance to Maggie’s late daughter. With each dreamlike journey to the past, Maggie grows closer to Fergus and embraces the possibility of staying in this Dunadd. But with present-day demands calling her back, can Maggie leave behind the Scottish prince who dubs her mo chridhe, my heart?

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I had high hopes for Claire R. McDougall’s Veil of Time, but admit the reality failed to meet my expectations. Try as I might, I couldn’t get into the story and ultimately found the background information far more interesting than Maggie’s implausible romance with an eighth century Celtic warrior.  

Please excuse my impertinence, but I didn’t recognize one iota of chemistry within these pages. Maggie and Fergus go through the motions rightly enough, but that is as far as McDougall takes it. Where was the intensity? The raw emotion? The genuine cosmic connection? The plot is entirely dependent on this affair, but the lack of authenticity undermined the credibility of their relationship and by default, that of the larger story. 

Maggie’s epilepsy put an interesting twist on her ability to jump through time, but I felt the inconstant nature of her travels and McDougall’s failure to adequately explain the intricacies of these episodes detrimental to the integrity of the narrative. I understand her seizures and the medications she takes to control them are the catalyst that make her journeys possible, but ideally, I would have liked the author to have exerted more effort toward explaining the mechanics of Maggie’s transcendence of the space-time continuum.

These disappointments aside, I was drawn to McDougall’s portrayal of life in Dunadd. Her unsentimental recreation of the attitudes, beliefs and social structure of the Iron Age settlement are wonderfully researched and fascinatingly detailed. I also appreciated how she utilized this setting to explore the history of witch-hunting as well as the anthropology of Celtic paganism and early Christianity. 

Now I know everyone wants to know how Veil of Time compares to Outlander, but as I’ve not read the latter, I cannot make the token comparison. I do, however, think it interesting that the author herself implies her confidence in the manuscript was jump started by Gabaldon’s popularity. 

“I already had another book placed with my agent, though he had had no luck in selling it. I kept Veil of Time in my drawer, because I didn’t want him to stop plugging the first novel. After a while, I heard that a film version of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander was in the offing (which turned out not to be true!), so I thought I had better get Veil of Time out. Time travel seems to be a topic of great popular interest, and my agent was able to sell it relatively quickly”

Overly drawn-out and painfully slow, I can’t say I particularly enjoyed the time I spent with this piece and in all honesty, I’d have difficulty recommending it to anyone but those with a vested interest in ancient Celtic culture. The books incorporates some great subject matter, but the story itself didn’t appeal to me. 

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I have had dreams before in the aftermath of seizures: I have argued points of theology with Mary Queen of Scots, who wasn’t the blockhead history has made her out to be. I have strolled along the beaches of Saint Helena with Napoleon insisting to me that he was being poisoned. But nothing has struck quite so close to home as seeing Dunadd in this way, with goats tethered and children running barefoot, with great waves of drumming and singing, and at the back of it all, a low murmuring like a didgeridoo.

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