Tuesday, 18 July 2017

After Whorl: Donning Double Cloaks by Nancy Jardine



Amazon UK £1.99 £7.99
Amazon US $2.49 $3.67
Amazon CA n/a

Fictional Saga / Military / Romance
1st Century Roman Britain

#3 in the Celts and Romans series

“After King Venutius’ defeat, Brennus of Garrigill – known as Bran – maintains a spy network monitoring Roman activity in Brigantia. Relative peace reigns till AD 78 when Roman Governor Agricola marches his legions to the far north. Brennus is always one step ahead of the Roman Army as he seeks the Caledon Celt who will lead all tribes in battle against Rome.
Ineda of Marske treks northwards with her master, Tribune Valerius, who is responsible for supplying Agricola’s northern campaigns. At Inchtuthil Roman Fort Ineda flees seeking fellow Brigantes congregating on the foothills of Beinn na Ciche.
Will the battle against the Romans bring Ineda and Brennus together again?”

Starting wherebook two left off, this exciting adventure continues – it is a stand-alone, but I urge you to start at the beginning with The Beltane Choice because the read is well worth it.

The story follows the paths of Bran and Ineda as they pursue their vow of revenge against Rome.

Ineda is now a slave to a Roman Tribune, while Bran joins his brother, Lorcan, hoping to find a leader strong enough to rebel against the Roman victors. This is a thoroughly exciting and enjoyably absorbing read, wonderfully researched and elegantly written giving a vividly compelling view of life as it may have been after Rome had swept into Britannia and taken everything for their own gain – except they never managed to conquer the hearts and minds of the Celtic people they conquered.

The story is about the might of military Rome, the political events and upheavals, but primarily it is the story of ordinary people surviving through extraordinary times, of the struggles of dealing with conquest and oppression – of making it through from dawn till dusk day after day, week after week. It is a story of survival and determination and hope. Of enduring brutality and absorbing kindness. To say more will reveal spoilers, but the entire series is set firmly among the very best of early Romano British novels.

© Helen Hollick



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Monday, 17 July 2017

After Whorl, Bran Reborn by Nancy Jardine


Amazon UK £1.99 £5.99
Amazon US $2.49 $10.89
Amazon CA $14.57

Fictional Saga / Military / Romance
1st Century Roman Britain

Book #2 in the Celts and Romans series

I suppose all of us have seen those rather devastating pictures of the German tanks mowing down the Polish cavalry at the beginning of the Second World War. Superior technology and superior discipline met passion and courage and left a trail of carnage behind. In Ms Jardine’s book, it is the Brigantes – a British tribe – that represent the Polish cavalry, facing up to what must have been the most impressive military force of their time, the Roman Legions.

When the legionaries clash with the brave British warriors, they, just like those German tanks, cut a swathe through the proud Brigantian fighters, leaving very many dead and just as many badly wounded. One of the wounded is Brennus, a young man who figures on the fringes of Ms Jardine’s previous novel, The Beltane Choice (which, BTW, I can most warmly recommend).

Brennus returns to life permanently damaged and disfigured. The former champion of his tribe is reduced to a man who has little purpose in life – apart from wanting to make the Romans pay. To mark his new inferior status, Brennus renames himself Bran, a man with no past and little interest in his future. Fortunately for Bran – and the reader – some of his grim outlook on life is affected by the young female firebrand Ineda, a Brigante just like him, as devoted to making the Romans pay as he is.

Where Bran is introspection and bitterness, Ineda is passion and hope, an unquenchable force who refuses to believe the Romans can’t be beaten. Bran is somewhat more sanguine – and besides, what use is he in a battle? – but Ineda’s enthusiasm is very contagious, and Bran starts to see that he can fill a purpose in the ongoing fighting between his people and the hated invaders, despite being crippled.

Ms Jardine also gives us a budding romance between the damaged Bran, who, in his own opinion, has little to offer Ineda – and the inexperienced Ineda, too young to understand Bran’s reticence. She is hurt, he is hurt, and things don’t at all develop as they should, causing as much frustration for Bran as for Ineda. But when, at last, things start to improve, calamity strikes – again.

So as to balance her story, Ms Jardine has also given voice to one of the Roman oppressors. Tribune Valerius has his own baggage, his own issues, and while he is not necessarily a compassionate man, neither is he cruel or heartless. Valerius is a nice addition, in my opinion, highlighting just how complicated the politics of the day were.

The historical background is obviously well-researched, brought to vivid life in descriptions of everything from clothes to utensils and beliefs. Add to this the fact that Ms Jardine is an accomplished writer and you have a delightful and most satisfying read!

© Anna Belfrage

Next in series - click HERE



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Saturday, 15 July 2017

On the Blog Today


July 2017

by Nicky Galliers

Photograph © Karolina Webb
Barbara Erskine
A historian by training, Barbara Erskine is the author of many bestselling novels that demonstrate her interest in both history and the supernatural, plus three collections of short stories. Her books have appeared in at least twenty-six languages. Her first novel, Lady of Hay, has sold over two million copies worldwide. She lives with her family in an ancient manor house near Colchester and in a cottage near Hay-on-Wye.


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