Dull. The story of Boudica molded to suit MZB's Avalon mythos alternating with the Druid priestess Lhiannon's life in such a way as to remove all tension and internal reality with tell rather than show storytelling. ( )

The Roman conquest of Britain was a tumultuous time when fear and death reigned. Diana Paxson has chosen this era in which to set the latest prequel to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Mists of Avalon. The story is split between two women, Lhiannon, a senior priestess, and Boudica, who would become the warrior queen who nearly threw the Romans back into the sea. The story told here is the story of the Britons fight to control their own destiny.

I am of two minds on this story, and I admit that parts I took issue with are not going to be issues for most readers. However, I've spent a lot of time studying the religious beliefs of the various Celtic tribes and I feel that Paxson twisted them completely into something that they were not. Throughout the book there are many references to the Goddess, to the four elements, etc. What little evidence that remains clearly shows these to not be at all congruous with the spiritual beliefs of the Celtic tribes. I found myself rolling my eyes through much of the spiritual content.

However, Boudica's story, the story of the warriors, and the struggle with the warriors was very well told. It was this that kept me reading the book. I have long been interested in Boudica's place in history and it was a breath of fresh air to see her story told. She seems to have been mostly forgotten, which is a shame, because she should be an example for all strong women.

I found this book to be the weakest of all the Mists prequels and while, once I got past the neo-pagan beliefs superimposed upon the actual beliefs of the Celtic tribes, I enjoyed it, it is unlikely that I will pick up any more books that may be written. Each book since The Forest House has gotten successively weaker and less worthy bearing Marion Zimmer Bradley's name. ( )

On suit les événements qui vont aboutir à l’histoire racontée dans [[The Forest House]]; avec en parallèle le récit de la chute d’île de Mona et l’exile des druides, et la vie de Boudica qui la mènera à prendre la tête de la révolte contre l’empire romain en Angleterre.

Il est recommandé d’être un minimum familier avec cette période historique pour saisir les enjeux des protagonistes.

La lecture est agréable, avec comme particularité que pour la première fois dans la série on a sous les yeux une déesse agir pleinement. Et comme d’habitude, les personnages sont détaillés, et leurs motivations riches.

Une valeur sûre dans la continuité. Sans surprise, et sans déception. ( )

Marion Zimmer Bradley's Ravens of Avalon by Diana L. Paxson is about the Roman conquest of Britannia and their oppression of the Druids and the Celtic/British people in general. The story follows the lives of the Druid priestess Lhiannon and the Iceni princess Boudica and how they worked to fight back against the Romans. If you are familiar with the history behind this story, then you probably already know how it ends, but even so I think the story is worth reading because it's more about the journey than the destination. This book is slow paced like others in the series but I can enjoy a slow pace if the writing is good which it is for the most part. There were some parts in the middle that I found myself wondering what the point of the chapter was as it didn't seem to add anything to the story, but things did pick up again and got more exciting. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of the Avalon series or fans of Celtic/British history.

This book takes place after The Sword of Avalon, but it's not necessary to read that book(or any of the books that take place before it) prior to reading Ravens of Avalon. Ravens of Avalon does take place before The Forest House though, and I would recommend reading it before reading The Forest House as it provides a lot background story to what is going on in The Forest House. ( )

Aaaaagh, too much suffering! ( )