This. Was. So. Good! Reading about tragic historical events is so bittersweet. On the one hand, I'm learning about a new era and meeting engaging characters. On the other, I know they're basically all going to die. It's like meeting a new friend only for them to suddenly move away, but the time I spent with this book was still so rewarding, that I recommend you read this book anyway.

My favorite stories were Dray's The Queen, Quinn's The Warrior, and Knight's The Daughters. These stories were poignant and full of soul. Dray's Cartimandua was a perfect foil to Boudica while Knight's Sorcha and Keena were the perfect vehicle to show us the infamous warrior queen. They sacrifices really sung from the page. As for Quinn, she wrote about the epic battle, which was heart-wrenching, even though I knew what was going to happen. What made it so sad was Duro and Valeria. Quinn really brought them to life. I understood and sympathized with both of them, which is no easy feat when the characters are sworn enemies. Quinn is truly masterful.

Middle of the road for me was Downie's The Slave, Shecter's The Druid, and Turney's The Son. It's hard for me to pinpoint exactly what I didn't like about them. I guess their stories felt kind of small to me compared to the ones I liked.

My least favorite story was Whitfield's The Tribune about Agricola. I found this story dragged, and I had a hard time understanding how it related to the rest of the narrative. Eventually, it made sense, but it felt very detached and slow. I think this was partially because this is one of the few stories that doesn't get split up between two perspectives, so it was a bit of a slog to get through.

If you like doomed histories, you'll love this! ( )

Great read to start with but got utterly disjointed towards the end of the book ( )

A collaborative novel from seven authors telling the story of Boudicca's revolt against Rome. Each author picks up the baton to move the story forward to form a continuous novel about a group of characters who tell the story of the revolt from different perspectives.

There was only one of the authors whose work I had not come across before, and I have to say he was the weakest link -- the Roman arm clasp was invented in Hollywood and he should have known better than to have included it and there was one transition which was so abrupt I felt sure some sentences had dropped out.

I did have to put the book down and breathe for a while when we got to the atrocities in Londinium but the last battle was moving and had me in tears over the fates of some characters who had been pretty unfavourably portrayed for most of the book. ( )

When asked to review a book about this utterly fascinating woman I couldn’t say yes fast enough. To be honest I didn’t even notice the fact that the book was written by seven different people until it arrived. I just find Boudica so intriguing. So little is really known about her yet she exerts her pull on history with her remarkable story.

If you don’t know anything about the Queen of the Iceni at the time of the Roman occupation of what we now call Great Britain. The Romans wanted and wanted and wanted and finally they didn’t get what they wanted and there was a rebellion. The beauty of this book is the telling through the imaginations of seven very different, very talented writers each writing a different story. Each story advances the overall tale in time and while there is really no continuity in style there is one fantastic overall book.

This is not a romance novel. It is not a simple retelling of historical events. It is a down and dirty exploration of a war between the might of Rome and peoples determined to regain their land and way of life. Horrible, despicable things happen – on both sides – and they are not glossed over. It was a violent time and yet, despite that the book was nigh on impossible to put down.

Not much of this amazing woman was left to history – the events take place in 60 AD. And most of the written record on Boudica is what the Romans have left. We all know that history is written by the victors so we can only imagine the truth of her exploits. She really must have been one hell of a woman! The seven authors of A Year of Ravens bring her and the rest of the players to vivid life in a format that allows for reading one chapter at a time if you so desire. I found that I just wanted to read and read and read. And when it was all over I wanted to start again. All hail Boudica. ( )

There are a few woman in history that fascinate me and among them is Boudica, queen of the Iceni tribe of Britain, a statuesque and intelligent woman. She is mostly known for her uprising against the Roman Empire around 60 AD. The Roman Empire were a domineering and cruel people. They had to conquer and rule everyone and kill whoever resisted their attempts. After the death of Boudica's husband, King Prasutagus, Boudica was flogged mercilessly and her daughters raped by the Roman soldiers, not only that, whatever loans the Iceni had with the Romans was called in.

"A calculating queen foresees the fires of rebellion 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 death-haunted Druid challenges the gods themselves to ensure victory for his people.

A conflicted young warrior finds himself torn between loyalties to tribe and to Rome.

An old champion struggles for everlasting glory in the final battle against the legions.

A pair of fiery princesses fight to salvage the pieces of their mother’s dream as the ravens circle."

Each of the seven parts of the novel told by seven different authors who write historical fiction are involved in the writing of this collaboration, they each tell a story that combines their own spin on the characters portrayed in A Year of Ravens. It is interesting to note that the only information of Boudica and her life and rule of the Iceni tribe is mostly documented by the Romans. If you are interested in this period of Brittania's history and the Roman Empire, give this book a read. I give it five stars for the writing alone, I find it amazing that seven different authors can come together and write about a time in history and it weaves together seamlessly. ( )