It is AD 60 and the flame of rebellion that has been smouldering for 20 years of Roman occupation has flared into a conflagration that will consume the land and all who live in it. There is no going back. Boudica has been flogged and her daughters raped, and her son has burned a Roman watchtower in an act of blatant insurgency.
This is the time to act: the Roman governor has marched his legions west to destroy the druidic stronghold of Mona, leaving his capital and a vital seaport hopelessly undefended in the face of twenty-thousand warriors aching for vengeance. But to crush the legions for all time, Boudica must do more than lead her army in the greatest rebellion Britain has ever known. She must find healing for herself, for the land, and for Graine, her 8-year-old daughter, who has taken refuge on Mona.
Is revenge worth it under any circumstances, or is the cost more than anyone can bear?
Colchester is burning and London is lost without hope. Amidst fire and bloody revolution – a battle that will change the face and spirituality of a nation for centuries to come – Boudica and those around her must find what matters most, now and for ever.
And so we come to the final book in the series about Britain's greatest Warrior Queen, the Boudica, Bringer of Victory. What an amazing journey it's been through the life of this woman. I say that, and yet, the series wasn't just about her. Manda Scott masterfully wove together the lives of everyone important to Breaca so that it's not so much a tale of one woman's fight against Rome, but a tale about a family's struggle to remain together despite Rome's presence and their combined struggle to join the tribes of Britain together to face the might of Rome.
When I reached the end of the story, tears welled up in my eyes. Not because of the unexpected nature of the ending; I knew that was the only way it could honestly end, but because of the beauty and tenderness portrayed regarding Breaca's daughter and lover and brother. It was moving beyond words. It's a series I highly recommend for anyone interested in Ancient Britain.
Labels: historical fiction