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linyarai's review
3.0
Definitely a prequel to The Mists of Avalon, tells of the beginning of the women's culture and how they came to be at the lake. I found most of it very slow and I didn't get really sucked in until the last 60 pages.
middleearthtraveller's review
2.0
The historical context is extremely interesting, but the story itself was only so-so.
jenniedee's review
3.0
Heavy-handed but still interesting enough to finish reading through. I can't tell if Gaius is meant to be complex or just outright unlikable. I suspect the former but by the end of this book I couldn't quite grasp Eilan's love for him. The theme of love in a previous life was not especially well-developed, nor did I find it believable in this case (as opposed to, say, in Mists of Avalon).
I don't think I'd recommend this for any but the most devoted fans of Mists; as a standalone novel, it's kind of... well, dullsville.
I don't think I'd recommend this for any but the most devoted fans of Mists; as a standalone novel, it's kind of... well, dullsville.
dc7's review against another edition
1.0
I got this book at the library around 20 years ago - it stood out to me because of its beautiful cover. It was an absolute snooze fest and I don't even know why I didn't DNF it - probably because of that pretty cover.
It's historical fiction with magical elements but the plot is pretty thin, I felt like not much happened for large sections of the book other than the characters talking about herbs and the like. It wasn't for me. I do want to say though that the ending was rather brave and interesting so I'll give the author that.
It's historical fiction with magical elements but the plot is pretty thin, I felt like not much happened for large sections of the book other than the characters talking about herbs and the like. It wasn't for me. I do want to say though that the ending was rather brave and interesting so I'll give the author that.
mimsy42's review against another edition
2.0
A story of the founding of Avalon, which is an interesting subject I have not read of before. I liked the strong grounding in history (or what we know of it) and the touches of otherworldliness. And yet the characters seemed odd; either not fleshed out quite enough, or vacillating (the hero becomes an ass but is redeemed), or distant.
glitchmakes's review against another edition
3.0
Another one of those 'forbidden romance' sort of books, Forests of Avalon manages to be better than most by being incredibly richly described and very readable, along with being the beginning of a compelling retelling of the Arthurian myths.
erynlasbelin's review against another edition
1.0
There's a reason TMoA has so many more ratings than this book, and I wish I had remained in ignorance too. Poorly written, inconsistent, and with flimsy and unsympathetic characters, this was a massive disappointment to me. I won't be going anywhere near the other prequels.