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A review by grayduck
Ravens of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Diana L. Paxson
Reviewed 10/29/2007
This book was written by Diana Paxson, longtime friend and collaborator of Marion Zimmer Bradley. Like the other post-Mists of Avalon books, it has MZB’s voice but there’s something lacking. The vastness and dept of Mists just isn’t present in this book (or in The Forest House, Priestess of Avalon etc). But, I enjoyed it for what it was. Diana Paxson is an excellent writer and I think she’s done a good job continuing Avalon when when Marion Zimmer Bradley died in 1999.
Boudica is the daughter of one of the chief-kings in Britain. She is sent to the Druid Isle for education, and meets the young priestess Lhiannon. The two become close friends, even though they have very different paths. Boudica, lacking the talents and patience to be a priestess, leaves to marry Praustagos and become Queen of the Iceni in the north. Lhiannon becomes a priestess who fights alongside the Druids against the invading Romans in the south. Boudica’s father had been a Roman collaborator, and she and Praustagos continue to live under Roman rule. This affords them a bit of peace. However, when Praustagos dies, the Romans deny Boudica and her daughters their rule and brutalize them. Pissed as hell, Boudica raises an army and marches through Brittania, destroying not only Roman legions, but those Britons who collaborated with them.
Diana Paxson doesn’t pretend anything like “Oh, even though they were defeated the Britons really won in their own special way” (kind of like in The Mists of Avalon…but I didn’t really mind that). The Britons were slaughtered. I’ve read about how 10,000 Romans killed somewhere around 300,000 Britons. It was kind of depressing to read…but I never got so sucked into the book that I FELT it.
I did enjoy this book. I don’t think that there’s anywhere else for the series to go (unless Diana Paxson wants to start writing about Atlantis). I wonder: if given the chance, would I read the Avalon series in chronological order (leaving The Mists of Avalon) for the end)? Hmm. Well, if she writes more, I’ll read them. I probably won’t re-read them, though.
This book was written by Diana Paxson, longtime friend and collaborator of Marion Zimmer Bradley. Like the other post-Mists of Avalon books, it has MZB’s voice but there’s something lacking. The vastness and dept of Mists just isn’t present in this book (or in The Forest House, Priestess of Avalon etc). But, I enjoyed it for what it was. Diana Paxson is an excellent writer and I think she’s done a good job continuing Avalon when when Marion Zimmer Bradley died in 1999.
Boudica is the daughter of one of the chief-kings in Britain. She is sent to the Druid Isle for education, and meets the young priestess Lhiannon. The two become close friends, even though they have very different paths. Boudica, lacking the talents and patience to be a priestess, leaves to marry Praustagos and become Queen of the Iceni in the north. Lhiannon becomes a priestess who fights alongside the Druids against the invading Romans in the south. Boudica’s father had been a Roman collaborator, and she and Praustagos continue to live under Roman rule. This affords them a bit of peace. However, when Praustagos dies, the Romans deny Boudica and her daughters their rule and brutalize them. Pissed as hell, Boudica raises an army and marches through Brittania, destroying not only Roman legions, but those Britons who collaborated with them.
Diana Paxson doesn’t pretend anything like “Oh, even though they were defeated the Britons really won in their own special way” (kind of like in The Mists of Avalon…but I didn’t really mind that). The Britons were slaughtered. I’ve read about how 10,000 Romans killed somewhere around 300,000 Britons. It was kind of depressing to read…but I never got so sucked into the book that I FELT it.
I did enjoy this book. I don’t think that there’s anywhere else for the series to go (unless Diana Paxson wants to start writing about Atlantis). I wonder: if given the chance, would I read the Avalon series in chronological order (leaving The Mists of Avalon) for the end)? Hmm. Well, if she writes more, I’ll read them. I probably won’t re-read them, though.