A review by karteabooks
A Painted Winter (Pictish Conspiracy #1) by H. Barnard

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

5.0

 

As Roman rule over Britannia crumbles, two Pictish brothers seek revenge… 

When given the chance to read this book as part of the @instabooktours book tour, I was absolutely thrilled. My favourite genre, historical fiction and this book certainly didn’t disappoint. 

Set in the 4th century, the Romans are retreating, and Britannia is trying to find it’s feet again. Two brothers are seeking revenge for so many reasons and are both full of vigour and bubbling with testosterone and are actively seeking any reason to fight. Brei still feels to blame for his actions which lead to a close family member’s disappearance and his brother Taran is trying to help those less fortunate than him. Taran has forgiven Brei, even though Brei doesn’t think he has. 

When the mysterious Sorsha arrives, she throws the brother’s lives into even more turmoil, she possesses a special gift that even she doesn’t completely understand. Her actions send the brothers into warfare, but it isn’t all doom and gloom as some of her actions and discoveries bring some joy, even though it is short lived to their turbulent lives. 

This is the first book in the Pictish conspiracy series. The book is brilliantly written, and it combines Historical Fiction and Celtic Mythology incredibly well, and I was surprised to find out that this is a debut novel. 

This book has been so thoroughly researched and I really enjoyed finding out about the Pictish people and their way of life and traditions too. The mysteries of Celtic mythology were brought alive to me too, and how they were just a part of people’s lives, their beliefs and culture. 

Another book that kept me reading late into the night (again!) as I honestly couldn’t put it down. It is full of mystery, intrigue and suspense. I found myself constantly drawn between the two brothers and as their characters developed, I found myself team Brei but then after further turmoil I found myself team Taran, I am still undecided now a few days after I finished the book as to who I favour more. 

The writing style had me completely hooked from the first chapter, I admit that it took a couple of chapters to work out the how the characters were interwoven and how they all fitted together, but once this all fell into place, I soon found myself completely immersed in the Pictish way of life and with some fantastic setting descriptions, found myself transported to the freezing cold winters near the Great Wall and the stuffy, smelly roundhouses too. I don’t want to spoil the ending at all, but I am already waiting impatiently for book 2 in the series. 

I highly recommend this book, with an amazing story and great character development this is a book for everyone, not just historical fiction fans. 

Many thanks to Vic @instabooktours, Shadowfax Publishing and H Barnard for a gifted copy and a beautiful bookmark, in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.