Boudica

annis · Post by **annis** » Sat February 7th, 2009, 7:31 pm

You'd also have to say that those dangerous Celts might have proved less of a threat to Britannicus' health than his brother, Nero!

Margaret · Post by **Margaret** » Sat February 7th, 2009, 7:45 pm

those dangerous Celts might have proved less of a threat to Britannicus' health than his brother, Nero

LOL! Isn't that the truth.

Carla, I enjoyed your review of Roesch's Boudica novel (http://www.historicalfictiononline.com/ ... php?t=1331) and completely agree with you that it distorts history to wish away her army's brutal behavior. I find the pagan Celts extremely interesting and feel that in some ways our modern society has lost elements of value that they were in touch with - but warfare was at the center of their way of life, and I think we lose a lot of perspective if we pretend it wasn't - or worse, pretend that warfare is an entirely heroic exercise.

Carla · Post by **Carla** » Sat February 7th, 2009, 8:32 pm

They could hardly have been worse

To be fair to Roesch, at least he mentions the incident, even if he does try to deflect it from Boudica. He could have just ignored it altogether. I can't now remember how he handles the massacres at London, Colchester and Verulamium, though I suspect those got downplayed as well. I really ought to read the rest of Manda Scott's Boudica novels and see how she deals with them (I got exasperated with the shamanic dreaming and stopped after Book 2, but intend to read the others at some point). I like to try to understand what made a historical society tick, and that means the repellent aspects as well as the attractive ones.

If you're interested in the pagan Celts, you might like to take a look at Ronald Hutton's book Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles. It's scholarly non-fiction written by an academic expert, but it's very clear and readable and extremely interesting. His conclusion is that a lot of what we think we know about the pagan Celts (and earlier cultures) is conjecture. Very highly recommended. I did start to review it once, but stopped when I realised I'd written two thousand words and still not run out of things to say!

Rowan · Post by **Rowan** » Sat February 7th, 2009, 11:04 pm

Why exasperated with the shamanic dreaming? That's one of the things I enjoyed most, probably because I'm interested in shamanism as a whole.

Carla · Post by **Carla** » Sat February 7th, 2009, 11:32 pm

[quote=""Rowan""]Why exasperated with the shamanic dreaming? That's one of the things I enjoyed most, probably because I'm interested in shamanism as a whole.[/quote]

It didn't do anything for me, perhaps because I'm not especially interested in shamanism. I had no problem with the first one or two 'dreamings' as a way of setting tone and mood, but after that I started to get fed up with it and to feel that it overshadowed the rest of the story. It's just my reaction.

Margaret · Post by **Margaret** » Sun February 8th, 2009, 1:41 am

I'm quite interested in shamanism myself, but I stopped reading Manda Scott's first Boudica novel partway through because I got tired of reading about a child/teenager. I'd like to give her another try, but am daunted by the length of the Boudica series. I'm afraid I'm a rather impatient reader.

I do have Hutton's book. While working on an unpublished novel based on the Tristan and Isolde story, I accumulated a quite extensive library on the early Celts. I'll have to revisit them one of these days, but lately I'm immersing myself in the German humanist period and early Reformation Germany. Still have a lot to learn!

Tanzanite · Post by **Tanzanite** » Sun February 8th, 2009, 2:23 am

[quote=""Carla""]It didn't do anything for me, perhaps because I'm not especially interested in shamanism. I had no problem with the first one or two 'dreamings' as a way of setting tone and mood, but after that I started to get fed up with it and to feel that it overshadowed the rest of the story. It's just my reaction.[/quote]

I just finished the second book (Dreaming the Bull) and I agree with you about the shamanism/dreaming aspect of the story - it's a little much. I haven't found them to be overly exciting books - parts are pretty good and parts are pretty boring.

Carla · Post by **Carla** » Sun February 8th, 2009, 12:31 pm

That's my recollection of them too, Tanzanite.

enelya · Post by **enelya** » Mon February 9th, 2009, 3:54 pm

I felt the same when I was first reading them, but I loved the books too much. Now I have become interested in shamanism and paganism myself these parts speak to me more...
I did read The Eagle and the Raven, and found it quite good..It is a bit old fashioned here and there, but it was an enjoyable read.
I can only imagine what trouble an author must have when specializing in historical fiction. From a readers point of view I can just say I do not mind multiple people writing about the same characters. Each writer perceives them differently and so writes about them in a different way. Most of the time I like reading several books about a certain person. I do the same with biographies, because they are never entirely the same. If a book is written well it will still be an enjoyable read, even if you know the main story outline.
As for Cartimandua..I think she did try to die what was best for her people, and being allied with Rome wass probably the best thing for her to do. But since the Romans have been the bad guys to me for ages, it is easier to sympathize with those who oppose them. It might be interesting to write about her husband...he eventually allied his people with Boudica. Imagine his life, married to Cartimandua.
I want to thank allof you for your tips, I have already added some to my Amazon wishlist, but please keep them coming

juleswatson · Post by **juleswatson** » Thu February 19th, 2009, 8:50 pm

I'm late getting back to this, but Enelya as a writer it is heartening to know readers are OK with multiple books on the same subject. I realise with so many authors specialising in certain eras, e.g Tudor, it is bound to happen. If I stay with the Celts, there are very few known characters and large events to hang my hat on. Although I've veered off into myth lately...and with the Celts the two (history and myth) have a habit of becoming blurred...