Friday, December 11, 2015

Review: HFVBT Blog Tour for A Year of Ravens: a novel of Boudica's Rebellion by the H Team

A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica's Rebellion

by Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, and Russell Whitfield

Publication Date: November 13, 2015
Knight Media LLC
eBook & Paperback; 440 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction

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Britannia: land of mist and magic clinging to the western edge of the Roman Empire. A red-haired queen named Boudica led her people in a desperate rebellion against the might of Rome, an epic struggle destined to consume heroes and cowards, young and old, Roman and Celt . . . and these are their stories.

A calculating queen sees the sparks of revolt in a king’s death.

A neglected slave girl seizes her own courage as Boudica calls for war.

An idealistic tribune finds manhood in a brutal baptism of blood and slaughter.

A conflicted warrior hovers between loyalty to tribe and loyalty to Rome.

A death-haunted Druid challenges the gods themselves to ensure victory for his people.

An old champion struggles for everlasting glory in the final battle against the legions.

A fiery princess fights to salvage the pieces of her mother’s dream as the ravens circle.

A novel in seven parts, overlapping stories of warriors and peacemakers, queens and slaves, Romans and Celts who cross paths during Boudica’s epic rebellion. But who will survive to see the dawn of a new Britannia, and who will fall to feed the ravens?

REVIEW

The dream team are back! Okay, it's not exactly the same team of authors that produced A Day of Fire: a novel of Pompeii, but some of the same authors are involved and it's the same concept. They are calling themselves The H Team on Facebook.

Just like A Day of Fire, each author tells an individual story with different yet overlapping characters which are woven together to tell a greater story, that of a monumentally tragic event in history. In this case, A Year of Ravens is about the Celtic rebellion against the Romans, lead by Queen of the Iceni, Boudica.

Told from all different view points on both the Celtic and Roman sides, it gives the reader a rounded perspective of the series of events and the people involved in, from the lowliest of slaves to the highest of leaders. The characters are so well fleshed out despite there being so many of them, and despite each chapter focusing on new points of view.

I have to say though, if you're looking for a book about Boudica herself, this is not it. As the title suggests, it is really about the rebellion, and not necessarily Boudica herself. She is featured in several chapters to varying degrees, but in others, she is barely even mentioned. It is an excellent novel, regardless, and will pull you in from the very beginning.

Stephanie Dray and Ruth Downie's chapters were my favorite. I think that Russell Whitfield's chapter was the weakest of the bunch, because I felt it took too long to get going and show just how it would move the story forward (this is the chapter were Boudica is hardly even mentioned), but once it did it was clear how it fit into the novel.

I don't know how so many established authors are able to work together to form such a cohesive novel for a second time, in addition to their individual work, but I hope they continue to do so.



A Year of Ravens Authors

Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, and Russell Whitfield Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, & Russell Whitfield

Blog Tour Schedule

Friday, November 13
Kick Off at Passages to the Past

Saturday, November 14
Guest Post at A Bookish Affair
Spotlight at Historical Fiction Connection

Sunday, November 15
Review at Book Babe

Monday, November 16
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, November 17
Review at Unabridged Chick

Wednesday, November 18
Guest Post at Let Them Read Books
Interview at Unabridged Chick

Thursday, November 19
Review at Kinx's Book Nook
Review at A Bookish Affair

Friday, November 20
Review at Leeanna.me

Monday, November 23
Review at Bibliophilia, Please

Tuesday, November 24
Review at The Maiden's Court

Wednesday, November 25
Review at A Book Drunkard

Friday, November 27
Review & Excerpt at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book

Monday, November 30
Review at Ageless Pages Reviews

Tuesday, December 1
Review at Griperang's Bookmarks

Wednesday, December 2
Interview at Griperang's Bookmarks

Thursday, December 3
Review at Book Nerd

Friday, December 4
Spotlight at The Never-Ending Book

Saturday, December 5
Review at Bookramblings

Monday, December 7
Review at Just One More Chapter

Tuesday, December 8
Review at Book Lovers Paradise

Wednesday, December 9
Review at I'm Shelfish

Thursday, December 10
Review at Boom Baby Reviews

Friday, December 11
Review at Historical Readings & Reviews

Monday, December 14
Review at History From a Woman's Perspective

Tuesday, December 15
Review at CelticLady's Reviews

Wednesday, December 16
Review at A Literary Vacation
Guest Post at One Book Shy of a Full Shelf

Thursday, December 17
Review at The True Book Addict
Review at One Book Shy of a Full Shelf

Friday, December 18
Review at Broken Teepee
Review, Excerpt, & Interview at Unshelfish

Giveaway

During the Blog Tour we will be giving away a Celtic inspired set of silver tone metal and red Swarovski crystal beads, including a necklace, bracelet, and earrings inspired by the setting of A Year of Ravens! Please enter the giveaway via the GLEAM form below.

Rules

– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on December 18th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open to residents in the US and UK.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion
– Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.

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