Review by JenGen321 -- Apollo's Raven by Linnea Tanner
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JenGen321
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Review by JenGen321 -- Apollo's Raven by Linnea Tanner
[Following is a volunteer review of "Apollo's Raven" by Linnea Tanner.]
Apollo's Raven , written by Linnea Tanner, takes place in 24 AD Britannia. Two neighboring Kings, Amren of Cantiaci and Cunobelin of Catuvellauni, are enemies but have been working on a truce through a marriage arrangement between their children. King Amren is surprised when the Roman senator, Lucius Antonius, tells him that while he was planning the wedding arrangement with Cunobelin, Cunobelin was also making plans with Amren's banished son, Marrock, and brought the Roman ruler, Emperor Tiberius, in on the issue as well. A sore subject for King Amren and his family, Marrock is a Druid who did awful things and then, once banished, threatened to return and kill all of them. It seems that Cunobelin wants the Romans to help him get Marrock on the throne as Amren's heir so that he can gain power of the land. The Romans have an interest because Amren isn't currently allowing their merchants passage through his land to trade with the Catuvellauni. The Romans are also looking to gain tributes, intending to support whoever can offer the most. King Amren and senator Lucius Antonius decide to go speak with Cunobelin for negotiations. Before they leave, however, a trust agreement is arranged using hostages: Marcellus Antonius, senator Lucius' son, will stay behind with Amren's family while Amren's oldest Daughter, Vala, will be taken as a hostage by the Romans.
Marcellus and Catrin, Amren's youngest daughter, are drawn to each other at first sight. When their father's leave for negotiations, Catrin and Marcellus begin their love story. Catrin is a young, beautiful Cantiaci warrior who is destined to become a Druidess. She draws mystical powers from ravens. Catrin was forbidden to use her powers by her father early on but uses them in secret when she was able. As the story progresses, so do Catrin's abilities with the magic from her Raven. Although Catrin tries to remain loyal to her family and people, she quickly falls for Marcellus. Marcellus, on the other hand, has simply been enjoying living a life of leisure up until now. He has never met a woman like Catrin and is very attracted to her, despite his fears that she is a sorceress. Catrin and Marcellus grow closer and closer, and end up falling pray to a trap set by King Amren's most trusted spiritual guide, a Druidess named Agrona. Meanwhile, the Queen is also the victim of a trick and, as a result, the situation suddenly becomes dire for King Amren. Chaos ensues on all fronts and the end of the book sees that not much of anything is settled between the dueling kingdoms, the young lovers, or within Catrin's family.
What I liked most about Apollo's Raven was Catrin and her backstory, the focus on the God's and Goddesses, and all of the mystical elements of the story. I found Catrin to be an inspiring heroine, given that she is a princess, a warrior, a magical being, and is also navigating her first love at the worst time possible. She is dealing with a lot of very serious issues and all at once, and is also having to handle much of it on her own. Through it all, she proves herself to be a smart and resourceful young woman. I have always been interested in the ancient legends of the Gods and Goddesses and found those aspects of the story to be delightful. It was very interesting to hear about how their customs and such were based around the certain Gods and how important they were to the different characters. The mystical elements were also very entertaining. I really enjoyed reading about Catrin's powers, as well as Marrock's, and Agrona's whole storyline. I felt these elements added much to the book. The story itself was fast paced, mainly because the kingdoms were trying to prevent war, and things kept coming up that could easily cause everything go awry. It was complicated but easy to follow. There was truly not a dull moment in the entire book.
What I disliked most about the book was the lack of likable characters. King Amren was probably the one family member who showed Catrin the most affection, at least at the beginning, but at the same time he was a cold hearted brute who made choices based on politics rather than love. Catrin's mother was not at all sympathetic or understanding towards Catrin, even though she had been through a lot of the same things herself. Catrin's sister, Mor, was solely concerned with herself and her relationship with Belinus. Her interactions with Catrin were not necessarily mean but not at all kind either. Catrin's sister, Vala, offered herself as the hostage instead of Catrin, but that was the only part Vala played in the book and was most likely out of duty rather than protection. Basically almost all of Catrin's family members betrayed her in one way or another, all the while they were worrying about her fulfilling the curse and betraying them. In addition, Catrin didn't seem to have any friends to turn to. This was very effective for the story, however, and provided a solid reason as to why Catrin felt closest to her Raven, leading her to continue with the Raven's magic despite her father's wishes, and also for falling for Marcellus so quickly when it meant betraying her family and people. It was also most likely true of the responsibilities of royalty and the times they lived in, but it was just a bit rough to read at times. Even Marcellus was somewhat lacking, not to mention the power hungry Senator, Cunobelin, and Marrock were doing such terrible things and I soon found that I was not rooting for any one of them (King Amren included).
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars . I gave it this rating because once I started it I couldn't put it down! I really enjoyed reading it and would definitely recommend it to others. I am also very much interested in reading the sequels to see what happens next. I would say the ideal audience for Apollo's Raven is probably aged 20+ and made up of those who enjoy historical fiction novels, fantasy, as well as romance. Anyone who has an interest in the Roman Empire and the legends of different Gods and Goddesses, in particular, will definitely enjoy this book. Typos were limited to minor punctuation, and the instances were few and far between.
******
Apollo's Raven
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Apollo's Raven , written by Linnea Tanner, takes place in 24 AD Britannia. Two neighboring Kings, Amren of Cantiaci and Cunobelin of Catuvellauni, are enemies but have been working on a truce through a marriage arrangement between their children. King Amren is surprised when the Roman senator, Lucius Antonius, tells him that while he was planning the wedding arrangement with Cunobelin, Cunobelin was also making plans with Amren's banished son, Marrock, and brought the Roman ruler, Emperor Tiberius, in on the issue as well. A sore subject for King Amren and his family, Marrock is a Druid who did awful things and then, once banished, threatened to return and kill all of them. It seems that Cunobelin wants the Romans to help him get Marrock on the throne as Amren's heir so that he can gain power of the land. The Romans have an interest because Amren isn't currently allowing their merchants passage through his land to trade with the Catuvellauni. The Romans are also looking to gain tributes, intending to support whoever can offer the most. King Amren and senator Lucius Antonius decide to go speak with Cunobelin for negotiations. Before they leave, however, a trust agreement is arranged using hostages: Marcellus Antonius, senator Lucius' son, will stay behind with Amren's family while Amren's oldest Daughter, Vala, will be taken as a hostage by the Romans.
Marcellus and Catrin, Amren's youngest daughter, are drawn to each other at first sight. When their father's leave for negotiations, Catrin and Marcellus begin their love story. Catrin is a young, beautiful Cantiaci warrior who is destined to become a Druidess. She draws mystical powers from ravens. Catrin was forbidden to use her powers by her father early on but uses them in secret when she was able. As the story progresses, so do Catrin's abilities with the magic from her Raven. Although Catrin tries to remain loyal to her family and people, she quickly falls for Marcellus. Marcellus, on the other hand, has simply been enjoying living a life of leisure up until now. He has never met a woman like Catrin and is very attracted to her, despite his fears that she is a sorceress. Catrin and Marcellus grow closer and closer, and end up falling pray to a trap set by King Amren's most trusted spiritual guide, a Druidess named Agrona. Meanwhile, the Queen is also the victim of a trick and, as a result, the situation suddenly becomes dire for King Amren. Chaos ensues on all fronts and the end of the book sees that not much of anything is settled between the dueling kingdoms, the young lovers, or within Catrin's family.
What I liked most about Apollo's Raven was Catrin and her backstory, the focus on the God's and Goddesses, and all of the mystical elements of the story. I found Catrin to be an inspiring heroine, given that she is a princess, a warrior, a magical being, and is also navigating her first love at the worst time possible. She is dealing with a lot of very serious issues and all at once, and is also having to handle much of it on her own. Through it all, she proves herself to be a smart and resourceful young woman. I have always been interested in the ancient legends of the Gods and Goddesses and found those aspects of the story to be delightful. It was very interesting to hear about how their customs and such were based around the certain Gods and how important they were to the different characters. The mystical elements were also very entertaining. I really enjoyed reading about Catrin's powers, as well as Marrock's, and Agrona's whole storyline. I felt these elements added much to the book. The story itself was fast paced, mainly because the kingdoms were trying to prevent war, and things kept coming up that could easily cause everything go awry. It was complicated but easy to follow. There was truly not a dull moment in the entire book.
What I disliked most about the book was the lack of likable characters. King Amren was probably the one family member who showed Catrin the most affection, at least at the beginning, but at the same time he was a cold hearted brute who made choices based on politics rather than love. Catrin's mother was not at all sympathetic or understanding towards Catrin, even though she had been through a lot of the same things herself. Catrin's sister, Mor, was solely concerned with herself and her relationship with Belinus. Her interactions with Catrin were not necessarily mean but not at all kind either. Catrin's sister, Vala, offered herself as the hostage instead of Catrin, but that was the only part Vala played in the book and was most likely out of duty rather than protection. Basically almost all of Catrin's family members betrayed her in one way or another, all the while they were worrying about her fulfilling the curse and betraying them. In addition, Catrin didn't seem to have any friends to turn to. This was very effective for the story, however, and provided a solid reason as to why Catrin felt closest to her Raven, leading her to continue with the Raven's magic despite her father's wishes, and also for falling for Marcellus so quickly when it meant betraying her family and people. It was also most likely true of the responsibilities of royalty and the times they lived in, but it was just a bit rough to read at times. Even Marcellus was somewhat lacking, not to mention the power hungry Senator, Cunobelin, and Marrock were doing such terrible things and I soon found that I was not rooting for any one of them (King Amren included).
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars . I gave it this rating because once I started it I couldn't put it down! I really enjoyed reading it and would definitely recommend it to others. I am also very much interested in reading the sequels to see what happens next. I would say the ideal audience for Apollo's Raven is probably aged 20+ and made up of those who enjoy historical fiction novels, fantasy, as well as romance. Anyone who has an interest in the Roman Empire and the legends of different Gods and Goddesses, in particular, will definitely enjoy this book. Typos were limited to minor punctuation, and the instances were few and far between.
******
Apollo's Raven
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Latest Review: Deceptive Calm by Patricia Skipper
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I really enjoyed reading your review. It was detailed and very informative. This sounds like an interesting read, especially the mystical elements and Catrin's powers.
