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The Druid

Warrior Druid of Britain, Book 1

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The Druid

Written by: Steven A. McKay
Narrated by: Nick Denton
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Northern Britain, AD430

A land in turmoil. A village ablaze. A king’s daughter abducted.

In the aftermath of a surprise attack Dun Buic lies in smoking ruins and many innocent villagers are dead. As the survivors try to make sense of the night’s events the giant warrior-druid, Bellicus, is tasked with hunting down the raiders and thwarting their dark purpose.

With years of training in the old ways, two war-dogs at his side, and unsurpassed skill with a longsword, Bellicus’s quest will take him on a perilous journey through lands still struggling to cope with the departure of the Roman legions.

Meanwhile, amongst her brutal captors the little princess Catia finds an unlikely ally, but even he may not be able to avert the terrible fate King Hengist has in store for her.

This, the first volume in a stunning new series from the bestselling author of Wolf’s Head, explores the rich folklore and culture of post-Roman Britain, where blood-sacrifice, superstition, and warfare were as much a part of everyday life as love, laughter and song.

As Saxon invaders and the new Christian religion seek to mold the country for their own ends one man will change the course of Britain’s history forever....

....the Druid.

"Steven A. McKay's archetypal villains and heroes step vividly into the book from a mist-veiled past of legend to battle for the life of a princess and the fate of Britain. Dark age adventure at its gripping best." (Matthew Harffy, author of The Bernicia Chronicles)

©2018 Steven Alaric McKay (P)2019 Steven Alaric McKay
Fiction Historical Royalty Fantasy Village Magic Users King Destiny
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Grand adventure

This book was great! The action starts very quickly, and doesn't let up from there. Historically I'm not sure why Gaulish gods were installed in the mainly referenced pantheon of Dark Ages Britain, but then, I'm not a historian.
Enjoyable characters, and I found it easy to get invested. Definitely recommended!

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McKay's Best Yet

Steven A. McKay, author of the Forest Lord series about Robin Hood, tries his hand at a new character and a new time period with The Druid.

It's McKay's custom to deliver lots of action in his novels and The Druid is no exception. I think this may be his most action-packed novel so far. There are battles, raids, duels, skirmishes and chases throughout and the pacing of the novel reflects this; it's a fast-moving read.

As for the druid himself, Bellicus, McKay has created a strong protagonist who arrives fully-formed, trained, battle-ready and with a strong skill-set, but, as the novel shows, with plenty of room for development and character growth. He also has a spirituality that matches his profession as a druid. Aside from Bellicus, McKay also develops a cast of interesting supporting characters on both sides of the story's conflict.

The world of post-Roman Britain as devised by McKay is a dream setting for action stories. There are few definitive written records of the period and historians put forth multiple possible theories about what was going on at the time, leaving an author almost a free hand at invention. With the political and military rivalries of the Picts, the Dalriadans, the Alt Clotans, the Saxons and the Britons of the southern kingdoms, not to mention the religious rivalries between the Old Way of the Druids, the Christians of the south, the pantheon of the Saxons and even the vestiges of pagan Roman worship, there's plenty of conflict to generate great stories. As I was reading, I observed plenty of material here to generate sequels that could keep Bellicus busy for quite some time to come and I'm sure McKay has plans.

The druid order itself is explored believably based on what little I've read of Celts and druids. The idea that they are part-bard and part-priest is effectively developed within the framework of the story. We meet other members of this order, not just Bellicus, and these examples effectively demonstrate their place in their society. I'm not sure that real druids were warriors, but there's no reason a druid couldn't be as skilled as Bellicus following the manner in which the story suggests. The reasons for his war-training may be hidden in the character's mysterious past which I suspect will be mined in future installments.

I heartily recommend this adventure from Steven A. McKay--I think it's his best novel yet--and I want to congratulate him for starting a new series which looks like it has the potential to outgrow and outshine even his successful Forest Lord series.

The narration by Nick Denton is very effective and he voices different characters and accents very well.

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Terrible book

Probably one of the worst books I have purchased from here. The storyline is so oooooooo slow. I don't know how many chapters of boring pointless whining, drunk people with absurd moments. It's terrible.

As for the narration, not as bad as the storyline but pretty close!! I have listened to hundreds of audiobooks, this is the second book ever I had to slow down. He speed reads it so fast you have to rewind and figure out what he said. Then when you slow it down it's just as bad anyways. Don't waste your credits or money!

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