Set not too long before the events on The Forests of Avalon/The Forest House following alternatively Priestess Lhiannon and Princess Boudica. The two meet when Boudica goes for training on the Druid's Isle. Boudica doesn't have as great a gift as some of the other Priestesses and trainees, but she does have a bond with the Goddess of War Cuthubodva. When the Romans attack England both women leave on seperate journeys but their paths often cross.

Boudica leaves the Island to get married to Prasutagos who becomes King. Together they overcome early insecurites and truely fall in love and have two beautiful daughters. Prasutagos suffers a kick to the stomach from a horse which leads to complications later on in his life and he dies leaving Boudica to rule alone. She is soon set upon and beaten by a group of Romans who also rape her children. Boudica lets in Cuthubodva and starts her own war against the Romans inciting her people to join her.

Lhiannon faces her own challenges. The man she loves is a fellow Druid but they are seperated early on at a battle and both beleive the other to be dead. They both survive and eventually meet up only for Lhiannon to find many things have changed. She is destined to be the High Priestess, but can't quite seem to get there as a rival causes problems. She witnesses much death and misses her friend Boudica. When the final battle comes Lhiannon must put aside her demons and stand by her friends side.

I loved this story. It really swept me up and it was a great addition to the series originally begun by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Diana Paxson worked with her and picked up the series after Marion's death in 1999. A blend of Celtic mythology, druid lore and fantasy with a splash of historical truths (although there are many embellishments), if you haven't read this series I strongly advise picking it up if you are interested in any of the above. ( )

In my endeavors to read new novels, I plucked this book off the shelf. Why wouldn’t I? I just finished The Mists of Avalon and was still in the mood to keep reading about the magical women of Britain. On the other hand, this book was about Boudica. I know enough about Boudica and the revolt against the Romans to know that things weren’t pretty and it didn’t go well for Britain. But, I’ve read a lot of stories knowing what was going to happen…so I started reading.

This book was written by Diana Paxson, longtime friend and collaborator of Marion Zimmer Bradley. Like the other post-Mists of Avalon books, it has MZB’s voice but there’s something lacking. The vastness and dept of Mists just isn’t present in this book (or in The Forest House, Priestess of Avalon etc). But, I enjoyed it for what it was. Diana Paxson is an excellent writer and I think she’s done a good job continuing Avalon when when Marion Zimmer Bradley died in 1999.

Boudica is the daughter of one of the chief-kings in Britain. She is sent to the Druid Isle for education, and meets the young priestess Lhiannon. The two become close friends, even though they have very different paths. Boudica, lacking the talents and patience to be a priestess, leaves to marry Praustagos and become Queen of the Iceni in the north. Lhiannon becomes a priestess who fights alongside the Druids against the invading Romans in the south. Boudica’s father had been a Roman collaborator, and she and Praustagos continue to live under Roman rule. This affords them a bit of peace. However, when Praustagos dies, the Romans deny Boudica and her daughters their rule and brutalize them. Pissed as hell, Boudica raises an army and marches through Brittania, destroying not only Roman legions, but those Britons who collaborated with them.

Diana Paxson doesn’t pretend anything like “Oh, even though they were defeated the Britons really won in their own special way” (kind of like in The Mists of Avalon…but I didn’t really mind that). The Britons were slaughtered. I’ve read about how 10,000 Romans killed somewhere around 300,000 Britons. It was kind of depressing to read…but I never got so sucked into the book that I FELT it.

I did enjoy this book. I don’t think that there’s anywhere else for the series to go (unless Diana Paxson wants to start writing about Atlantis). I wonder: if given the chance, would I read the Avalon series in chronological order (leaving The Mists of Avalon) for the end)? Hmm. Well, if she writes more, I’ll read them. I probably won’t re-read them, though. ( )

After the disappointing Ancestors of Avalon, Diana L. Paxson bounces back to the rich blend of historical fiction and fantasy that she and Marion Zimmer Bradley produced in Priestess of Avalon. If there are any more stories in this series which she and MZB discussed but the latter did not survive to write, I can only hope that they involve historical figures, as that seems to be where Ms. Paxson shines. ( )

My favorite of all the Avalon books. It's the story of Boudica, her training on Mona, her marriage to Prastagos, and her rebellion. I was pretty darn engrossed, and I'm sure I'll be reading it again before it's published. ( )