Dreaming the Hound
A Novel of the Warrior Queen
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
In a spellbinding novel of gods and men, myth and brutality, acclaimed author Manda Scott returns to her heralded saga of a world under siege. For here is the epic tale of Boudica, the legendary Celtic queen, and her embattled Eceni tribe—a bold new work of imaginative fiction that takes us on a thrilling journey into a clash between magic and mankind.
To the Eceni tribe of Britannia, nature is the ultimate god, and warriors are joined in battle by the voices and spirits of their ancestors. But the proud Eceni are running out of time. Nero’s army, long since out of patience with Britannia’s wild tribes, is becoming increasingly oppressive. And Boudica’s family is at the center of a gathering storm: Cunomar, Boudica’s son, who longs for the mettle to kill as fiercely as his mother… Graine, her young daughter, gifted with the power of dreamers, scarred forever by the horrors of war...and Boudica’s brother, born Bán of the Eceni, turned the traitor Valerius—a man caught between worlds: warrior and dreamer, Roman and Eceni.
As conflict erupts between the tribes and their brutal invaders, Boudica is forced to make a bold sacrifice. Cloaking her identity, she will travel directly into the stronghold of an enemy who longs for her crucifixion. What happens next—in a brutal drama of betrayal, heroism, and sacrifice—will leave Boudica with no options but one: to raise and arm every warrior, every dreamer, every tribe…and push the invader and its legions back into the sea.
From the thundering hooves of the Eceni’s great horses to mystical spirit quests of young warriors, from the politics of an empire to the passions of lovers, Dreaming the Hound takes us on a breathtaking journey of the imagination—at once brutal, fantastical, and utterly unforgettable.
MAGNIFICENT PRAISE FOR MANDA SCOTT’S BOUDICA SAGA
Dreaming the Hound
“Extraordinary.” —Independent, UK
“Brilliantly imaginative.”—Colchester Evening Gazette, UK
“Dramatic…Vivid…Lyrical.”—Yorkshire Evening Post, UK
“One of Britain’s most famous legends…is retold here with extraordinary immediacy.”—Our Time, UK
“Irresistible…an excellent read.”—Diva, UK
Dreaming the Bull
“Enthralling…Mesmerising…Creates a living past of battle feats, betrayals, heart-breaking loyalties and cruelties.”—Publishing News, UK
“Thrilling…Readers will be swept away.” —Booklist, starred review
Dreaming the Eagle
“A powerful novel about one of the most intriguing and mysterious women in history…Alive with the love, deceit, wisdom and heroics of humanity. Read it and enjoy!”—Jean M. Auel
“The new Mary Renault…Intensely exciting, a tale of passion, courage and heroism against huge odds.”—Publishing News, UK
From the Hardcover edition.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Scott returns to Roman Britannia for the third of four planned installments in her Boudica saga (Boudica: Dreaming the Eagle; Boudica: Dreaming the Bull). The native warrior Breaca of the Eceni tribe called Boudica, "Bringer of Victory," for her valiant but failed attempt to repel the first century A.D. Roman invasion of Britannia has fled in defeat with her followers to the west of the country to continue their resistance. After a tribal elder and dreamer who receives visions from the gods unsuccessfully tries to recruit Boudica's half-brother Valerius, who earlier betrayed the Eceni to the Romans, the dreamer challenges her to go east to rally her people against Rome. Breaca agrees, only to fall into the ruthless hands of the emperor's procurator for taxes. He has her flogged and her young daughters raped, and would have crucified them except for the intervention of her Valerius. Scott has teased a few facts from the ancient record to create an absorbing story from history and myth. Readers new to the Boudica saga may find the genealogy complicated and the going slow at first, but they will be rewarded with a heroic story of a rebellious warrior queen.