My Five Word TL:DR Review: Great main character and setting

I absolutely loved the Wolf Den series by Elodie Harper and so I’m always excited to see anything new pop up, in fact I’m surprised at myself that I managed to wait so long before getting to this – but then deadlines sometimes dictate these things.

Boudicca’s Daughter was a very interesting read. As the story begins we meet Catia, famous warrior, married to a druid and mother to two daughters, otherwise known as Boudicca. I really liked the initial set up, the rivalry between the two sisters and the different dynamic between them and their parents. The author really pulls you into their story and you can feel the tension rising. The Briton’s and their Roman oppressors have a very tentative peace that seems balanced on a knife edge. The death of the Iceni king is about to tip the balance and insight rebellion.

I’m not going to dwell too much on the story. We focus on one of Boudicca’s daughters – called Solina. She’s an interesting and easy to like character. She’s intelligent and uses her brain as much as her strength. After the rebellion fails, Solina is taken captive and taken to Rome. Of course, this is a very short version of events.

What I really liked about this.

Well, Harper excels at setting a scene. I find it so easy to sink into her stories. I will say that if I was to be pushed, I preferred the time we actually spent in Rome because the author seems to really love these elements herself, or at least that’s how it feels to me. The Briton’s, the rebellion and even Boudicca, paled a little by comparison. Once Solina was taken to Rome with her captor Paulinus, the tension and constant fear really took hold. Which isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy the earlier parts of the story, just that they weren’t quite as gripping.

Paulinus is another fascinating character and this imagined partnership really served to highlight the differences between the two races. The strange thing is, even though the Briton’s suffered at the hands of their oppressors I think the Romans were actually meaner to each other – if that’s possible. Their constant scheming and manipulations, not to mention that Nero was an absolute horror of a ruler. Oh yes, things definitely became interesting once Paulinus was called home.

The relationship between Solina and Paulinus was really well written. As I mentioned Solina has strong survival instincts but is also a sympathetic character often stepping in to help others and ultimately putting herself at risk. I expected to find their relationship unbelievable but the way this is written is just so easy and enjoyable that you find yourself being easily caught up in their dilemmas. In fact, as the story progresses, and the madness and hysteria in Rome escalates, the two really need to stay strong together just to survive – funny that I felt Solina was more under threat at this point than during the battles in her own country.

I would mention that there are some incidents here that may be triggering for some readers although I would say that the events that take place are off page and are not sensationalised at all, they serve more to highlight how Solina is affected.

I don’t really have any criticisms for this, it was a really good read, the only thing that perhaps brought this down a little was the haste with which the rebellion was brushed over, I don’t know why, especially given the title, but I think I was expecting a little more from that side.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. If you loved the Wolf Den then I have no hesitation in recommending, they’re distinctly different stories but the author’s great story telling really shines through, and if you haven’t read the Wolf Den series I strongly recommend it. I also thought the audio version was really good. I can’t wait to see what Harper comes up with next.

I bought the audio version.

My rating 4 of 5 stars