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Year of the Celt: Imbolc
Otley, Wharfedale 499BC.
"The ice sheets are coming, driving all before them. From the northern lands, deer, wolves and people flee the encroaching snow and ice. In their wake comes death, betrayal, love and hope. A small village of the Brigantes tribe in northern England will be changed forever.
This is their story."
The saga follows the fortunes of the Scefinge, whose settlement occupies the site of modern day Otley. Set against a backdrop of a changing climate and a large influx of refugees from the north escaping encroaching ice-sheets, the story is all about how ordinary people struggle to survive in a rapidly changing world; only those who adapt have any hope of surviving.
See www.yearofthecelt.co.uk for more on the Celts and Iron Age Wharfedale (the setting of the story).
"The ice sheets are coming, driving all before them. From the northern lands, deer, wolves and people flee the encroaching snow and ice. In their wake comes death, betrayal, love and hope. A small village of the Brigantes tribe in northern England will be changed forever.
This is their story."
The saga follows the fortunes of the Scefinge, whose settlement occupies the site of modern day Otley. Set against a backdrop of a changing climate and a large influx of refugees from the north escaping encroaching ice-sheets, the story is all about how ordinary people struggle to survive in a rapidly changing world; only those who adapt have any hope of surviving.
See www.yearofthecelt.co.uk for more on the Celts and Iron Age Wharfedale (the setting of the story).
- GenresHistorical Fiction
Kindle Edition
First published August 14, 2012
22 people want to read
About the author
Rob Godfrey
14 books7 followersRob Godfrey lives in Wharfedale, England. He's been a gardener, University Lecturer, Programmer and Web designer.
His first book "Yorkshire Dales: A Dog Walker's Guide" was published in July 2011. This book includes 20 'dog-friendly' walks in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales. His own dog Charlie, a Springer Spaniel, rightfully taking most of the credit. More here: http://www.dogfriendlywalks.com
Inspired by the local landscapes he then wrote "Year of the Celt: Imbolc", the first of 4 books relating the tale of the inhabitants of his own town but set in the year 499BC when it was just a tiny settlement. "The hills and moors above the Wharfedale valley are home to many ancient stone carvings about which little is known. Some date back to the Bronze Age and their exact purpose/function is a mystery. Seeing these stones got me thinking about life back then and how the landscape and climate would have had a profound affect on their way of life."
There's much more about the books and Iron Age Wharfedale here:
http://www.yearofthecelt.co.uk
The site includes detailed walks that take you to many of the stones and sites mentioned in the book.
His first book "Yorkshire Dales: A Dog Walker's Guide" was published in July 2011. This book includes 20 'dog-friendly' walks in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales. His own dog Charlie, a Springer Spaniel, rightfully taking most of the credit. More here: http://www.dogfriendlywalks.com
Inspired by the local landscapes he then wrote "Year of the Celt: Imbolc", the first of 4 books relating the tale of the inhabitants of his own town but set in the year 499BC when it was just a tiny settlement. "The hills and moors above the Wharfedale valley are home to many ancient stone carvings about which little is known. Some date back to the Bronze Age and their exact purpose/function is a mystery. Seeing these stones got me thinking about life back then and how the landscape and climate would have had a profound affect on their way of life."
There's much more about the books and Iron Age Wharfedale here:
http://www.yearofthecelt.co.uk
The site includes detailed walks that take you to many of the stones and sites mentioned in the book.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 31, 2013
A real treat for historical fiction fans. There is a great deal of detail in this book and a whole cast of characters who are fighting for survival during the onset of the ice-age. What I found particularly fascinating is that the characters were very much like us still, despite the 2500 year gap. Each of still wants food, shelter, companionship and to be loved. The author tackles all of these things and we glimpse a little of what our ancestral neighbours had to endure, knowing that without them we ourselves would not be here. There are a number of story lines to follow including murder, adultery, young love and the very survival of life. The author confesses that the day to life he portrays is largely speculative as there is no written history of the people of this time, but I would agree with his considerations on this and also believe that their lives would not have been so different to our own. It’s interesting to note that we are still learning, through recent archaeological discoveries, that our ancient ancestors were not nearly as primitive as we might once have believed which really supports the author’s suppositions to tell his story. I loved the characters, good and bad, and really want to pursue this story and learn what happens to them all. Heartily recommend.
June 26, 2018
This was a book with a lot of potential, which it unfortunately didn't reach. The author claims to have done a lot of research, which is obvious in places, while in others there are historical inaccuracies that make me think he should have done more. The characters are well-rounded, but their mannerisms and way of thinking are too modern for the story. The main plot is interesting, but there are places where it drags, and some of the other events are based around modern thinking so don't make sense in a historical story like this one. Also, the cliff-hanger ending was annoying. I'm aware this is the first in a series, but that's not the point, especially given the fact the next book doesn't seem to have been published yet, despite this one having now been out for almost six years (or, if it has, I can't find it). A bit of extra research and editing could have made this a much more enjoyable read. I hope – if they ever get published – the other books in the series will benefit from those things.
March 15, 2013
I received a free copy of this book for review.
Was this tagged as historical fiction? I can't remember if I saw that somewhere.
I didn't see much of the history and the story told didn't seem like it was specific to any area. It could be anywhere that was taken over during the ice age. I would classify it as just fiction. The ice would have changed the terrain so describing valleys and hills wouldn't necessarily mean they'd still be there thousands of years later. I know the author put a lot of research into the work, he says so on the last page, but it still seemed like just a normal work of fiction.
Hmmm. Would the art of the story be that I didn't notice the history? :/
Overall, I didn't really like this book. It was boring. The characters were organized and individual and you could see they were well developed. I liked that teenager Rab was an adult but also a child depending on what was going on. I liked how a lot of drama was circumvented with communication. I didn't like how the characters were described. "here's a character, here's their definition." Like an outline for a writing project. Some scenes were described very nicely, Arwen's house near the woods next to the mountains was very clear. But the village and valley of Rab's home I had to guess at.
The chapters seemed to jump around and it was hard to find out where I was in the story. If I were an editor I'd suggest maybe a small descriptor in the chapter title. "Arwen's house: Present time", "Callan's boat trip: 1 month ago", "Rab kills a deer: 5 minutes ago". Though I suppose that last one wasn't a separate chapter.
Lots of the dialog seemed useless. I didn't care about what these people were talking about. It wasn't character building, it wasn't plot advancement and it didn't inform me of events. I found myself wishing they would shut up.
What was with all the fart and poo and sex jokes? I know there's not plumbing, and having them shit down the side of a cliff is a good way to write that ugly part out of the story, but the girls giggling over fart sounds and then running off home to tell everyone there about it so they can all laugh some more is a little over the top.
Last, there were a few grammar mistakes and missing words, but for the most part the writing was very good for not having been edited before (if that's not true, don't tell me otherwise).
Was this tagged as historical fiction? I can't remember if I saw that somewhere.
I didn't see much of the history and the story told didn't seem like it was specific to any area. It could be anywhere that was taken over during the ice age. I would classify it as just fiction. The ice would have changed the terrain so describing valleys and hills wouldn't necessarily mean they'd still be there thousands of years later. I know the author put a lot of research into the work, he says so on the last page, but it still seemed like just a normal work of fiction.
Hmmm. Would the art of the story be that I didn't notice the history? :/
Overall, I didn't really like this book. It was boring. The characters were organized and individual and you could see they were well developed. I liked that teenager Rab was an adult but also a child depending on what was going on. I liked how a lot of drama was circumvented with communication. I didn't like how the characters were described. "here's a character, here's their definition." Like an outline for a writing project. Some scenes were described very nicely, Arwen's house near the woods next to the mountains was very clear. But the village and valley of Rab's home I had to guess at.
The chapters seemed to jump around and it was hard to find out where I was in the story. If I were an editor I'd suggest maybe a small descriptor in the chapter title. "Arwen's house: Present time", "Callan's boat trip: 1 month ago", "Rab kills a deer: 5 minutes ago". Though I suppose that last one wasn't a separate chapter.
Lots of the dialog seemed useless. I didn't care about what these people were talking about. It wasn't character building, it wasn't plot advancement and it didn't inform me of events. I found myself wishing they would shut up.
What was with all the fart and poo and sex jokes? I know there's not plumbing, and having them shit down the side of a cliff is a good way to write that ugly part out of the story, but the girls giggling over fart sounds and then running off home to tell everyone there about it so they can all laugh some more is a little over the top.
Last, there were a few grammar mistakes and missing words, but for the most part the writing was very good for not having been edited before (if that's not true, don't tell me otherwise).
March 10, 2013
Year of the Celt is a wonderful book set in a time and place I didn’t know too much about before I started reading. It is obvious the author has done his research. As a kid, I loved reading books about history and old civilisations, and this book didn’t disappoint in that department. The way the characters and their way of life are described was very natural, no info overkill. I felt their inner thoughts and reasoning were consistent with the time period (certain superstitions and religious notions) and yet, they all felt very relatable. I can recommend this book to young readers (teen/YA) who like history interwoven with a very ‘human’ tale of survival and love.
As I read this book as an e-book, I thought the glossary was a bit too much. Normally speaking, I don’t mind if I have to look up the meaning of a word every now and then, but flipping back and forth on an e-reader isn’t very convenient. Maybe the old words (like sennight = week) could have just been used in the storyline in such a way that it was obvious what was meant. Now, I felt that a lot of explanation was needed before the story started proper (because there was a list of words and characters right at the beginning) but in my humble opinion, the story would have worked just as well without those explanations and a bit more reliance on the reader’s intelligence and interpretation skills. I know what it feels like to want to cram all that historical knowledge in a book, though… the first draft for my own book even contained FOOTNOTES to explain certain words and expressions in Navajo relevant to their history (something that made my editor flip out! apparently, this is blasphemy in fiction :).
What I found refreshing was that the story was told in a third-person narrative (rather rare in YA lit these days) but never felt distant or unrelatable (something that might happen if the writer doesn’t master the third-person perspective well enough). I really felt like I was there with the characters.
I spotted some missing hyphens and apostrophes which occasionally distracted me, but nothing too serious.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book!
As I read this book as an e-book, I thought the glossary was a bit too much. Normally speaking, I don’t mind if I have to look up the meaning of a word every now and then, but flipping back and forth on an e-reader isn’t very convenient. Maybe the old words (like sennight = week) could have just been used in the storyline in such a way that it was obvious what was meant. Now, I felt that a lot of explanation was needed before the story started proper (because there was a list of words and characters right at the beginning) but in my humble opinion, the story would have worked just as well without those explanations and a bit more reliance on the reader’s intelligence and interpretation skills. I know what it feels like to want to cram all that historical knowledge in a book, though… the first draft for my own book even contained FOOTNOTES to explain certain words and expressions in Navajo relevant to their history (something that made my editor flip out! apparently, this is blasphemy in fiction :).
What I found refreshing was that the story was told in a third-person narrative (rather rare in YA lit these days) but never felt distant or unrelatable (something that might happen if the writer doesn’t master the third-person perspective well enough). I really felt like I was there with the characters.
I spotted some missing hyphens and apostrophes which occasionally distracted me, but nothing too serious.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book!
November 5, 2013
This is a novel "ensemble", with a broad cast of characters - members of the ancient Brigantes, Carvetii, and Caledonii tribes - and set in a most unusual time period, the Yorkshire and Scotland of about 499 BCE. The challenges of a difficult landscape and harsh weather (a mini ice age is upon us) are realistically conveyed; the author is clearly a woodsman and walker with an observant, and sensual, eye, and his passages about hunting and the woodland landscape are amongst his best. Given that no written records remain of these people, there is little attempt to immerse the reader in the atmosphere, emotionally or linguistically, of the Iron Age; the result is a certain incongruity in personal names and use of modern slang ("a close shave"; "bloody" used as an intensifying adjective). But those seeking a fresh background setting for a rousing tale of striving and survival will applaud the attempt. A helpful glossary and series of historical notes are included, including an invitation to actually travel the ancient footpaths trod by the peregrinating main characters.
February 2, 2013
Really enjoyed this story. Problems of climate change and effect on ordinary folks was well contrived to make one think about current climate changes. Author created interesting characters faced with everyday problems and reasonable solutions for period of adventure. A few surprises make book worth reading.
November 30, 2012
So sorry but, I will not have time to write this review until the end of next week. Suffice it to say that I would rank it about 3.7 out of 5.0 stars.
November 29, 2013
The book was fantastic. You really get drawn into the story. You love some characters and despise others.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews