Daughter of the Mists

by Elena Collins

Brittania is in the hands of the Romans but when the conquering army betray the dead King Prasutagus by defiling his daughters, his Queen, Boudicca, is determined to regain her land.

Iceni slave Brea remembers little of the time before the Romans, and has grown used to their louche and indulgent customs. She diligently goes about her duties looking after the artless Aurelia, wife-to-be of the handsome war hero Marcellus, but her longing for freedom and her desire to find her lost father, are never far from her mind.

Genres: Historical, Historical Fiction

442 pages, Paperback

Published October 2, 2023

About the author

Elena Collins is a pseudonym of author Judy Leigh.

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Judy Leigh; so Daughter of the Mists, which she wrote under the pen name Elena Collins, in a different genre, caught my attention. I was a little disappointed. The story slipped between present time, where Hannah has come back to southern England after teaching abroad, to find that the too vivid dreams that plagued her adolescence have returned, and night after night she finds herself in a different time seeing through the eyes of someone else; and, mid-first century current era, where Brea is caught in a conflict between her tribe in Britannia and Roman invaders/occupants.
Everything in the story hinges on Hannah finding a solution to her sleep depriving dreams, and when she does, the solution turns out to be so trite that it's kind of unbelievable.
The writing bothered me, too. In the Britannia scenes, the dialogue has so many "Master" and "My Lady"'s that read like a high school theatrical production.
The pacing was off. At the very end of the book Hannah becomes involved in some archaeological activities, which, if she became immersed in earlier in the story, would have provided substantiation for how the story unfolded.
And, then, a major character appears in Hannah's world who seems to be the same person she's seen in Brea's world. That's apparently supposed to be a suspenseful part of the plot. But the significance was never developed.
The thing is, either of these stories would have made interesting stand-alone stories. And, Leigh as Collins does bring out some interesting historical fiction tidbits Which is why I'm rating it 3 stars.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice dual time line historical romance. The author did a good job bringing the Roman world to life but I felt like the modern day plot life was a bit still and awkward. I never felt connected to Hannah, the MC and felt like there was no real tension or stakes to her story. It didn’t make sense to me as a foil story to Brea and felt that the modern day plot didn’t serve the story, and it actually dragged the story down a bit. I like the ghostly/ spooky tone in the modern story and wished there was more of that. The last thing that I didn’t love was the character names some had similar sounds and I found myself confusing the archeologists and the dog from time to time lol! Over all though this is a well researched novel and a nice love story.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved everything about this book. I enjoyed the 2 time lines flowing together and the characters as they grew . I wasn’t expecting the ending and it all came together.
I loved the historical part the story and the descriptive language really made you feel like you were there.

[Megan Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first book by this author. I’ve always loved historical fiction and throughly enjoyed this!!

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collins brings readers between Roman Britain and modern Britain in The Daughter of the Fens. Following Hanna, recently returned to Norfolk from teaching in China, and Brea, an Iceni girl enslaved by Romans, readers explore two intertwined narratives in this novel. Hanna discovers Roman artifacts on her mother’s boyfriend’s farm and tries to readjust to life back in Norfolk, while Brea, attempting to survive her enslavement in a Roman villa, seeks to protect her friends and find her parents, whom she was separated from during a Roman attack, as Boudicca and the Iceni grow increasingly dissatisfied with Roman overlordship. Collins’ characters are the heart of the story, while the setting (Norfolk) connects Hanna and Brea’s respective narratives. The background characters in both settings are as developed as the main characters, which allows readers to lose themselves in both halves of the story. As for the setting, Collins has clearly done her research on Roman Britain, as she cleverly describes Roman life, particularly in Britain, in great detail, adding to the charm and realistic historical elements of the novel. The Daughter of the Fens is an incredibly written historical fictional novel spanning two narratives and two different worlds that readers are sure to lose themselves in.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the advance copy.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A readable 3 stars.

I love time slips, but I've yet to read one which surpasses a Susanna Kearsley. While this was a good read, it wasn't going to set my heart on fire.

I had no problems with how and why the MFC is able to have visions/ dreams of the past, and having those going back to the Roman era was really interesting. I also loved the Roman story elements, they were extremely well done, the stakes for those characters were great.

For me, what brought this down to a 3 star was the modern elements. The MFC's mother is getting married to a farmer, and it just seemed so fake because it was "oh I only bake my own bread now!" "just pop to the shops in the Landrover!"

The connection between the MFC and MMC in the present was tenuous, and I didn't think there was much interaction to make the romance real. It seemed to rely on the MMC is the modern equivalent of the MC from the past, so there was an instant connection. I really did try to feel it, and after rereading those chapters a few times to see if I missed the bit which created the spark, I realised I hadn't because for me, it just wasn't there.

Oh well, onwards and upwards.

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daughter of the Mists is an enjoyable historical fiction novel with a slip in time. In the modern day, Hanna has returned home from China to live on a farm in Norfolk, and Brea is an Iceni girl enslaved by the Romans.

I’ve read and really enjoyed a couple of Barbara Erskine novels, and Daughter of the Mists is very much in that style.

Hanna has dreamt of a girl, a slave, since she was a teenager, and when she returns to Norfolk these dreams become much more vivid. I really enjoyed how the narrative seemed to slip naturally from one time to the other. I wasn’t left wondering what was going on, or where I was in time. I found the Roman/ Iceni timeline fascinating, and there were some uncomfortable descriptions of what life was like under the Roman rule. It was also good to see that the Iceni’s had a much more liberated view of the role of women than the Romans did!

This is an ideal book for those who enjoy historical fiction, romance and a bit of time slippage!

[Sharonb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this. My second Elena Collins book. 
A dual time line novel part in modern times and part in the first century AD in East Anglia, England.
When she is 10 years old Hanna has a head injury whilst doing gymnastics. Following that she starts having dreams of people from years ago. Skip forward to when she is nearly 30 and she returns home after a stay in China and the dreams become more frequent and intrusive. Through the dreams we learn about Brea, a young girl from the ancient Iceni tribe who is taken as a slave by the Romans and Marcellus, a Roman soldier. How is Hanna linked to Brea?
Lots of superstition, spookiness and ghostly apparitions. 
I enjoyed the historical story more which is what I usually find with this genre but on this occasion I also quite liked the modern part too.

[Marella Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me a bit longer to get into this one, but by 35% I was hooked. This is the 4th book I've read of Elena's, and I am addicted to the past and present storyline ending together in each book. I can't wait to see more of her work

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I believe that this is the first book I've read by this author.
I was enjoyable to read.
I think I would have preferred if the time slips were in separate chapters instead of in some cases being in the same one. I could have done without all the Latin words the Romans used to describe things.
I would definitely read another book by her.

[Katherine Dobkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need to come back and add to this review later but for now I will say that I loved this.
I don’t read much historical fiction but this has made me want to read lots more and in particular works of this author.
I found the story engaging and well written. Loved it.

[Shelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clean, fun, present day adventure mixed with dual 60AD story line.
No language or described sex.
Mention of a psychic archeologist and a couple other mediums.