What do you think?
Rate this book
The Swan Maiden
In this lush, romantic retelling of one of the most enduring Irish legends, acclaimed Celtic historical author Jules Watson reignites the tale of Deirdre—the Irish Helen of Troy—in a story that is at once magical, beautiful, and tragic.
She was born with a blessing and a that she would grow into a woman of extraordinary beauty—and bring ruin to the kingdom of Ulster and its ruler, the wily Conor. Ignoring the pleadings of his druid to expel the infant, King Conor secrets the girl child with a poor couple in his province, where no man can covet her. There, under the tutelage of a shamaness, Deirdre comes of age in nature and magic…. And in the season of her awakening, the king is inexorably drawn to her impossible beauty.
But for Deirdre, her fate as a man’s possession is worse than death. And soon the green-eyed girl, at home in waterfall and woods, finds herself at the side of three rebellious young warriors. Among them is the handsome Naisi. His heart charged with bitterness toward the aging king, and growing in love for the defiant girl, Naisi will lead Deirdre far from Ulster—and into a war of wits, swords, and spirit that will take a lifetime to wage.
Brimming with life and its lusts, here is a soaring tale of enchantment and eternal passions—and of a woman who became legend.
She was born with a blessing and a that she would grow into a woman of extraordinary beauty—and bring ruin to the kingdom of Ulster and its ruler, the wily Conor. Ignoring the pleadings of his druid to expel the infant, King Conor secrets the girl child with a poor couple in his province, where no man can covet her. There, under the tutelage of a shamaness, Deirdre comes of age in nature and magic…. And in the season of her awakening, the king is inexorably drawn to her impossible beauty.
But for Deirdre, her fate as a man’s possession is worse than death. And soon the green-eyed girl, at home in waterfall and woods, finds herself at the side of three rebellious young warriors. Among them is the handsome Naisi. His heart charged with bitterness toward the aging king, and growing in love for the defiant girl, Naisi will lead Deirdre far from Ulster—and into a war of wits, swords, and spirit that will take a lifetime to wage.
Brimming with life and its lusts, here is a soaring tale of enchantment and eternal passions—and of a woman who became legend.
540 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2009
33 people are currently reading
1250 people want to read
About the author
Jules Watson
13 books155 followersJules Watson was born in Australia to English parents. She came to fiction via archaeology and public relations, working most recently as a freelance writer in England. She and her Scottish husband divide their time between the United Kingdom and Australia.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews
November 19, 2014
3.5 Stars
So first off I feel like I need to explain a bit of the backstory of how I ended up owning The Swan Maiden; it was during one of my thrift store forays when I saw it there on the shelf and instantly thought…..( if you were born/raised in the early 90’s you probably know)
This:
Yup, “The Swan Princess”!! Hooray for random girly purchases that end up being nothing like what you thought they were going to be! Curse my infernal grabby hands mentality – I didn’t even LOOK at the back of the book!
The Swan Maiden is based, and I am NOT well versed in Irish lore, on the story of Dierdre of the Sorrows. (Which the back of the novel refers to as the Irish Helen of Troy) So NOT the light, girly read I was expecting….. BUT that’s really okay with me.
It’s probably closer, genre-wise, to Tristan & Iseult or "King Arthur" (at least what I know of Arthurian legend).
This is a story of an epic love.
They were cries of fury, flung out as a fierce challenge to all the forces arrayed against them, as if with passion alone they could thrust back the encroaching darkness
A love which defies not one BUT two Kings! And Watson spins the tale well. In a novel which is 535 pages I can honestly say that only about 50 pages felt unnecessary, which is saying a lot since I am, generally, a fan of straight-shooter writing rather than flowery prose.
I fell a little in love with all three of the sons of Usnech (and their unique bonds to each other, not to mention the lady for whom the title is named. A fierce and strong beauty who would not be tamed), however, my true love in The Swan Maiden is Cúchulainn! The king’s hound, the heroic warrior whom all of the Red Branch look up to and try to emulate. And it is his simple, genuine love for his wife and country that did it for me. Love that man! Alas, this is NOT his story. *sigh*
So first off I feel like I need to explain a bit of the backstory of how I ended up owning The Swan Maiden; it was during one of my thrift store forays when I saw it there on the shelf and instantly thought…..( if you were born/raised in the early 90’s you probably know)
This:
Yup, “The Swan Princess”!! Hooray for random girly purchases that end up being nothing like what you thought they were going to be! Curse my infernal grabby hands mentality – I didn’t even LOOK at the back of the book!
The Swan Maiden is based, and I am NOT well versed in Irish lore, on the story of Dierdre of the Sorrows. (Which the back of the novel refers to as the Irish Helen of Troy) So NOT the light, girly read I was expecting….. BUT that’s really okay with me.
It’s probably closer, genre-wise, to Tristan & Iseult or "King Arthur" (at least what I know of Arthurian legend).
This is a story of an epic love.
They were cries of fury, flung out as a fierce challenge to all the forces arrayed against them, as if with passion alone they could thrust back the encroaching darkness
A love which defies not one BUT two Kings! And Watson spins the tale well. In a novel which is 535 pages I can honestly say that only about 50 pages felt unnecessary, which is saying a lot since I am, generally, a fan of straight-shooter writing rather than flowery prose.
I fell a little in love with all three of the sons of Usnech (and their unique bonds to each other, not to mention the lady for whom the title is named. A fierce and strong beauty who would not be tamed), however, my true love in The Swan Maiden is Cúchulainn! The king’s hound, the heroic warrior whom all of the Red Branch look up to and try to emulate. And it is his simple, genuine love for his wife and country that did it for me. Love that man! Alas, this is NOT his story. *sigh*
March 17, 2010
So...I don't know. I had a somewhat difficult time with this one. I'd never heard anything about the Irish legend this book is based on, but I enjoyed the main plotline of the story. The problem I had was with the way it's written. Somehow Watson just completely failed to draw me in. I didn't end up caring about any of the characters except for Ardan (pretty sure he's NOT really the one I was supposed to be focused on), and I found myself skimming. A LOT. And saying, "blah, blah, blah, get on with it" in my head. It's not that the writing was BAD, it just seemed...very distancing, I suppose, and so I had a hard time actually feeling the things she was describing--even the things that probably COULD have had me BAWLING MY EYES OUT if they had been written in a different way. And it felt like it just took too long for things to happen, so by the time they finally did, I'd seen them coming from a mile away and already gotten bored in the meantime. I also got REALLY tired of the word "rump"--waaaay too many mentions of Dierdre's superfine bum! Two stars might seem a bit harsh, especially since there were some things I enjoyed about it. But my overall impression is one of slogging through, so I don't feel I can say I actually LIKED it. That said, I can see how some people might really love this one--there is a lot of beauty to it. It just is written in a way that doesn't totally work for me, that's all.
October 30, 2009
I inhaled this book for about 1 month. Okay, sounding dramatic here, but every time I picked this book up I had the rain of Scotland pelting my bare skin. I slept in caves, I stared into Naisi's eyes and watched him kill a man for me. I woke up every morning wanting to read parts over. I read it through, turned to page 1 and read it over... I've NEVER done that before. I wore the book out in 1 month and had to buy a new copy, and I wish I'd written my review back then instead of now, because what I really took away from the whole experience was an awakening in historical fantasy and fiction. I had no idea how much information is actually available from these times, much more than I ever thought possible. I really really appreciate that Jules Watson graduated in archeology and how many new ideas run in my head as a result of looking into her sources and wondering about the spiritual ideas of the ancient culture she writes about. History shows me who I am, connects me to every woman ever living. I read The White Mare and the Dawn Stag. I looked into other authors who write historical fantasy and historical fiction. It's been a ride that started with this book and I hope I never get to the end.
Some extra notes: There is a lot of "intelligent sex" as Jules would say, in this book. In her White Mare series the sex is even more tied to spiritual ideas, which I find fascinating. In a technical sense I can't recommend this book to anyone I know because of the sex in this book...because technically I'm not supposed to have read it. I loved it. Sorry--- doh! NOT sorry.
Second, how Naisi's warrior culture was tied to his sense of spirituality and sense of right and wrong, was just amazing. I can't wait for The Raven Queen.
Third, the title of this book is just ridiculous. It should never have been called "Swan Maiden".
In a book entitled "Deirdre" by ... oh, who was it?... she sites Connachbar mac Nessa as a kind man and a good king. Interesting. She was one of the authors I started reading as part of my historical fiction journey. I'll have to read the original sources to find out, I think. Cuchulainn and the Ulster Cycle and what-not.
Some extra notes: There is a lot of "intelligent sex" as Jules would say, in this book. In her White Mare series the sex is even more tied to spiritual ideas, which I find fascinating. In a technical sense I can't recommend this book to anyone I know because of the sex in this book...because technically I'm not supposed to have read it. I loved it. Sorry--- doh! NOT sorry.
Second, how Naisi's warrior culture was tied to his sense of spirituality and sense of right and wrong, was just amazing. I can't wait for The Raven Queen.
Third, the title of this book is just ridiculous. It should never have been called "Swan Maiden".
In a book entitled "Deirdre" by ... oh, who was it?... she sites Connachbar mac Nessa as a kind man and a good king. Interesting. She was one of the authors I started reading as part of my historical fiction journey. I'll have to read the original sources to find out, I think. Cuchulainn and the Ulster Cycle and what-not.
April 29, 2009
The Swan Maiden is a novel based on the Irish legend of "Deirdre of the Sorrows", written by J.M. Synge. When Deirdre was a babe, the druid Cathbad prophesied that she would grow into a great beauty and bring about the downfall of their land. Ignoring requests that the babe be killed, the King of the Ulaids, Conor decides to hide the child with plans to marry her when she becomes of age. Conor enlists the help of Levercham, who teaches Dierdre the ways of the Druids. Attempts to dissuade Conor from his mission of marrying Deirdre fail time and again, much to Levercham's dismay. When Dierdre hears of this, she can no longer wait around, being fattened up like a pig for the day when Conor comes to collect her. She runs away and crosses paths with three brothers, Red Branch soldiers famous for their fighting skills, and they decide to help her. When Conor hears that Deirdre has fled and who she is with, he is beyond furious and pulls no stops to get her back. Naisi and Deirdre eventually fall in love and despite the brothers' aching for home and their fellow Red Branch soldiers, they find a place of their own and settle in (for a while at least). They are found and persuaded home with the promises of forgiveness, only to be betrayed by their King, again. The rest you should read for yourself, I don't want to give it all away!
I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book!!! See, I even put three exclamation points after that sentence, just to make sure you grasp the emotion! Ha!
What I really enjoyed about The Swan Maiden was the way Jules writes about the connection with nature and animals that Deirdre feels. She describes scenes and it's like you're there (or at least you really, really want to be). I could even stomach the hunting scenes which I usually skim over. So many descriptive words come to mind when I think about this book - mythical, surreal, spiritual, magical, echanting. And the love between Deirdre and Naisi...aaahhh pure magic....the connection they have with each other is so powerful and Jules writes it so well!!
Readers you are in for a treat with this one, you will not want to put it down! Thanks to Jules Watson for sharing such a wonderful story with me, one that I'll remember for a long time!
I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book!!! See, I even put three exclamation points after that sentence, just to make sure you grasp the emotion! Ha!
What I really enjoyed about The Swan Maiden was the way Jules writes about the connection with nature and animals that Deirdre feels. She describes scenes and it's like you're there (or at least you really, really want to be). I could even stomach the hunting scenes which I usually skim over. So many descriptive words come to mind when I think about this book - mythical, surreal, spiritual, magical, echanting. And the love between Deirdre and Naisi...aaahhh pure magic....the connection they have with each other is so powerful and Jules writes it so well!!
Readers you are in for a treat with this one, you will not want to put it down! Thanks to Jules Watson for sharing such a wonderful story with me, one that I'll remember for a long time!
July 15, 2018
DNF at 17% because this book was extremely difficult to read. Characters were disjointed up the wazoo and the tone felt like a rip-off from the great Juliet Marillier.
August 15, 2010
Um livro mágico, sedutor, intenso e de uma descoberta avassaladora. Lê-lo foi como mergulhar num mundo paralelo, mitológico, com heróis e vilões, um mundo onde os druidas ainda existem e são a classe mais respeitada entre os homens, onde as sacerdotisas são ouvidas e veneradas, um mundo que se pensa que em tempos existiu e que desapareceu.
A escrita de Jules Watson conquista-nos desde cedo. Apesar de a história se passar em tempos arcaicos da nossa civilização, a escrita é simples, sem rodeios, mas ao mesmo tempo quase romântica. Oscilando entre momentos de grande acção e outros de pura paz, nunca nos cansamos de virar as suas páginas. Deste género literário, as autoras mais famosas são Juliet Marillier e Marion Zimmer Bradley e, embora possamos cair na tentação de compararmos A Lenda do Cisne com alguma obra destas autoras, penso que a escritora conseguiu conquistar uma identidade bastante própria.
À primeira vista, pode parecer uma obra como tantas outras. Há uma “donzela” cobiçada pelo rei que não quer casar com ele, há um jovem que se predispõe a ajudá-la e parece que vão cair na inevitabilidade de se apaixonarem, que vão aparecer dificuldades extremas em que apenas o amor os vai manter unidos, etc, mas nada do que parece é. A nossa pulsação acelera bastantes vezes, ansiamos por acontecimentos que muitas vezes se mostram surpreendentes e não aquilo que estávamos à espera. É este mistério criado à volta do desenlace que tanto nos vicia e torna a leitura compulsiva.
Nesta história temos um rei, Connor, que foi coroado não por ser um guerreiro, como tradicionalmente, mas pela sua inteligência. Para servir o reino há um grupo de guerreiros denominado de Red Branch onde o elo que os une é tão forte que em batalha eles lutam como um. A Fonte percorre-os e eles têm capacidades que nenhuns outros guerreiros de Erin e arredores têm. Deste grupo do Red Branch, faz parte o grande guerreiro mitológico Cuchulain, o seu mais leal amigo Ferdia e os três filhos do antigo rei Usnesch – Taisin, Ardan e Ainlin. E é quando o rei decide desafiar a profecia, ao querer casar com Deirdre (para provar que ainda é viril e que pode gerar mais sucessores), que tudo descamba.
Deirdre é uma personagem que me é muito querida. É uma lutadora, uma sem dono, mas com uma capacidade de entrega extraordinária. Tendo sido instruída por uma sacerdotisa, desde cedo ela revela um grande dom para as artes druidas. Toda a sua descoberta do que ela realmente é, é mística e poderosa. Nunca o seu futuro poderá ser determinado por uma profecia à sua nascença ou por qualquer homem. Ela tece o seu próprio futuro. Mas nem ela poderia prover o seu desfecho.
A história de amor aqui presente é transcendente. Como é que poderei caracterizá-la sem parecer demasiado cor-de-rosa? Porque acreditem, não o é. Por vezes sorrimos, outras vezes ficamos com aquele aperto na garganta em que, para gente mais sensível, até as lágrimas poderão aparecer. No entanto, é uma prova de que não há cobiça, luxúria, maldade e até mesmo insanidade suficientes que o possam trespassar.
Jules Watson conquistou um lugar na minha prateleira. Recomendo vivamente a obra a quem gosta das autoras que referenciei acima e principalmente a quem gosta de uma boa história que envolva mitos celtas e irlandeses e druidas.
A escrita de Jules Watson conquista-nos desde cedo. Apesar de a história se passar em tempos arcaicos da nossa civilização, a escrita é simples, sem rodeios, mas ao mesmo tempo quase romântica. Oscilando entre momentos de grande acção e outros de pura paz, nunca nos cansamos de virar as suas páginas. Deste género literário, as autoras mais famosas são Juliet Marillier e Marion Zimmer Bradley e, embora possamos cair na tentação de compararmos A Lenda do Cisne com alguma obra destas autoras, penso que a escritora conseguiu conquistar uma identidade bastante própria.
À primeira vista, pode parecer uma obra como tantas outras. Há uma “donzela” cobiçada pelo rei que não quer casar com ele, há um jovem que se predispõe a ajudá-la e parece que vão cair na inevitabilidade de se apaixonarem, que vão aparecer dificuldades extremas em que apenas o amor os vai manter unidos, etc, mas nada do que parece é. A nossa pulsação acelera bastantes vezes, ansiamos por acontecimentos que muitas vezes se mostram surpreendentes e não aquilo que estávamos à espera. É este mistério criado à volta do desenlace que tanto nos vicia e torna a leitura compulsiva.
Nesta história temos um rei, Connor, que foi coroado não por ser um guerreiro, como tradicionalmente, mas pela sua inteligência. Para servir o reino há um grupo de guerreiros denominado de Red Branch onde o elo que os une é tão forte que em batalha eles lutam como um. A Fonte percorre-os e eles têm capacidades que nenhuns outros guerreiros de Erin e arredores têm. Deste grupo do Red Branch, faz parte o grande guerreiro mitológico Cuchulain, o seu mais leal amigo Ferdia e os três filhos do antigo rei Usnesch – Taisin, Ardan e Ainlin. E é quando o rei decide desafiar a profecia, ao querer casar com Deirdre (para provar que ainda é viril e que pode gerar mais sucessores), que tudo descamba.
Deirdre é uma personagem que me é muito querida. É uma lutadora, uma sem dono, mas com uma capacidade de entrega extraordinária. Tendo sido instruída por uma sacerdotisa, desde cedo ela revela um grande dom para as artes druidas. Toda a sua descoberta do que ela realmente é, é mística e poderosa. Nunca o seu futuro poderá ser determinado por uma profecia à sua nascença ou por qualquer homem. Ela tece o seu próprio futuro. Mas nem ela poderia prover o seu desfecho.
A história de amor aqui presente é transcendente. Como é que poderei caracterizá-la sem parecer demasiado cor-de-rosa? Porque acreditem, não o é. Por vezes sorrimos, outras vezes ficamos com aquele aperto na garganta em que, para gente mais sensível, até as lágrimas poderão aparecer. No entanto, é uma prova de que não há cobiça, luxúria, maldade e até mesmo insanidade suficientes que o possam trespassar.
Jules Watson conquistou um lugar na minha prateleira. Recomendo vivamente a obra a quem gosta das autoras que referenciei acima e principalmente a quem gosta de uma boa história que envolva mitos celtas e irlandeses e druidas.
October 25, 2012
Full disclosure: I made it to page 300 out of 512 long, meandering, repetitive pages before finally giving up. Life is to short to read bad books, and sadly, this is one of those for me. It had all the right elements for me- fairy tale re-telling. Celtic lore. But Deirdre was boring and flat and apparently a goddess in the flesh, for no man can resist her and she can do no wrong, not to mention some pretty hefty magic powers. This made for an extremely boring and repetitive book, and I couldn't handle the unending descriptions of her "nipples straining against her shirt" and "the cleft between her legs" that renders all men into blathering dotes-even kings and legendary warriors. Even her ankle has the power to seduce and cause rampant obsession. Its cool that she has nothing to talk about, ever, cause hey! Her skin glows in the moonlight. Conor, the "bad guy", was the most interesting character to me because he had real, tangible issues- but he was still sadly under-developed and certainly not enough to make this looooong story worth reading. I'm not one to shy away from a long book but this was just painful. Maybe it could have been a 100 page romance novella, and it would've been ok. Maybe. I was hoping this would compare to Julliette Mariller who has written some lovely books on the same topics, but no dice.
July 28, 2013
Tentei, tentei uma e outra vez, parei a leitura e retomei mais tarde mas não foi suficiente, o livro não me consegue cativar o suficiente para prosseguir com a leitura.
February 28, 2012
Baseado num mito irlandês, "A Lenda do Cisne" traz-nos a estória da bela Dreide, uma donzela cujo destino fora profetizado ainda antes do seu nascimento, e que, devido à sua magnitude, se viu enclausurada durante toda a sua vida, sendo educada para se tornar a rainha de Conor, o rei dos Ulaid.
Mas, embora conformada com o seu fado, Dreide descobre o livre arbítrio, a opção de escolha, graças aos três irmãos: Naisi, Ardan e a Ainnle, que são também, guerreiros de Ulaid, os chamados "Red Branch".
Confrontada com esta nova realidade, Dreide pede auxilio aos três irmãos, fugindo com eles das garras do ganancioso Conor.
Exilados de tudo e todos, Dreide e Naisi, o irmão mais velho, apaixonam-se e tornam.se marido e mulher, mas a sacerdotisa é alvo de cobiça de todos os homens, incluindo de Conor e outros inimigos.
Conjurando um plano diabólico, Conor mata Naisi, mas nem assim conquista a sua rainha. Perante tal humilhação, decide tratá-la como uma escrava, oferecendo-a como tal, mas é o rei que sai humilhado desta situação... Com o reino dividido, e sem o Red Branch.
Sendo eu uma amante de mitologia em geral, senti-me logo atraída por este livro, mal soube da sua existência!
Jules Watson é bem atenta ao pormenor, e a sua escrita requer bastante atenção por parte do leitor, caso contrário perdem o fio à meada, não conseguindo acompanhar a estória de forma perceptível.
Admito que tanto pormenor quebrava o ritmo da leitura, e cansava-me, arriscando-me a dizer que, Jules Watson deve ser uma pessoa minuciosa e de imaginação fértil, mas que não sabe medir o seu talento, dai que se cortasse cerca de 200 páginas de pura redundância existentes no livro, a leitura fluiria de uma forma muito mais natural.
Mas, de forma alguma posso dizer que não gostei do livro, pois pelo contrário, gostei imenso, e embora entristecida pelo final, não consegui encontrar um final melhor!
Naisi, nobre e guerreiro, carregava o mundo às costas, assim como o seu amor por Dreide, e tudo fez para o manter, protegendo-a e entregando-se à sua amada.
Dreide, embora jovem e isolada durante anos, depressa amadureceu, e tornou-se fascinante de imaginar!
Jules Watson criou personagens interessantes e que nos fascinam, suscitando-nos a curiosidade de querermos saber mais sobre elas, sobre as suas crenças e rituais.
Numa época de promiscuidade medieval, o amor combateu os seus inimigos e triunfou, embora de forma pouco ortodoxa!
Uma leitura que embora demorada, não é, de todo, pesada, mas sim leve e entusiasmante!
Com muita acção e romance. Com personagens de valor, e acontecimentos extravasantes.
Muita magia e lendas das quais apenas ouvimos falar, mas as quais a autora domina perfeitamente, fazendo-o transparecer nesta bela narrativa.
Depois de "A Lenda do Cisne", mal posso esperar por "A Rainha Corvo".
Mas, embora conformada com o seu fado, Dreide descobre o livre arbítrio, a opção de escolha, graças aos três irmãos: Naisi, Ardan e a Ainnle, que são também, guerreiros de Ulaid, os chamados "Red Branch".
Confrontada com esta nova realidade, Dreide pede auxilio aos três irmãos, fugindo com eles das garras do ganancioso Conor.
Exilados de tudo e todos, Dreide e Naisi, o irmão mais velho, apaixonam-se e tornam.se marido e mulher, mas a sacerdotisa é alvo de cobiça de todos os homens, incluindo de Conor e outros inimigos.
Conjurando um plano diabólico, Conor mata Naisi, mas nem assim conquista a sua rainha. Perante tal humilhação, decide tratá-la como uma escrava, oferecendo-a como tal, mas é o rei que sai humilhado desta situação... Com o reino dividido, e sem o Red Branch.
Sendo eu uma amante de mitologia em geral, senti-me logo atraída por este livro, mal soube da sua existência!
Jules Watson é bem atenta ao pormenor, e a sua escrita requer bastante atenção por parte do leitor, caso contrário perdem o fio à meada, não conseguindo acompanhar a estória de forma perceptível.
Admito que tanto pormenor quebrava o ritmo da leitura, e cansava-me, arriscando-me a dizer que, Jules Watson deve ser uma pessoa minuciosa e de imaginação fértil, mas que não sabe medir o seu talento, dai que se cortasse cerca de 200 páginas de pura redundância existentes no livro, a leitura fluiria de uma forma muito mais natural.
Mas, de forma alguma posso dizer que não gostei do livro, pois pelo contrário, gostei imenso, e embora entristecida pelo final, não consegui encontrar um final melhor!
Naisi, nobre e guerreiro, carregava o mundo às costas, assim como o seu amor por Dreide, e tudo fez para o manter, protegendo-a e entregando-se à sua amada.
Dreide, embora jovem e isolada durante anos, depressa amadureceu, e tornou-se fascinante de imaginar!
Jules Watson criou personagens interessantes e que nos fascinam, suscitando-nos a curiosidade de querermos saber mais sobre elas, sobre as suas crenças e rituais.
Numa época de promiscuidade medieval, o amor combateu os seus inimigos e triunfou, embora de forma pouco ortodoxa!
Uma leitura que embora demorada, não é, de todo, pesada, mas sim leve e entusiasmante!
Com muita acção e romance. Com personagens de valor, e acontecimentos extravasantes.
Muita magia e lendas das quais apenas ouvimos falar, mas as quais a autora domina perfeitamente, fazendo-o transparecer nesta bela narrativa.
Depois de "A Lenda do Cisne", mal posso esperar por "A Rainha Corvo".
August 19, 2012
I'm halfway through this one now. The book is good, but ... somehow a bit of a slog. Possibly because I've been feverish for a week now and EVERYTHING feels like a bit of a slog...
**
Okay, I'm sick, bedridden even, and ... this book is really starting to annoy me. It's TOO WORDY!!! Okay okay I GET IT, Deirdre and Naisi are two perfect, sexy people, deeply in touch with nature, and they are madly in love and HAVING LOTS OF SEX IN THE DIRT. Enough already! When they get down and dirty in the ferns, all I can think is: "do you know how many slugs are crawling around down there?????" I think the author is trying to make this feel EPIC showing us the TIME PASSING. But instead it's just getting annoying. If I had something better to do, I'd be doing it, but since I can only lie around, I keep reading. Maybe a story will emerge.
**
I finished it! Phew! One star is really a bit harsh, but this book was just TOO LONG. I ended up skipping whole sections of useless descriptions - yes, I get it, Deirdre has beautiful milky white skin and an awesome butt, Naisi is an awesome swordsman, Deirdre has an awesome rapport with nature, Naisi is in touch with The Source, Deirdre is in touch with The Source, blah blah blah. This could have been such a great book, too, with some fierce editing.
I recommend this book to people who like lots of long flowery descriptions filled with many adjectives and few verbs, and lots of spiritual sex, sometimes in the dirt.
**
Okay, I'm sick, bedridden even, and ... this book is really starting to annoy me. It's TOO WORDY!!! Okay okay I GET IT, Deirdre and Naisi are two perfect, sexy people, deeply in touch with nature, and they are madly in love and HAVING LOTS OF SEX IN THE DIRT. Enough already! When they get down and dirty in the ferns, all I can think is: "do you know how many slugs are crawling around down there?????" I think the author is trying to make this feel EPIC showing us the TIME PASSING. But instead it's just getting annoying. If I had something better to do, I'd be doing it, but since I can only lie around, I keep reading. Maybe a story will emerge.
**
I finished it! Phew! One star is really a bit harsh, but this book was just TOO LONG. I ended up skipping whole sections of useless descriptions - yes, I get it, Deirdre has beautiful milky white skin and an awesome butt, Naisi is an awesome swordsman, Deirdre has an awesome rapport with nature, Naisi is in touch with The Source, Deirdre is in touch with The Source, blah blah blah. This could have been such a great book, too, with some fierce editing.
I recommend this book to people who like lots of long flowery descriptions filled with many adjectives and few verbs, and lots of spiritual sex, sometimes in the dirt.
July 31, 2013
I was so excited to read this book but was very disappointed. It was rather dull and more historical fiction than fantasy (I hate historical fiction!). There was no richness to the language or depth to the characters to draw me in. The men were stubborn and honor-bound. The girl was wild with unnatural druid skills that I guess were supposed to make her mysterious and fey. Instead I found her to be unreliable as a character. I never knew if she would react sensibly to something or not. The love story was characterized by sexual tension taken right out of a bad romance novel. This is supposed to be an epic story of a love that takes down a mighty king! At least make the sex scenes worthy of that type of love! Overall, I found the politics dull, the characters pretty stock and the romance underwhelming.
August 2, 2012
The story started out with great potential since I love folklore and fairytales of all kinds but somewhere in the middle I glazed over. Maybe I just found the action slow or something. Deirdre herself is an impressive heroine. Her pursuit for freedom borders on obsession and she never lets anyone undermine her for her age,looks, or gender. Naisi is a flawed character but he is earnest in his love for his family and a warrior's honor. I do like the main characters a lot even if they frustrate me. I just wished the story continued to absorb me. I am saddened by the ending because of what happens but I was over the long story by then so the impact was not that big.
July 26, 2012
I liked some of this: I found Watson's exploration of the code of honour followed by the Red Branch extremely compelling and the descriptions of nature and countryside extremely beautiful. But I found the long passages describing the nature of the love between Deirdre and Naisi went on and on until I started to skim over them - the first one was insightful, but the author seemed to re-state it over and over. If you're looking for masterful re-workings of ancient fairytales and myths, I'd far prefer Juliet Marillier's Daughter of the Forest and for an amazing telling of Deirdre's story, read "The Harpers's Daughter" by Barbara Samuel a long short story in a collection called Irish Magic.
November 25, 2009
As was stated by many of the reviewers on the cover of this book, perhaps the best way to describe Watson's writing style is "lyrical." I felt I was dreaming through much of the book, in a very nice way. The only reason this is receiving 3 stars instead of 4 is that for most of the book I could not see any real reason for Deirdre and Naisi to be in love (in the last quarter of the book I finally reconciled myself to this fact). I am certainly interested to see what Watson does with the Raven Queen next year, as Maeve (only mentioned in this book) sounds like a fascinating character.
July 20, 2016
Oh goodness.
I usually, no matter what, finish a book. Or I try my vary best...But I got half way through this and just could not read anymore.
My first time I've ever done that.
So... boring. ugh. I thought it was okay... then she and the guy were just TOO MUCH. ugh. Completely annoyed.
I usually, no matter what, finish a book. Or I try my vary best...But I got half way through this and just could not read anymore.
My first time I've ever done that.
So... boring. ugh. I thought it was okay... then she and the guy were just TOO MUCH. ugh. Completely annoyed.
August 10, 2011
It was a good story, and for that I would have given it 4 stars. However, it took a long time to move through the story, and by the climax I just wanted to get to the end. I very rarely say this, but the book was too long for the story, so it lost a star.
January 2, 2014
I never finished this and I do hope to go back to it one day, I hate leaving a book unfinished. I was totally into it for the first half but than it just started to drag on and on and I wanted nothing more than for it to just get to the end.
May 26, 2009
Not bad. Not great.
Basically cheesy. Watson tried and failed to describe love
Basically cheesy. Watson tried and failed to describe love
March 19, 2010
I think I need to read this book when I can devote a lot of time to it, perhaps in the summer when I don't have school work to do.
October 19, 2010
Actually read 1/2 way through and gave up from boredom. I almost will never give up on a book, so you can see how much I didn't care for this book.
April 25, 2019
I had to DNF this book (DNF at 300 pages). I just could not connect with the writing which meant I couldn’t connect with the characters. I found myself wanting to skip Deidre and Naisi’s chapters to get to Red Branch and Conor chapters which shouldn’t happen. It was a beautiful story, and I think reading it as a shorter myth would be beautiful, but it was to long and the writing to disconnected for me.
I loved the Irish history and mythology parts to this story. I just didn’t love the semi-random love/sex scenes; the amount and placement of them felt unnecessary. Also I wish there had been more connection between Deidre and Naisi. I know it’s a myth and so that kind of gives it an excuse for insta love, but it felt like there was almost no backing to their relationship other than he was handsome and she was pretty.
Maybe I would have loved this book if it was 300 pages and not 500!
I loved the Irish history and mythology parts to this story. I just didn’t love the semi-random love/sex scenes; the amount and placement of them felt unnecessary. Also I wish there had been more connection between Deidre and Naisi. I know it’s a myth and so that kind of gives it an excuse for insta love, but it felt like there was almost no backing to their relationship other than he was handsome and she was pretty.
Maybe I would have loved this book if it was 300 pages and not 500!
April 30, 2024
Read the original Deirdre and Naoise stories as a kid in a big book of Irish myths as a kid, and it was fun to revisit it in the first full-length book retelling I've ever encountered while visiting Ireland for the first time. I thought it did a pretty good job of fleshing out the characters from archetypes into fully rounded people and exploring the setting of pre-Christian Irelanf, though I think it was a little too long (there's a long section in the middle that's just Deirdre and Naoise hanging out in Scotland which I think could be a lot shorter) and it also doesn't include my favorite gory bit of the myth, which is Naoise blinding someone in one eye by throwing a chess piece at them. Still, this was a solid retelling and I'll definitely pick up the sequel/companion novel about Queen Maeve at some point.
January 21, 2021
3.5 stars.
This book failed to keep me interesting, and took me nearly 50 days to complete! In the start, I enjoyed the writing and was fairly engaged. The writing had much imagery and gave a sense of a connection to the earth which I enjoyed. However, as the pages advanced, the plot did not. It took until the very ending for it to get interesting. As well, I can blame my lack of understanding of the original tale and about Celtic mythology for some of the reason why I could not follow. The story was not a true retelling, and I think it would have been more engaged had it been closer to reference. I truly wished I enjoyed it more.
This book failed to keep me interesting, and took me nearly 50 days to complete! In the start, I enjoyed the writing and was fairly engaged. The writing had much imagery and gave a sense of a connection to the earth which I enjoyed. However, as the pages advanced, the plot did not. It took until the very ending for it to get interesting. As well, I can blame my lack of understanding of the original tale and about Celtic mythology for some of the reason why I could not follow. The story was not a true retelling, and I think it would have been more engaged had it been closer to reference. I truly wished I enjoyed it more.
September 29, 2020
It’s sad that someone to forgot to edit this book
I really loved Jules Watson’s White Mare trilogy, and I think I would have enjoyed this book quite a bit more had someone taken the time to create a well-edited version. The bones of the story are there, but frequent punctuation errors, confusing pronouns, indistinct speaker references, and muddled sentence structures abound. To me, it reads like a draft of a novel rather than a finished work. I like the Celtic mythological content well enough to read to the end, but I hope Ms. Watson has fired (or hired?) an editor.
I really loved Jules Watson’s White Mare trilogy, and I think I would have enjoyed this book quite a bit more had someone taken the time to create a well-edited version. The bones of the story are there, but frequent punctuation errors, confusing pronouns, indistinct speaker references, and muddled sentence structures abound. To me, it reads like a draft of a novel rather than a finished work. I like the Celtic mythological content well enough to read to the end, but I hope Ms. Watson has fired (or hired?) an editor.
September 29, 2021
Irish mythology has always fascinated me (funny because I don't have a drop of Irish in me), and I have heard of this myth before, but never retold like this. I loved the character of Naosie most of all, and well, his brothers came at a close second, but I did enjoy him developing in his own way as the story progressed, and Connor is a great antagonist, I found him sleazy and every so often I kept going "Oh, you little--!" any time he was on the page. It's a lovely book, a good read to any who love Irish mythology!
May 7, 2024
While this is a wonderful story of love, battle, joining with the sidth, beautifully told, there were too many problems to keep it from being a favorite. First, there are SO MANY characters, that even though this is some of my favorite mythology and I know these stories, I had trouble keeping track of who was who. Second, due to the time period, the "sexual" portions were brutal and not loving ... and third, I really don't enjoy reading the graphic portrayal of sex scenes, even when beautifully loving. Wonderful writer, and I'd like to try more from her.
June 1, 2018
I picked this book up in a thrift store because I used to love reading folk-lore as a kid. I have to say that it will probably end up back where I found it because it is one of the most boring books I can ever remember reading. I thought the storyline started out as mysterious and compelling but that quickly wore away and I couldn't even bother enough to keep track of the characters' names and who was who much less what their storylines were. I got to page 252 before giving up.
May 20, 2024
I found that it took more than halfway through the story to actually grasp my attention. I've loved other works by Jules Watson, and I was so excited for a chance to read this story full of celtic myths and histories. I found the characters were hard to relate to, the story was incredibly slow, and the text was a bit more descriptive than I typically enjoy. Glad I finished it, though I contemplated not finishing a few times.
April 20, 2019
2.5 stars? I guess?
The historical aspect was good, I always enjoy reading about pre-historic Ireland and Irish myths. The writing style was also well done, but those two things couldn't bring me to care past the second half of the story once Deirdre and Naisi get together, which is disappointing because the legend that this book is based around is so rich and tragic.
The historical aspect was good, I always enjoy reading about pre-historic Ireland and Irish myths. The writing style was also well done, but those two things couldn't bring me to care past the second half of the story once Deirdre and Naisi get together, which is disappointing because the legend that this book is based around is so rich and tragic.
September 3, 2020
Jules Watson again draws me in with her wonderfully descriptive words. The Swan Maiden was meticulously researched and well written. With great character arcs, love scenes and adventure, this book is sure to provide that little escape from reality into the fascinating recreation of the lost Celtic world. Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews