Druid Quest

by Cornelia Amiri

Relive the magic, myth, and adventure of ancient Britannia as two druids fight for their lives, their faith, and their love.

Genres: Fiction

204 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2008

About the author

Cornelia Amiri was introduced through books to the woman who became her favorite historical character, Boudica. The Celtic Warrior Queen made her start writing professionally. Cornelia loves history and in reading a book about the dark ages, she came across the rebel queen, who inspired Cornelia so much, she started jotting down notes, but they were fiction, visions of her involved in the Boudica revolt. Before Cornelia knew it, she’d accidentally written a rough draft for a novel. And she’s been writing books on purpose ever since. Drawing on her love of a happy ending, Cornelia has written over 40 published romance books.

Now, for the more mundane stuff — Cornelia Amiri and her muse, Severus the Cat, live amid the hustle and bustle of sultry Houston, Texas. When not writing, Cornelia loves to read, watch movies, and attend comic cons. She is currently working on a sequel to Rare Finds and a sequel to The Brass Octopus, which she is renaming and republishing as The Librarian and the Rake.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Romans have destroyed Britannia and are moving fast to take down Queen Boudica and her band of followers. Sulwen, a druidess who barely survived the attack on Britannia knows what the Romans are capable of but she will do everything in her powers to stop the Romans once and for all. With the help of a shape-shifter, named Arch Druid Rhys; Sulwen and Rhys will be in for the battle of their lives. But what Sulwen didn’t expect was for Rhys to stir up feels inside herself for him. As Rhys, Sulwen and Queen Boudica’s two daughters travel to Eryri, they will have to tread carefully as the Romans are approaching quickly. There in Eryri, Rhys can rally up an army to fight the Romans but will he get there in time or will it be too late for Britannia and its people?

Druid Quest by Cornelia Amiri is the first book I have read by this author. After reading Druid Quest I find myself saying why I haven’t read any of this author’s books before. Well you don’t have to worry as I will be checking out Ms. Amiri’s other books. I thought that the storyline moved very effortless and was easy to follow along with what was happening. Also enjoyed the characters in Druid Quest. Sulwen is a very strong, driven druidess, which I think is a good thing and something that Sulwen has to be in order to fight the Romans. Rhys has this quality about him that you find yourself drawn to him but you don’t really know why till after you get to know him better. So as far as fantasy books with a Celtic twist go I recommend reading Druid Quest as you will find yourself falling in love with Cornelia Amiri and her books.

[Cherise · Rating 1 out of 5]

t's 61 A.D. in Britannia, and the druidess Sulwen has just witnessed the massacre of her people at the hands of the Romans. She receives a message from the goddess Andraste to seek out Queen Boudica and join her in battle against the Romans. Thus begins this druid's quest.

I was dying to delve into this tale; a mythical and adventurous romance involving the ancient Celts is tailor-made for my reading pleasure. Unfortunately, what I read left me a tad disappointed and more than a little bored.

Sulwen embarks on this journey alone at first, picking up a few warriors from surrounding tribes along the way. Once she reaches Queen Boudica, she is reunited with her lover, the archdruid Rhys. At this point he joins the quest to battle the Romans, and when the two aren't making love they are bickering like children. It was awful. More time was spent arguing about strategy and the misinterpretation of the goddess' voice than the actual battle or relationships.

There are no definitive characters in this book. Yes, there are many characters, but they all could be interchangeable, except for their names; no one has a personality. They are merely names having conversations. I never got a feel or a sense of the people who occupy these pages. It's hard to read a story, or get excited about their journey, when you don't care a thing about the people in it.

One of the most distracting features of this story was that almost every character's dialogue is too frequently accompanied by italicized "thoughts," lending a choppy feel to an already struggling narrative.

Several times I thought about giving up the quest and setting it aside, but I persevered, hoping at some point this story would transform into what the wonderful idea behind it promised. I'm sorry to say it didn't happen. When I finally finished it this morning, all I felt was relief.