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Celtic Tetralogy #2
The Dark Island
High Adventure, Celtic Sword and Roman Blood!
A.D.30 - A.D.56
Battle, intrigue and Druidism followed to their brutal conclusions in the dark pre-Christian world of the Celts...
Caradoc and Gwydoc, two Celtic princes and rival heirs to the kingdom of the Belgae, a re driven from their lands into Siluria. Caradoc, who becomes the new king, desperately tries to rally the tribes of Britain against the invading Romans. But his real enemy is the slow erosion of the ideals and traditions of his youth.
Gwyndoc, at first loyal to his brother King, feels betrayed, and starts his own campaign to usurp Caradoc and turn the tide of the invaders.
In this starkly realistic and very human novel. Henry Treece explores a period in British history when magic and murder were matter-of-fact and the 'civilising' influence of Rome had yet to make headway against the dark and powerful undertow of the Celtic spirit.
Henry Treece has the rare gift of writing about the ancient world as if he was a native to it. - SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
Cover Illustration: Michael Heslop
A.D.30 - A.D.56
Battle, intrigue and Druidism followed to their brutal conclusions in the dark pre-Christian world of the Celts...
Caradoc and Gwydoc, two Celtic princes and rival heirs to the kingdom of the Belgae, a re driven from their lands into Siluria. Caradoc, who becomes the new king, desperately tries to rally the tribes of Britain against the invading Romans. But his real enemy is the slow erosion of the ideals and traditions of his youth.
Gwyndoc, at first loyal to his brother King, feels betrayed, and starts his own campaign to usurp Caradoc and turn the tide of the invaders.
In this starkly realistic and very human novel. Henry Treece explores a period in British history when magic and murder were matter-of-fact and the 'civilising' influence of Rome had yet to make headway against the dark and powerful undertow of the Celtic spirit.
Henry Treece has the rare gift of writing about the ancient world as if he was a native to it. - SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
Cover Illustration: Michael Heslop
237 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1952
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About the author
Henry Treece
105 books38 followersHenry Treece (1911-1966) was a British poet and writer, who also worked as a teacher and editor. He wrote a range of works but is mostly remembered as a writer of children's historical novels.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 31, 2012
I sought this out because it is in my period (1st century AD) and the author has a good reputation. It was written in the 50s so allowance has to be made when it comes to accuracy of historical detail because at that date experimental archaeology was in its infancy and so describing roundhouses as 'beehive huts' with chimney holes is just plain wrong. But then there is a lot wrong because the author's imagination keeps slipping out of this period into another, later, more medieval one.
The book begins with a sentimental romance between Gwyndoc and Ygerne and ends in a scene between the two which is just plain nasty. He says he got the idea from a Scottish tale; fair enough, but endings should grow out of the story, not be pasted in.
He did do his research and it is generally sound, given the limitations of knowledge at the time, but he cannot draw a character which is consistent. Good guys become bad guys and vice versa. Heroes laugh maniacally, which isn't too attractive, Gwyndoc is an oaf in his romancing of Ygerne. Really repellent characters you have learnt to despise as fools are suddenly pushed forward to carry the narrative to Rome and it's near impossible to feel sympathy for them when they meet heroic deaths. It seems there is no underlying law governing these changes, just the whim of the author and the needs of the narrative.
The book is gruesomely violent and makes one wonder if life was really so short and so bleak. On the whole, you come out of the tale feeling queasy and tainted. Hence the two stars.
The book begins with a sentimental romance between Gwyndoc and Ygerne and ends in a scene between the two which is just plain nasty. He says he got the idea from a Scottish tale; fair enough, but endings should grow out of the story, not be pasted in.
He did do his research and it is generally sound, given the limitations of knowledge at the time, but he cannot draw a character which is consistent. Good guys become bad guys and vice versa. Heroes laugh maniacally, which isn't too attractive, Gwyndoc is an oaf in his romancing of Ygerne. Really repellent characters you have learnt to despise as fools are suddenly pushed forward to carry the narrative to Rome and it's near impossible to feel sympathy for them when they meet heroic deaths. It seems there is no underlying law governing these changes, just the whim of the author and the needs of the narrative.
The book is gruesomely violent and makes one wonder if life was really so short and so bleak. On the whole, you come out of the tale feeling queasy and tainted. Hence the two stars.
May 9, 2015
Poetic, yet bloody. Very sympathetic characters, even the bad guys. And the good guy doesn't always win...
October 11, 2016
"La isla de los espíritus" tiene mucho de loa al modo de vida de los celtas de Britania antes de la llegada de los romanos, un poco a la manera que Tolkien añoraba a través de sus Hobbits una idealizada Inglaterra medieval. A través de las vivencias de sus personajes se hace un elogio de unos hombres valientes sin miedo al desastre que disfrutaban de una naturaleza todavía no alterada por la mano del hombre y que sacaban partido a cada instante del día. Sin embargo, a la vez, Henry Treece no pierde la perspectiva y muestra sus prácticas menos agradables o abiertamente abominables como ciertos ritos religiosas o su (irracional) sentido del honor.
Una historia vigorosa y atractiva a la que sólo se le puede achacar un ritmo un tanto moroso, seguramente porque fue escrita en un tiempo (hace más de medio siglo) en el que los relatos se abordaban de otra forma
Una historia vigorosa y atractiva a la que sólo se le puede achacar un ritmo un tanto moroso, seguramente porque fue escrita en un tiempo (hace más de medio siglo) en el que los relatos se abordaban de otra forma
June 14, 2016
I only knew Treece as a young adult writer. This book is similar in tone. More than anything else you come away understanding how a promise, a vow, an oath of loyalty to a king, can count for so much. We don't have anything like that today!
December 2, 2021
I found some problems with this book, hence its low rating.
The level of historical accuracy is, of course, due to the lack of knowledge at the time of writing (1950s) but even taking that into account, it felt more like some mixed up distant past than the actual time of the Roman invasion. I also realised that even though I can understand the lack of knowledge, I still don't like reading books that have so many details wrong from a historical point of view.
The description of the characters aren't particularly sympathetic, even the protagonists are written as if they aren't particularly nice or interesting people. I understand that the author wanted to catch some feeling of primitiveness and brutality, thinking that those things would be emphasized in the pre-Christian pre-Roman British society, but it felt overly done and just made me feel like the author was actually sympathising with the Roman invaders rather than the actual Celtic protagonists of his story.
The characters are also shifting a lot; not due to their progress but rather to fit the different parts of the story, which, in itself, also feels like it doesn't really come together but are rather shifting in all directions. I also didn't like how all the those that we were supposed to like had blond hair and a fair complexion while the antagonists all where dark despite being close relatives of the blonde ones. It felt very one dimensional and prejudiced even for the time of writing.
I had hopes for the book, after having read a short story by Treece, but I have to say that it didn't live up to that hope.
The level of historical accuracy is, of course, due to the lack of knowledge at the time of writing (1950s) but even taking that into account, it felt more like some mixed up distant past than the actual time of the Roman invasion. I also realised that even though I can understand the lack of knowledge, I still don't like reading books that have so many details wrong from a historical point of view.
The description of the characters aren't particularly sympathetic, even the protagonists are written as if they aren't particularly nice or interesting people. I understand that the author wanted to catch some feeling of primitiveness and brutality, thinking that those things would be emphasized in the pre-Christian pre-Roman British society, but it felt overly done and just made me feel like the author was actually sympathising with the Roman invaders rather than the actual Celtic protagonists of his story.
The characters are also shifting a lot; not due to their progress but rather to fit the different parts of the story, which, in itself, also feels like it doesn't really come together but are rather shifting in all directions. I also didn't like how all the those that we were supposed to like had blond hair and a fair complexion while the antagonists all where dark despite being close relatives of the blonde ones. It felt very one dimensional and prejudiced even for the time of writing.
I had hopes for the book, after having read a short story by Treece, but I have to say that it didn't live up to that hope.
March 24, 2023
Appearing in 1952, this story based around Aulus Plautius and Claudius' invasion of Britain is bound to have many inaccuracies: so much archaeology has gone on in the past 70 years. And it suffers from the fault of many third-person novels: the point of view sometimes skips around a bit erratically so it's hard to judge through whose eyes we're supposed to be seeing things.
But where it's good, it's very good and I came away with a real sense of the Romans being very different to us, but nothing like as alien as the Ancient Celts, whose characteristic mood swings would look like insanity today.
It's a very grim tale that ends in horror and tragedy, with a sense that it was inevitable, perhaps even necessary, that pre-Roman British culture was utterly wiped out. I think in an age when our suspicion of all imperial projects is far deeper than it was in 52, many people will find that notion very hard to swallow.
But where it's good, it's very good and I came away with a real sense of the Romans being very different to us, but nothing like as alien as the Ancient Celts, whose characteristic mood swings would look like insanity today.
It's a very grim tale that ends in horror and tragedy, with a sense that it was inevitable, perhaps even necessary, that pre-Roman British culture was utterly wiped out. I think in an age when our suspicion of all imperial projects is far deeper than it was in 52, many people will find that notion very hard to swallow.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 3, 2020
Liked it. First chapter was a struggle just because of the old 50's idea of man/women relationships is boring. Cover for example. I like these covers visually, if not thematically, but after the first chapter, there is little wenching and it get's into the story itself, which is what I liked about the book. The cover is not indicative of the story-telling past the first chapter. The story and characterizations are good.
November 22, 2017
Difficult to follow as it seemed to bounce around in storyline. I looked to how the first book in the Tetralogy linked to Dark Island and found that it is a new story, unrelated. My assumption is that the three novels are chronological of historical events and not in storyline.
December 12, 2017
The usual superb blend of fiction and history with gorgeous prose and vivid scene-setting. Great middle chapter of this sage.
August 16, 2019
A bit slow to start but a really good read once it got going - well imagined characters and good storyline.
May 16, 2011
Only vaguely remember the book.
June 6, 2014
En algunas partes es interesante e intrigante la historia pero no es congruente con los lapsos de tiempo, pasan muy rápido los años con pocos acontecimientos.
November 19, 2008
Well imagined tale of resistance to Rome by Caratacus
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews