The Druid

Warrior Druid of Britain, Book 1

By: Steven A. McKay

Narrated by: Nick Denton

Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

Northern Britain, AD430

A land in turmoil. A village ablaze. A king’s daughter abducted.

In the aftermath of a surprise attack Dun Buic lies in smoking ruins and many innocent villagers are dead. As the survivors try to make sense of the night’s events the giant warrior-druid, Bellicus, is tasked with hunting down the raiders and thwarting their dark purpose.

With years of training in the old ways, two war-dogs at his side, and unsurpassed skill with a longsword, Bellicus’s quest will take him on a perilous journey through lands still struggling to cope with the departure of the Roman legions.

Meanwhile, amongst her brutal captors the little princess Catia finds an unlikely ally, but even he may not be able to avert the terrible fate King Hengist has in store for her.

This, the first volume in a stunning new series from the bestselling author of Wolf’s Head, explores the rich folklore and culture of post-Roman Britain, where blood-sacrifice, superstition, and warfare were as much a part of everyday life as love, laughter and song.

As Saxon invaders and the new Christian religion seek to mold the country for their own ends one man will change the course of Britain’s history forever....

....the Druid.

"Steven A. McKay's archetypal villains and heroes step vividly into the book from a mist-veiled past of legend to battle for the life of a princess and the fate of Britain. Dark age adventure at its gripping best." (Matthew Harffy, author of The Bernicia Chronicles)

©2018 Steven Alaric McKay (P)2019 Steven Alaric McKay

Interesting historical fiction of a Druid warrior

As a yank, I have to admit that my knowledge of English history is unfortunately largely based off of movies and TV shows. I found this book very interesting, often pausing to look up some information so I could have a better understanding of the people and places mentioned in the book. The story was interesting and the narrator did a phenomenal job. If Druids, Saxons, and mentions of the King Arthur legend interest you, then you will like this book.

A Decent Tale

The story seemed to be reasonably well researched. It moved along well enough. The author could have used the skills of competent developmental and copy / line editors. There was very little character development throughout. Only an external quest, with almost no inner struggle. The writing craft lacked maturity with constant instances of “head hopping “ (changing character POV within one scene), and the use of non-words, like “disorientated.” Still, the author shows some imagination and natural talent at storytelling, so future novels should be better as his writing skills improve.

The narrator was adequate, but not great. The story would have come across better with a better audio production.

Disappointing

I so hoped to love this and to feel like I had found a new author to follow. Sadly, I found this very unimaginative, predictable, poorly performed (sounded like the narrator had a mouth full of marbles much of the time and I couldn’t understand him) and there was little to no real character development. There was almost nothing that fleshed out the culture or time frame, and much of the language felt entirely too contemporary. Very disappointed.

McKay is my new favorite author!

I picked this book because of my love of ancient Britain, druids, and history in general. I instantly fell in love with the writing, the characters and the storyline. I didn't know at the time there was a series- so when it ended I felt the usual heartache or "I don't want to part with these characters or the vivid imagery in the book. It was like a surprise encore of a favorite band when I found out there. was. MORE! I am currently on the "Warrior druid of Britain" Book 3 and I highly recommend this Author and the series! 🤘🏼

Excellently done all around!

Im extremely pleased with the realistic feel and awe inspiring descriptions of the atmospheric intensity of the "scenes"! Can't wait for the 2nd book!