She was Eilan, the daughter of a Druidic warleader and gifted with visions. In a land struggling to survive both Roman conquerors and her own people's enemies, surely fate had marked her to become a priestess of the Forest House. But first Eilan had chosen a different, forbidden path—to love Gaius, a soldier of mixed blood among the legions sent to subdue her country. So she must hide a terrible secret when she is anointed as the new High Priestess. With mighty enemies poised to usurp the wealth of magic the Forest House sheltered, Eilan could only trust in the power of the great Goddess to find her destiny amidst the treacherous labyrinth in which fate had placed her.
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"Although this wasn't as compelling as Mists of Avalon, it lacked nothing in the story itself or the telling. The characters were interesting and the story moved fluidly from one storyline to the next. The narration wasn't my favorite, although it was well spoken, the voice characterizations were a bit odd. " — barb (4 out of 5 stars)
"Although this wasn't as compelling as Mists of Avalon, it lacked nothing in the story itself or the telling. The characters were interesting and the story moved fluidly from one storyline to the next. The narration wasn't my favorite, although it was well spoken, the voice characterizations were a bit odd. "
With the sure touch of one at ease in sketching out mystic travels..., Bradley writes with an unhurried pace and uncluttered staging.
" Not as compelling as The Mists of Avalon, and I will re-read and take more time, probably read one after the other. "
" Since I loved Mists, I needed to read this. Good story, and it stayed with me. But Mists was better. "
" Slow moving up until the ending, which felt rushed and unbelievable. "
" Great book. It's nice to know how it all began. Strongly recommended for those who want to read the "Mists of Avalon" books. "
" Although it was not as captivating as The Mists of Avalon, I appreciated these character's stories and how they related to the events that came to be in . "
" read 03.29.98 "
" SO good, I'm re-reading for the 3rd time in... about 10 years. ;) "
" Fantastic storyline. I love how Marion Zimmer Bradley writes and keeps the stroy going. "
" It's not as good as Mists of Avalon...but it made me want to go to a renaissance fair really badly. "
" great book, finished it in two days "
" The historical context is extremely interesting, but the story itself was only so-so. "
" Life is tough. Love is tough. But they are both also, incredibly beautiful and full of joy. "
" Borrowed from Alissa "
" Half-baked, badly researched, over-written tripe. My ancestors would have eaten Zimmer Bradley's Celts for breakfast. "
" This book is part of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Avalon series. "
" Not as good as Mists of Avalon. "
" Her stories really capture me. I can't put them down...I HAVE to know what happens to the characters. I'll be reading more of here books. "
" I read this after I read the Mists of Avalon, and only because I just wanted to finish the trilogy. Not out of anything more than that. I wasn't all that impressed with Mists, but felt compelled enough to muddle through this and the other one. "
" A very good read as well. You can read it on it's own or read it before or after reading The Mists of Avalon. It's about the time before Arthur was born. "
" I think I read it before and couldnt remember a thing - that doesnt speak for a good book and indeed it is long-winded and nothing really happens. A story before the story. "
" One of my all time favorite reads ~ "
" I really enjoyed the Mists of Avalon, but I found this book to be trite and poorly written. "
" Takes place on the cusp of Roman control of pagan Briton. Lots of great detail about role of the Priestess and Goddess worship. "
" I think it is nearly in the class of The Mists of Avalon in terms of characterization, plot, and just generally creating a believable world that is fantastical, yet grounded in something like historical fiction. Enjoyed it. "
" I really liked this book. Bradley had a wonderful way of enchanting readers and helping them to submerge into the story. I love a lot of her stuff though so it shouldn't surprise me that I loved this one as well. I'm just surprised that it took me so long to get around to it! "
" After the priestess of Avalon, which I found at a thrift store, I was hooked into reading all the books of Avalon by Bradley. It captures your attention right from the beginning, and again I just couldn't put it down. "
" This was a great story! I really loved it. Occasionally with MZB you get a feeling of hopeless despair, how nothing ever goes right. Well this gives more a feeling of hope and I really appreciated the pick me up. "
" I know lots of people are careful with the stars they award. Let me be clear, I am very generous with stars. 3 stars is not a good score in my book. This book was just bleh. Oh well, moving right along. "
" a little dull compared to others in the series "
" Another one of those 'forbidden romance' sort of books, Forests of Avalon manages to be better than most by being incredibly richly described and very readable, along with being the beginning of a compelling retelling of the Arthurian myths. "
" I am so loving this book and it has inspired me to read Lady of Avalon and Mist of Avalon all over again. "
" not as epic as mysts or firebrand, but solid. "
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley (1930–1999) received her BA from Hardin Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, and her graduate degree from the University of California–Berkeley. She was a science fiction and fantasy fan since her teens and had written as long as she could remember, but only for school magazines and fanzines until she sold her first professional short story to Vortex Science Fiction. She wrote everything from science fiction to Gothics but is probably best known for her Darkover novels and her Arthurian novel, The Mists of Avalon. In addition to her novels, she edited magazines, both amateur and professional.
Rosalyn Landor is an English-born television, theater, and multiple-award-winning audiobook narrator. Her television credits include Love in a Cold Climate, Rumpole of the Bailey, Sherlock Holmes, and Star Trek: The Next Generation. She has won numerous Audie awards and AudioFile magazine Earphones awards.
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