Manda Scott: Dreaming the Bull

Manda Scott, Dreaming the Bull

The blurb for this engaging sequel to Dreaming the Eagle describes the events of the second (of four) volumes of Scott's historical fantasy epic as follows:

Hailed as Boudica, the Bringer of Victory, Breaca now leads her people's resistance against the occupying legions of Rome. Opposing her is Julius Valerius, an auxilary cavalry officer whose increasing brutality in the service of his god and emperor cannot shield him from the ghosts of his past. Caught between them are two children, pawns in a game of unthinkable savagery, while in distant Rome the emperor Claudius holds the balance of lives in his hands.

For most of this book, the focus is on Breaca's brother Ban, now known as Julius Valerius, as he binds himself to Rome and the soldier's god, Mithras. The plot takes the reader through the years of the rebellion led by the man the Romans called Caratacus, here identified as Caradoc, lover of Breaca and father of her two children Cunomar and Grainne. In Scott's version of history, Caradoc is captured and taken to Rome along with his son Cunomar, his former lover Cwnfen, their warrior-daughter Cynfa, and another Eceni warrior (Roman sources record the captivity of Caratacus, his wife, brother and two children).

Accepted history says that Caratacus and his family lived in Rome for the rest of their lives, but does not record further details; the date of Caratacus' death and the fate of yhe rest of his family is unknown. Scott makes use of these lacunae to propose that Caradoc, Cwnfen, Cunomar, Cynfa and their compatriot Dubornos escape during the confusion surrounding the last days of the Emperor Claudius, escorted and protected, on Claudius' orders, by none other than Julius Valerius.

The more I read of it, the more these books appear as a sort of secret history - with mystical elements - of British resistance to the occupying Roman Empire. Rather presenting the various tribal rebellions as a series of separate incidents, Scott is weaving a story of multigenerational resistance among peoples linked by ties of kinship and other loyalties. The paucity of contemporary documents speaking to the history of the British tribes gives Scott the leeway to imagine this web of alliances, and to present a strong cast of characters to drive the story.

Looking forward to volume three, and hoping that in the long run, the mystery of the historical Boudica's end will give Scott's Breaca and Caradoc the bittersweet joy of a final meeting once the battles are over.