Welcome to 2020 - and THE BRITANNIA MYSTERIES by LYNNE BENTON: Review by Penny Dolan

HAPPY NEW YEAR for 2020 . . . and SALUTE!  

 

Yesterday I saw that an area of land beside Hadrian's Wall, containing a Roman site, had been donated by private landowners to English Heritage. 

Consequently, today feels like the right moment to update a past Awfully Big Reviews post, and show how a couple of historic titles had now grown into a complete Britannia Mysteries Trilogy.

A book arrrived through my letterbox a while ago. It was a copy of DANGER AT HADRIAN’S WALL by Lynne Benton, the second in her Britannia series; set in Roman Britain, these are exactly the kind of stories that many KS2 readers would enjoy.

The first, THE CENTURION’S SON, (set in 312 AD) takes place in Isca, in what’s now known as South Wales. 

Felix - the hero and twelve year-old son of the title – is anxious: Gaius the Senior Centurion, his trusted father, has been missing for days.

But Gaius has disappeared without telling Felix where he is going, or making any of his usual preparations for a journey, nor leaving any money for Felix to buy food while he was gone.

Felix had hoped that Commander Octavius had sent his father on a secret mission, but then soldiers arrive, claiming his father is a runaway traitor and Felix is thrown in prison himself.  Who will believe or help him? Even if he escapes, what can he do next? Fortunately, his long-time friend Catrin, a Silesian slave-girl with second sight, is ready to help. Despite ill-treatment, cruel treachery and life-threatening dangers, the two determined friends use their wits and their keen, watchful eyes to untangle the mystery.

In DANGER AT HADRIAN’S WALL, Lynne Benton’s second book,  Felix and Catrin have been now adopted by Commander Quintus Maximus and his wife Drusilla. When reports arrive of trouble with the Barbarians, the 2^nd Augustan Legion is ordered north to Hadrian’s Wall, Felix is left behind. Desperate to prove his own bravery, Felix hatches a plan that soon has Catrin, himself and others following the footsteps of the legion. The journey is long and hard.

Unfortunately, when the band of travellers finally reach the camp at Hadrian’s Wall, the Commander is not pleased. Felix and Catrin find there are worrying signs of treachery and suspicion around the camp too, and trouble with the local Caledonian tribes. 

In addition, not only does Catrin become annoyingly jealous of Mina, the new slave girl that Felix has befriended, but she has started dreaming of flames and danger.

Then, to Felix’s horror, Catrin disappears. How can he find what has happened? He will find her, he will and, luckily, the friendly soldier Tullio is there to help and guide him on his quest beyond the Wall . . .

The third book of the trilogy, THE LOST TREASURE OF AQUA SULIS is set in Bath. This novel continues the story of Felix and Catrin as they travel with Drusilla their foster mother to the great city. 

Drusilla is there to visit the magical healing waters and make offerings to the Goddess for the safety and health of her young child and her family. Soon enough, Felix and Catrin find themselves caught up in a mystery filled with stolen treasures, false accusations, crimes and secrets.  

At the same time, they are both concerned for themselves. Now that Quintus Maximus and Drusilla have a child of their own, what will happen to tCatrin and Felix, especially as they have such an awkward way of finding trouble wherever they go?


 
Lynne Benton’s writing reflects her knowledge of children, These books in this trilogy, at around a hundred and fifty pages, are not overlong and are easy and pleasing to read.. The short, neatly-plotted chapters make the books very suitable for 7 to 9 year old readers and the author adds just as much incidental historical information as the plots require. 

These books are a good choice for children who have Roman Britain as a topic on their school curriculum. 

Even though the plots and characters are fictional, the three historical settings - Carleon Roman Fortress in Wales, Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, and the reconstructed Bath House at Bath - are all there in the real world and available for interesting historical visits, with added inspiration from the BRITANNIA MYSTERIES inspiration.

All three books, published by Coppertree Press, are available through Amazon.

Penny Dolan.

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'The Glass Spinner' by Lynne Benton - reviewed by Sharon Tregenza

THE GLASS SPINNER

When 12-year old William's mother leaves the family home, he is devastated. His father's bitterness increases and he decides to take William away on a "holiday".

Strange things start happening and they are centred around an unusual glass paperweight. William's life is about to take an interesting twist as dreams and reality mix and show him the possibility of a world within a world. Does he have the courage to enter that world and face the frightening villain? Can he help his father and will he find his mother? The answer to these and many more questions are found in this intriguing mystery.

The mix of fantasy and reality works well here and the characters are believable and sympathetically drawn. It's a great story in a well written classical style. I particularly enjoyed the scenes with the glass spinner.

And interesting premise well executed, makes this book an enjoyable read.  I'd definitely recommend it for 8 years up and for adults too.

• Paperback: 244 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (18 April 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1530863414
• ISBN-13: 978-1530863419

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THE CENTURION'S SON and DANGER AT HADRIAN'S WALL by Lynne Benton. Review by Penny Dolan.

I am a great fan of history, and of encouraging primary children to enjoy and imagine and learn their way into past historical times too, so I was pleased when a new book arrived through my door, coming from a friend who I know is as enthusiastic as I am. 

The book was a copy of DANGER AT HADRIAN’S WALL by Lynne Benton, the second in her Britannia series; set in Roman Britain, these are exactly the kind of stories that many KS2 readers would enjoy.

The first, THE CENTURION’S SON, (set in 312 AD) takes place in Isca, in what’s now known as South Wales. 

Felix - the hero and twelve year-old son of the title – is anxious: Gaius the Senior Centurion, his trusted father, has been missing for days.

But Gaius has disappeared without telling Felix where he is going, or making any of his usual preparations for a journey, nor leaving any money for Felix to buy food while he was gone.

Felix had hoped that Commander Octavius had sent his father on a secret mission, but then soldiers arrive, claiming his father is a runaway traitor and Felix is thrown in prison himself.  Who will believe or help him? Even if he escapes, what can he do next? Fortunately, his long-time friend Catrin, a Silesian slave-girl with second sight, is ready to help. Despite ill-treatment, cruel treachery and life-threatening dangers, the two determined friends use their wits and their keen, watchful eyes to untangle the mystery.

In Lynne Benton’s second book, DANGER AT HADRIAN’S WALL, Felix and Catrin have been now adopted by Commander Quintus Maximus and his wife Drusilla. When reports arrive of trouble with the Barbarians, the 2^nd Augustan Legion is ordered north to Hadrian’s Wall, Felix is left behind. Desperate to prove his own bravery, Felix hatches a plan that soon has Catrin, himself and others following the footsteps of the legion. The journey is long and hard.

Unfortunately, when the band of travellers finally reach the camp at Hadrian’s Wall, the Commander is not pleased. Felix and Catrin find there are worrying signs of treachery and suspicion around the camp too, and trouble with the local Caledonian tribes. 

In addition, not only does Catrin become annoyingly jealous of Mina, the new slave girl that Felix has befriended, but she has started dreaming of flames and danger.

Then, to Felix’s horror, Catrin disappears. How can he find what has happened? He will find her, he will and, luckily, the friendly soldier Tullio is there to help and guide him on his quest beyond the Wall . . .

Lynne Benton’s writing reflects her knowledge of children, These two books, at around a hundred and fifty pages, are not overlong and easy to read.. The short, neatly-plotted chapters make the books very suitable for 7 to 9 year old readers and she adds just as much incidental historical information as the plot require. The stories make good choices for children who have Roman Britain as a topic on their school curriculum.

Moreover, although both the plots, characters and young heroes are fictional, children and families can visit the real-world remains of the Carleon Roman Fortress and reconstructed Bath House, as well as the exhibitions and excavations at the more famous Hadrian’s Wall too, and enjoy some historical fact-finding and imagining themselves.

Both books are published by Coppertree Press, with THE LOST TREASURE, the third book in the series, ready to be published soon.

Penny Dolan.

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Jimmy's War by Lynne Benton

Reviewed by Jackie Marchant

Here is a terrific book about World War II – written in the easy to read flowing style perfect for younger readers, yet still able to bring across the terror and heartbreak that children faced during the war.  A book I enjoyed reading and would heartily recommend – as long as you have a kindle.

This is another example of a book that has been self-published because mainstream publishers wouldn’t take a punt on it.  I don’t know why – perhaps it’s because World War II isn’t considered marketable at the moment.  There is absolutely no reason why this should not have been published – it’s as good as any other war-time story I’ve read for that age group.

But back to the book.  Here we have eleven year old Jimmy, whose father told him to do look after his younger sister and do as his mother says – then left to go to war.  That was over a year ago and now his mother’ had the dreaded ‘missing presumed dead’ telegram.  Now the children have the chance to be evacuated to Cornwall but, wracked with grief, his mother can’t bear to let the children go – they are all she has left.

The consequences of her decision are disastrous, leaving Jimmy with the task of taking his young sister Molly away from their bombed out house and finding their way to an aunt in Somerset.  With barely enough money for the fair and their possessions packed into pillowcases, the children set off.  Now the descriptions of two lost children come into their own as we are taken on a gripping, heart-in-your mouth adventure, in which young Jimmy takes on the responsibility of looking after Molly while keeping a terrible secret from her.  As a consequence the lies keep piling up, then the frustration at Molly’s questions turns to guilt at his annoyance with her.  For Molly is an endearing six year old with a furry rabbit she can’t do without. 

I don’t want to reveal too much, but I will say that, after a lot of trials and tribulations, the ending of the book is positive.  I won’t say it is happy ever after, because that would be unrealistic – this is a book about war and happy endings were rare.  And this book, despite its gentle tone, deals realistically with the horrors of war.

It’s a good read and I can recommend it.

 

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