Wars of the Roses: Stormbird

Fresh and vivid historical fiction.

I really liked this. I read a couple of Philippa Gregory's and while I enjoyed her portrayal of the women involved, and think she writes well, it remained 'women's' fiction,' which is fine. But I found this stronger on the broader picture of the war and the affairs of important men. I grew into the characters and particularly enjoyed the portrayal of Margeret of Anjou's progress from naive 14 year old bride to the woman she becomes. Excellent.

When I gave up on Robyn Young's Robert Bruce thing I thought it was, perhaps, the multiple viewpoints and a slightly tired format. Sorry Robyn, but this shows it was the writing; Conn Iggulden's characters are strong and the storytelling is vivid. The battles are more exciting and the writing is generally fresher. I'm looking forward to the next instalment already.

22 of 23 people found this review helpful

historical fiction at its best

What made the experience of listening to Wars of the Roses: Stormbird the most enjoyable?

I think Conn Iggulden is a natural storyteller and it comes through in this book, a perfect pace, where the history and fiction are interwoven to give a great listen. The Characters are great and you can feel the action, either as an archer facing a charge or a Queen getting married. If history was taught like these books are written we would have a nation of historians.
Historical fiction is not everyones cup of tea, but if we still lived in times where stories were passed down in an aural tradition this would be how we learnt history and the powerful characters like Margaret of Anjou, and Jack Cade would be better known.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Derry Brewer was my favorite character mainly because he is who the story runs through, he is made up as is pointed out but there must have been someone who existed and did similar things, but Margaret of Anjou makes me want to find out more about her real history.

Have you listened to any of Roy McMillan’s other performances? How does this one compare?

to me the reader is not as important as the book, It is true a bad or boring reader can ruin a story, but Roy McMillan does a great job keeping the story moving, better than Richard E Grant, who has a voice that is to know which distracts.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The Silent son of the lion king.

12 of 13 people found this review helpful

Finally a good voice for a good book.

No spoiler review:

1: Key enjoyments
First and foremost, the narration is excellent.
Excellent war scenes, and believable characters - not two dimensional, and display progression through out, giving life to those of historic fact, and at times fiction.

2: Narration
I am picky and fickle over narrators, as many times a good narrator can make the most dull novels great; and a bad narrator can make the most riveting novels a little less than dull. This narrator is great with this book!

3: Storyline (Again no spoilers, or specific info on what happens!)
The storyline its self is excellent and I can not really think of a critique. Adding more to the plot line to show more segmental character development or colouring, may have taken away from the pace of events too much in this already large book. Certain historic alterations occur and events are moved closer together (but still remaining in chronological order pretty much) to keep the storyline going. The author addresses this though after the book finishes, explaining why this has been done (3 years of nothing, isn't good reading material), and also explains a character or two which he has deduced must have existed -or something to their effect - in order for such events to have proceeded.
At the end of the day, this is historic fiction, not historic fact. If alterations niggle you, read a factual book over this time period instead. . . though this rendition of events are much more entertaining in my opinion.

4: Overall performance
Preformed excellently. Wide range of accents for different characters, which stick for each individual character. Clear and easy to listen to. . .I think I've jerked off the excellence of the narrator enough already.

9 of 10 people found this review helpful

Usual high quality by Conn Iggulden

What made the experience of listening to Wars of the Roses: Stormbird the most enjoyable?

Informative and a really good listening, puts this period of history into perspective. Also not a lot of novels cover this period

Who was your favorite character and why?

Hard to say

What about Roy McMillan’s performance did you like?

He flowed with story made the characters seem real.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

If you think politicians are bad today

Any additional comments?

Looking forward to the rest of the books.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

I am biased.....

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. I would recommend not only this book but any written by Conn Iggulden. So far he has not written a bad one (I suppose at some time in the future he will but hopefully not)

What other book might you compare Wars of the Roses: Stormbird to, and why?

Possibley the Bernard Cornwell Grail Quest series. Simply because it is set in a similar historical setting

What does Roy McMillan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

He allows me to pass many hours of driving with out either getting bored or listening to inane chatter interupted by a mix of good, bad and awful music

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes the appearence in front of Rueben by a man he considered if not a freind at least a supporter who was now his judge and determined to make Rueben confess to his "crimes" despite knowing the accusations were false.

Any additional comments?

Can't wait for the next installment

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Thoroughly absorbing and enjoyable

I know the history the story is based on reasonably well and I'm not sure if that meant that I enjoyed the book more or not - possibly more because I didn't need to work my brain on keeping up with characters and events, but could just relax and enjoy the storytelling aspect.

Either way - thoroughly enjoyed and would highly recommend. Straight onto the next book in the series for me! ☺

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Historical Fact Check

What did you like most about Wars of the Roses: Stormbird?

I enjoyed the story and all of that, but one of the things I particularly liked was that in the end of the book the author goes through major events and characters in the book and separates fact from fiction so you are not left wondering how much is actually historical and what has been romanticized

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Awesome

A terrific listen from beginning to end. A first class story and performance leaving the listener wanting much more. Thank you

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Excellent book, well read.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Pleasantly surprised by this book. A great story based on historical fact. The fictional characters are well conceived and merge very believably with the historical.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Very enjoyable

Really enjoyed this! I found it very well written and engaging and the narration is excellent. I'm looking forward to the next one now.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful