Clash of Iron

Story with humor, complexity and with good ending

Clash of Iron is sequel to Age of Iron and lives up to the expectations. This is a solid, entertaining book with some interesting historical background from Roman culture. Angus mentioned that Roman part in the book is accurate with few exceptions.

Book has much larger scope compare to the first one where Roman plans to invade Britain, and things are much more complicated due to politics/power grab within Britain's local tribes. There are more down to earth elements as well such as romance between Dug/Lowa and parent/daughter relationship between Dug/Lowa and Spring. Angus does a great job of mixing these themes seamlessly while adding humor that is not only unexpected but also very genuine. Sean is prefect for this book that his rough voice works well in delivering all elements of this book. Sean did well to the point that I laughed at humor and felt uncomfortable with some of the brutality and violence such as crucifixion. Book has a pretty good and satisfying bitter-sweet ending, so waiting for third book will not be too bad.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and I highly recommend it as I wait for the next book in trilogy

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Filling in the gaps in History

I LOVE how Angus Watson takes a time and place in history where there are LARGE Gaps in the actual historical record, then he weaves a story into the gaps to fit them, and fill them.

Where records exist, his stories stick to them, and then he smoothly continues weaving his fantasy through the gaps until he comes to another point where a bit of actual historical record exists. His stories always lead you to HIS version of "Why" the next fragment of historical record is what it is, even though no one really knows why a bit of record exists in the middle of large gaps (The actual fragment of record, on it's own, usually makes NO sense, as no one knows what really happened during that time period to get historical figures from one known event in history to the next).

The way Mr. Watson tells his tale, You can't prove that his tale IS how history took place, but you can't prove it's NOT how history took place either! His "Fantasy Stories" are as viable as any "Archeological Theory" out there about the same Time-Period/Place.

Brilliant!

Gotta toss in some Kudos to Sean Barrett for his excellent Narration also... Being a student of history, I know how horribly dry it CAN be if told by the wrong person, and how exciting it can be when told by the right person! In college I was lucky enough to have one of those professors that could "make History come alive, so you FELT it's ebb and flow"... I took every history course that Professor taught, even though 90% of them were not even remotely within the requirements for my degrees (Electrical Engineering, Computer Systems, Mathematics, Psychology, etc)! Mr. Barrett has that same gift of being able to "Make History Come Alive", Even if it's Fantasy History...

...Let me clarify that I mean NO disrespect when I say: "Even if it's Fantasy History"... Because much of what we are taught as "Historical Fact" is really "Historical Fantasy". For Example, Thomas Edison didn't invent the Light Bulb, he bought the Patent for one type of light bulb from the Widow of the man who invented it, and then Edison improved it and made light bulbs commercially viable. Experiments with light bulbs go as far back as 1801, and there were 20-25 other patents for light bulbs even before Edison got involved in the field in 1878. However, "Edison Invented The Light Bulb" is a "Historical Fantasy Fact" that is STILL taught in schools today. "Henry Ford" didn't invent the automobile, he made "Assembly Lines" practical, which allowed automobiles to be produced very quickly, and cheaply... But, "Ford Invented The Automobile" is yet another "Historical Fantasy Fact" STILL taught in Schools!

Angus Watson's historical fantasy tales at least contain some ACTUAL Historical Facts, and Sean Barrett makes them come to life... They're one of those rare teams that end up being much more than the sum of their parts!

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Brilliant Fiction-Shiny Characters

Unique characters who develop and grow or change in a story is a must. That's what I like about GoT and they're present in abundance in this book. Also a unique perspective on the Britons' time period and a clever plot. I'm ready for the next one!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Love this trilogy!

This is a great book! The first was funnier, but this one had a lot more action. Narrator is perfect for this trilogy! Can't wait for the third!

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

This trilogy gets better and better as it goes on.

If you could sum up Clash of Iron in three words, what would they be?

Action, humor and badgers

Who was your favorite character and why?

Dug of course and his weird obsession with badger appendages.

Which scene was your favorite?

One part I laughed a lot louder than my cubical mates probably would have liked. Lowa asks Maggot to tell her everything he knows. And he says ".... if you feed a dog you have a friend for life but if you kick a cat" and is interrupted by Lowa. The scene and the things he says before that really make the line. and I really hope the author has Maggot finish that sentence.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I could not wait to get back to the book and now that I'm finished I'm a bit sad and can not wait to get the final book.

Any additional comments?

Sean Barrett has become one of my top 5 narrators and really brings Dug and the story to life.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Almost stopped early, then was thoroughly hooked

I think it's worth noting that I almost stopped in the first chapter, but within minutes everything clicked (narration and story) and the book rocked along with intensity and rich character development. Even though the book is violent and has plenty of sex, it always just feels right, like a slice of life from a time where both were ever present. Two big thumbs up.

Best Narration ever

The narrator is incredibly talented and both thru accents and tone, manages to completely invoke multiple characters.
Only one thing, he does make Julias Caesar sound like Noel Coward which made me smile ever time the character spoke.

Where's Dug?!?!?

What I absolutely loved about the first book was that it centered around Dug and Lowa. Dug's character was everything I could ever want. He brought sarcasm, humor, scruffiness and dwarf like nostalgia. The only downside of this second book is that Dug is more of a secondary character.

While I missed Dug, I became thoroughly invested in the development of characters like Chamanca, Carden and Atlas. Angus Watson did a superb job with these characters providing a backstory to explain their current situations. I enjoyed the strategic nature of the battles, introduction of the giants, and the descriptions of the weapons used by the armies. This is a great read for those that enjoy war-like fantasy novels with a little magic thrown in. Sean Barrett's performance was amazing and is exactly how I would imagine Dug's voice. On to the third book!

blown away

I love the way angus writes. taking history and throwing fantasy aspects. I'm looking forward to seeing what's in store for book 3.

Excellent book!

Extremely well done, both by author and narrator. History brought to life with some fantasy/magic thrown in. I loved it! All 3 books of the trilogy were terrific! Clever writing...I actually laughed out loud a number of times, and got weird looks from people who couldn't hear what I could with my earbuds on.