Dark Winds Rising is a fantastic follow-up to Between Two Fires. This series is very well written and researched. I love the setting and the legendary feel of the story. Branwen and Artagan's love is definitely epic and I have been rooting for them since the beginning. If you like the first pick this one up!

Mark Noce follows the Dark Winds Rising against Welsh Queen Arwen in the dark ages as the Queen of the Picts descends from Scotland shedding death and despair among the Welsh. kingdoms. An exciting independent queen and a complex game of power and battle in this far off time enthrall the reader. Wonderful story.

This book is the second in a series about Welsh Queen Branwen. I have not read the first book, and I think this book reviews enough material from the previous book that it can be understood and enjoyed out of order.

Queen Branwen has had a difficult life, and the Welsh have just been through many years of devastating wars with the Saxons. The story opens with her realization that she is pregnant again. She already has one child and finally has a good, loving husband (her first husband was cruel), but she has had two miscarriages and is afraid she will die in childbirth. An assassin tries to kill Branwen's son, and then she and her husband find out the legendary Picts have invaded and taken over her childhood home in an adjacent part of Wales. Queen Branwen will need to muster all of her wisdom and courage as well as her country's troops to defeat this formidable foe and keep her family safe.

I love the history of the British Isles, so I jumped at the chance to read this book. I did enjoy it, but I did not enjoy the profanity or the sexual content. I also found myself skimming over a few graphic scenes involving violent acts. I know the Dark Ages were very violent and I could handle most of the story, but I thought a few scenes were gratuitous. I liked the character development and I thought the writing was very well done. I loved how descriptive and atmospheric the setting was - I felt like I was there experiencing the story. Overall, this book was hard to put down and I enjoyed the plot and the historical setting.

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This is a beautifully written second book in the Queen Branwen series, full of mistery, political intrigues and a protagonist who tries to stand up for her self and women like her in a time when they were just seen as a pawn in wars and alliances.
I really like the historical details that emerged from the storytelling, everything seemed so vivid in my mind: even though few are the records related to the time in which Queen Branwen story is set, the author succeeded in recreating that ancient world, developing a plot rich of twists and turns and misteries.

I would definitly recommend this series to all those who do love a good historical fiction! Loved it.

I had a very difficult time getting through this book. I decided not to review it on my blog or on social sites.

How did I miss the first book?! Holy cow- this is for fans of carefully researched historical fiction. Medieval Wales! This wonderfully written book reminded me of the early fiction of Morgan Llywelyn (yes, her books are set in Ireland but go with it.). Queen Branwen is dealing with a lot of issues- war, treachery, a husband (King Artagan) and she's only 21. Wow. She's a heroine for our times as well. This blends history and myth in a seamless and realistic way. While the main fight is between the Welsh and the Saxons/Picts, Branwen also faces a threat to her family. She's an intelligent woman who is both a strategic and tactical thinker. Noce never loses control of the story and is always attentive to the fact that many of his readers are fans of the genre - and know their stuff. Thanks to net galley for the ARC. Two thumbs up for a highly enjoyable reading experience.

When I read the first in this series, Between Two Fires, I was instantly hit with a ton of ‘never have I ever” – an historic written in first person, a tale based in medieval Wales, and the action packed events, laden with a magical almost mystic feel. Perfectly ready to join Branwen’s journey again, we pick up in 597, just seven years after the first. In this story, unlike the first, there is a solid romance thread in the background, as Branwen obviously loves her husband Artagan and their young son. But even as Branwen has managed to survive so far, foiling attempts on her life and position as various factions, tribes and overlords seek to gain and retain power. Adding to her worries, Branwen is now pregnant with her second child and her fears of surviving childbirth are again weighing on her mind. (Excerpted from review - full review to follow after release)

Thanks St. Martin's Press and netgalley for this ARC.

Fierce, bloody, and off the charts awesome! Mark Noce's gift for creating this mystic, pagan, and majestic series has made me a fan for life.

DARK WINDS RISING
Marc Noce

Noce’s Dark Winds Rising is a sequel to Between Two Fires and continues the story of Queen Branwen and King Artagan. It’s an epic love story and a tale of wars and peace featuring the beautiful unblemished Wales landscape and the brutality of the time period. The combination of Christian and pagan practices, the characters reverence of the Arthurian legend plus the factual Welsh places and history mixed with the myths and fiction benefits both the entertainment and educational value of the read. But its definitely the I am Woman Hear Me Roar, courage and fortitude of this young yet wise beyond her twenty-one years, Queen Branwen that will steal reader’s hearts and make this a keeper shelf read.

SUMMARY:
Queen Branwen of The Free Cantrefs is wise way beyond her years, after all life in 6th century Wales is far from easy. Allies can turn to foes in the blink of an eye in any of the fiefdoms that dot the Wales countryside and treaties from marauding neighbors aren’t worth the parchment they’re written on. And just because she’s a queen doesn’t mean her personal life is a cake walk either, she’s been married twice, widowed once and survived childbirth plus she just found out she’s expecting again. She’s got the blood of the old tribes running rich in her veins and luckily a husband she loves dearly who values her council and welcomes his warrior queen to rule alongside and not behind him. But now a much greater threat is upon her, someone is trying to kill her small son and heir to the throne. And an adversary from the north has decided now is the perfect time to cross the border and attack one of her allies and the kingdom of her birth. She’s pulled in two directions and is determined to save Wales and her son. She’ll take all the help she can get whether divine or mortal because she will fight for what she believes in and possibly die trying.

Dark Winds Rising by Mark Noce is the second book in the Queen Branwen series. In the first book Lady Branwen’s father had promised her hand in marriage to the Hammer King to unite their divided kingdoms. However, after Lady Branwen met her new King and left her home with him she immediately found herself the target of multiple assassination attempts. Lady Branwen was not one to sit by and become the property of a man and with her life in danger she took her safety into her own hands and decided to leave the Hammer King. Not knowing who to trust Lady Branwen found herself teaming up with a knight named Artagan and found herself not only trying to save herself but her people before Saxon invaders and a mysterious traitor tried to destroy her.

Now Queen Branwen is married to her beloved husband Artigan and raising a young toddler son but danger threatens her yet again. Not only are the Picts invading and Queen Branwen must try to face the Pictish Queen who is trying to turn the Welsh against one another in a civil war but there also seems to be a mysterious assassin that is targeting Queen Branwen’s young son. During all of the conflict she also finds that she is again with child and worries that she may not survive the second birth.

In the first book of this series, Between Two Fires, I found that Mark Noce was definitely a great writer but I felt a bit slighted with the book being marketed as historical romance. There wasn’t much romance to be found in the story but the historical side seemed to be pretty solid so I decided to give the second book a try to see where the story would go after the end of the first.

Now in this second book I did feel that this one could be considered to be more than just a historical fiction tale as Queen Branwen is obviously in love with her husband so there were twinges of romance which to me was a needed improvement. There is also though plenty of action taking place in the story set in 597 A.D. in medieval Wales which seemed to be accurate to the times. In the end I definitely liked this one a bit more than book one and thought it to be a nice addition to the series.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this title ahead of time.
Dark Winds Rising is a continuation of Queen Branwen's story in Wales protecting her kingdom from the Saxons. Unfortunately she has to deal with the Picts invading her land as well and trying to survive both parties whilst pregnant. Queen Branwen is a great strong female protagonist who loves her country and consistently fights for her people's freedom. She also has a sense of humour, I laughed out loud throughout the book as it does not take itself too seriously.
The only thing that I would pick on a little is some really cheesy moments throughout the book, it made it feel like a soap opera rather than a novel. The end is also quite repetitive, it was like a summary of the entire book.
Apart from that, this is definitely an entertaining read suitable for those who like historical fiction, romance, battles and old magic. I hope there will be a book three!

I wish that there were words to accurately describe how incredibly wonderful this book is. I wanted to read Dark Winds Rising, as the description sounded very interesting. What I didn't count on was being so engrossed in the book that I couldn't even begin to put it down! I also didn't realize until I had finished the book, that it was a sequel. The author did an amazing job of creating a stand-alone book in Dark Winds Rising, but one that I am sure follows up the first book (Between Two Fires) absolutely flawlessly.

The story follows the character of Queen Branwen, who I loved immediately. She is brave, stubborn, sometimes rash...but possesses an internal strength that endears you to her immediately. She must save her kingdom, protect her son, and face a deadly foe. Between the characters, the incredible way the author writes and the Braveheart/Avalon feel of the book, I was absolutely hooked.