A review by daisy32
Avalon by Anya Seton

2.0

Two and a half stars. This was a bit of historical fiction set in the lead-up to the Norman Conquest (the conquest itself an afterthought at the end of the book). The plot consisted of a bunch of dramatic stories in the life of a woman, Merewyn, that never amounted to much ado. Big things happen to her (mother dies, works for evil queen, is rejected by love interest, captured, married, children, colonization, return to England, remarried) but it’s always, “Ho hum, okay, so now it’s five years later and she’s here now, whatever.” She was always wanting something, getting or not getting it, and then becoming unhappy or bored with what she had. Plus all sorts of big-deal plot elements (the evil queen’s hinted at witchcraft, or later a villainous woman who was using her feeble daughter to no good) that then frittered away. It was a super interesting time/setting but the story just sort of plodded along and then ended.