#Reviews 23-26 of my Goodreads Challenge of 2018

#Thursday thoughts

I've just completed a read of another research book on the Ancient Roman incursions into northern Scotland. This particular book was one of a few recommended to me by an interested customer at my last Craft Fair at Stonehaven. 

Even though it was written around 30 years ago I decided to acquire a copy for myself and it's yet another one to add tomy roman Scotland Bookshelves. 

In A Battle Lost, the author poses some interesting questions and provides some good arguments against, and in favour of, various theories which had been postulated by earlier historians. I particularly liked how he included some really old examples of Scottish based amateur historians from centuries past, and how he agreed on their being sound basis for their theories (as in General Roy) or indicates the over enthusiasm of some of those early theories.  

More recent archaeological excavations have increased some knowledge of the campaigns of Agricola in north-east Britannia (NE Scotland) but there are still many of G. Maxwell's questions to be answered. 

This book isn't long. It's well written, and easily read by an amateur, though someone looking for deeper study would need to look elsewhere to supplement the very useful data in this book. 

I had hoped to find something new for me to research further but that didn't rally happen yet, I'm not sorry to have have read it since it consolidates a lot of prior knowledge. 

I do however, like the tiny mentions that Agricola's unknown successor as Governor of Britannia may just have been responsible for some of the temporary camp activity in north-east Scotland. The novelist in me finds that exceedingly appealing! 

2 further novels were added to my Goodreads Challenge for 2018 both written by Kathryn Leveque. I got a box set of 5 novels set in the Middle Ages and those rad to date are the first 2 books.

The Red Lion, and Spectre of the Sword were simple and entertaining reads at a time when I was exhausted after my conference last week, so they fit the bill for me pretty well. I've read Kathryn Leveque's work before, and enjoy it, though I admit to sometimes questioning some of the historical accuracy as I read.  The general gist of the era is definitely there in the read though, and if the premise of the novel grips me enough I know I can find further historical fiction which can fill in further, in depth, historical details. 

Right now I'm only 7 books behind on my 2018 schedule of attempting to read 50 books this year. 

Slainthe!