Customer Reviews

The Grail King

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4 star:		(1)
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you should read THE GRAIL KING. If Celtic mystics are your thing, Ms Nash did her research and the time line is spot on. Now you may say "boring"...but no so! There is a rich mix of romance and adventure awaiting you in this book.

Owein is the last of his village, a seer. In a vision he sees a young woman, a Roman, the hated enemy. Then in the middle of a snow storm he finds her. Should he leave her or save her?

Clara is searching for someone or something. Is Owein the answer? Or is he one of the bloody barbarians everyone tells her about?

Together thorough fights with Romans and Celtics; visions; druids and a wolf that has its own thoughts, Owein and Clara must travel. What is the end prize? Sorry can't tell you! These characters are so real; you will want travel with them yourself and enjoy the trip.

Reviewed by Michele Patrykus
For eBookIsle

The Grail King is a great book for anyone who enjoys paranormal romances that don't feature vampires or werewolves. Much as I enjoy the more traditional paranormal romances, it's refreshing to read something that is different and original. I found the story fast-faced, the characters rich and sympathetic, and the drama gripping. Ms. Nash also does a fantastic job of world building, and I found myself practically shivering with cold (even though it's 100 degrees out) when her characters were tromping through the snow and sleet. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

I am a huge Joy Nash fan, from her early novellas for New Concepts Publishing and now Celtic Fire and The Grail King.

Her extensive knowledge of the time period is deftly woven into the storyline, and the mix of magic, myth and sexual tension keeps you turning the pages until the very last.

I love the female lead of this story, Clara, who dares to step out of her sheltered world, but isn't one of those overly-spunky romance heroines who shows no fear or vulnerability. She is a perfect foil for the reclusive Owein.

I can't wait to read the next installment of the Druids of Avalon.

An exciting story, well researched and beautifully told. I was carried away by Owein and Clara's story.

I can't wait for Ms. Nash's next book!!

Joy Nash is one of my favorite authors. Her stories are magical. They take me away from the here and now, and I loved The Grail King for its masterful plotting and mystical delightful creativeness. Her characters seem to leap off the page, and entwine you as though you are one of them. Owein, Celtic King and Druid Leader, is a hero to die for. Strong, handsome and charismatic, he takes your breath away. Clara, daughter of a Roman Commander, is my kind of heroine. Though strong and courageous, she is very feminine and sweet. I've put this book on my keeper shelf, and I'm sure you will too!

Diane Davis White
Author of Moon of the Falling Leaves

Until I read GRAIL KING, I thought "paranormal" romance was for authors who were too lazy to research the historical time period in depth. But this tale of a sensitive, refined Roman lady and her gallant, wounded Druid lover is a gripping historical novel -- with Magic as an integral part of the people's lives.

Joy Nash is a talented new author who paints on a vast canvas. I was amazed how much I cared, not just about Clara and Owein, but about all the Celtic people and their struggle to adjust to Roman conquest. Most romance authors try to avoid having a large cast of characters, and at first I was a little confused by all the different people in the story. Sometimes I forgot whether I was reading about Owein or Rhys, and I had a lot of trouble telling Blodwen from Rhys' wounded sister. But the more I got into the story the more I really cared about all the characters, so it was a richer experience than usual. Marcus, the stubborn Roman smith, and Breena, the cute little druidess, and Cormac the sex-mad dwarf all practically jump off the page. These characters are so real and so much a part of their historical setting that the story works purely as historical fiction.

On the other hand, Joy Nash write passionate love scenes very well! I was amazed how the paranormal aspects actually intensified the erotic connection between Owein and Clara. At the same time, I loved the contrast between the "romantic" sex of Clara and Owein and the "erotic" sex between Cormac and Blodwen. Without going into graphic detail, I just can't say how exciting those Cormac and Blodwen scenes really were!

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes Celtic history, magic, and romance.

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

With The Grail King, Joy Nash once again writes a beautiful story of ancient Scotland and the people who populate this enchanted, mystical land.

In this first story in the Druids of Avalon series, readers again meet Owein, younger brother of Rhiannon, the heroine of Celtic Fire. Now he is all grown up, and about to encounter his own destiny...

Owein is blessed, or cursed, depending on how you look at it, with the abilities of a Seer. His latest vision is of a young beauty drenched in blood, who is begging for his help to find a magical object. When the vision ends, just before he gives in to the pain these foreshadowings always bring him, he sees that the woman is in fact very much alive and real... and one of the hated Romans.

Clara has crossed miles to find the Wise One, a druid of untold ability who can aid her in her quest. For several generations, her family has possessed a Mystical Grail that holds within the ability to heal even the most mortal of illnesses. This grail has recently been stolen and without its powers her father, the leader of all Romans in Britannia, will surely die.

Owein is reluctantly drawn in to Clara's quest, though he harbors his own secret desires for the grail. Now these two will find they must battle the gravest of dangers, a powerful Celt who has harnessed the power of the Deep Magic, intent on bringing a dark fate down upon Romans and Britons alike. In the midst of these battles, Clara will discover a secret legacy she carries in her blood and Owein must come to terms with his tortured past, from which Clara alone can free him. But can they overcome it all to save Britannia from evil? And what of the tender emotions they shockingly harbor for each other?

With The Grail King, Joy Nash has once again written a story that will take readers away to a long ago time and place where dreams and unusual happenings are seen as signs from the heavens. As with Celtic Fire, religion plays an important role in the characters' lives. Seeing how the different beliefs between good and bad magic and Roman beliefs mesh is fascinating to behold. These conflicting beliefs add an additional level of conflict to the story, giving a different perspective to the typical romance genre.

Owein agonizes over his inability to prevent the deaths of his family and cannot allow himself to move past his perceived failure. The complications arising from the physical pain caused by his Sight also contribute to his desire to remain separate from society. When Clara comes in to his life, she is the sole person who has the ability to help him overcome his personal demons. Clara's greatest desire is only to recover the magical grail and heal her father and she will go to great lengths to complete that quest, even if it means lying to the one man she has grown to love. Watching these two overcome their differences and their internal battles makes for an engrossing story.

Add in the slight mystery of who is calling upon the Deep Magic for their own nefarious purposes and readers are in for a most compelling read. Make sure you have plenty of free time before starting The Grail King by Joy Nash because you will not want to stop reading until reaching the stunning conclusion, which hints at what is to come in future books.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, July 2006. All rights reserved.

If you are a fan of legends of the Holy Grail and also of Celtic lore, then you will undoubtedly enjoy this book. The hero of The Grail King was first introduced in Ms. Nash's previous novel, Celtic Fire, as a young man. For those of you that have read that book, you will enjoy seeing Owein's return in this novel. If you haven't read Celtic Fire, not to worry, this is a stand alone book and you will get to know (and love) Owein quite well throughout the course of this tale. The author begins our tail in the year of A.D. 130, well before Arthurian legends associated with the Grail, throwing us headlong in to the aftermath of the conflict between the Romans and the Druids.

Owein is a Seer and a bitter recluse, wanting nothing more than to be left alone to live his life away from the Romans. Clara, a pampered Roman daughter, is on a mission to find what has been lost so that she can save her father's life. On the advice of a slave, she seeks out the man that was once the "wise one" of the slave's village in the remote hills away from the city. When Owein realizes what it is that Clara searches for, he agrees to help her, for the Grail once belonged to the druids of the mystical Isle of Avalon, where the druids once again reside in secret.

Owein is the perfect combination of gruff and caring, while Clara is determined and independent, refusing to take no for an answer. They offset each other fabulously and, whether ready or willing to admit it or not, they are exactly what the other needs. Clara is just perfectly the right combination of spunky and vulnerable, fearless and cautious to be completely believable. Ms. Nash's extensive knowledge of the time period made this a very interesting read, making you want to know more about the time period, the Druids and Romans, and the legends associated with Avalon. The ending was also left open to a sequel involving some of the secondary characters that you come to like.

The magic portrayed in the book is interesting and believable. The legend of how the Grail came to be, and what happened to it, is also fascinating. You will find yourself speculating and, quite possibly, looking into more legends once you've finished.

If you enjoy all of these elements, do yourself a favor and pick up this book. Even if you don't, pick it up anyway - you may find yourself a fan afterwards. No matter what, I can guarantee that you will be looking forward to the hoped for sequel.

originally posted at The Long and Short of It Romance Reviews

Plot Summary: Set in Britannia AD 130, the Celts have been scattered and enslaved by the Romans. Once a leader, the druid named Owein now lives as a hermit in the decimated village he once called home. In the middle of a winter storm, he finds a wealthy Roman woman near death. Owein saves her life and learns that Clara was seeking the Wise One in the hills. She needs his help finding a healing cup that has been stolen, and Owein believes this is a holy relic that belongs to his people. He agrees to help Clara, but only to remove the grail from Roman hands, while Clara is desperate to save her sick father, who happens to be the general who attacked Owein's village.

The Grail King is a well-written historical romance that should appeal doubly to fans of Highlander fiction, with one slight difference. These Celts are living well before the time of King Arthur, and they have been subjugated by the hated Romans. Amongst their people, the Druids were known as the Wise Ones, or the Seers, but since the Roman occupation they've been killed and driven into obscurity. It's a unique time and place for a romantic fantasy, and I enjoyed the novelty. The Grail King is the first book in the Druids of Avalon series.

What's holding me back on the rating is a purely personal preference (I want to split the rating between 3 and 4 stars). I'm just not a fan of stories where the hero spends the whole story pushing the heroine away `for her own good.' In this case, Owein pushes Clara away because she is a Roman, she is wealthy, and she is the daughter of the general who attacked his village years ago. I'm not saying he doesn't have good reasons, but it's still not my preferred plot line for a romance.

With that criticism aside, I am curious to try the next book, Deep Magic (Love Spell Historical Romance), and read more about these precursors to the Arthurian legend. Each book focuses on a different couple, so I'm not sure whether it's critical to read them in order, but here it is nonetheless:

The Grail King
Deep Magic (Love Spell Historical Romance)
Silver Silence

What a great book. I haven't read "Celtic Fire" but this book can stand alone just fine. This book offers a fantastic plot, wonderful characters, magic and a great romance. I rarely give 5 stars but this was worth every one of them.

The story takes place in 140 AD. Owein, a Druid who has lost his entire village, including his wife and unborn child, lives alone in darkness. He is a Seer who pays for his gift with so much pain that it leaves him in a severly weakened state after he has a vision. The story begins when he finds an enemy Roman woman close to death after succumbing to the freezing cold. After rescuing her he learns that she has come so far to seek his help to find her mother's grail that supposedly has healing properties. Her father has fallen deathly ill and the stolen grail is his only hope. Clara fears Owein so she keeps hidden the fact that her father may have been responsible for his wife and unborn baby's deaths. The tension between the two is palpable but they are both drawn to each other. He has a vision of the grail and soon agrees to help her with her quest.

The dialogue is wonderful and you really feel as though the two are falling in love. While this book is essentially a romance the plot is so interesting and the secondary characters are fantastic. While there was a bit of repetition it did little to diminish my interest in the book. If you like a good tortured hero than this book is for you. I kept hugging this book and asking my husband to speak to me with a brogue. I just loved this book!