What would you do if your husband was at war with your brother? The Forgotten Kingdom starts up right where The Lost Queen ended. Languoreth is a woman in the Middle Ages, the daughter of a king, and wife of the presumptive heir to the throne of Strathclyde (in what is now Scotland). Her husband, Rhydderch and eldest son have just left to battle the Dragon warriors, who are led by her foster brother, Uther Pendragon, and where her twin brother Lailoken, and young daughter Angharad live. Lailoken is a Wisdom Keeper and is training Angharad in being a Wisdom Keeper as well. In the future, Lailoken will be known as “Myrddin” or Merlin. Who will survive and how will this divided family move forward?

I loved The Forgotten Kingdom even more than I loved The Lost Queen. I loved the action in this novel, and I love that the viewpoint was split three ways. This time we see the story through Languoreth, Lailoken, and Angharad’s point of view. The battle scenes were riveting. It was particular exciting with Lailoken and Angharad on the run separately for much of the book. I love that it also delves deeper into the background story of many of the characters. It was an exciting story that kept you on the edge of your seat. It was also an interesting look into the Middle Ages, a time when Christianity was moving into Scotland and at odds with the old religion. I can’t wait to see how this trilogy will conclude.

Favorite Quotes:
“Hell is watching a man you once trained in weapons take a spear through the chest.”

“Time is not a masterful healer, but at least it is persistent.”

“Memory, when preserved, can never be taken.’

“Who would sing of their heroism? Who yet lived to remember them? There is you, I told myself. But when I was gone? Theirs would become a forgotten kingdom.”

Overall, The Forgotten Kingdom is an exciting look into war, love, and religion in the Middle Ages of Scotland.

Book Source: Review Copy from Simon & Schuster. Thank-you!

Book two of a trilogy, and The Forgotten Kingdom by Signe Pike did not disappoint! It was another sweeping tale of Celtic history and war in AD Scotland. Languoreth is back, but there are also viewpoints from her brother Lailoken and daughter Angharad as well. I appreciated getting a couple other viewpoints in this one, but Languoreth is still my favorite of them all. There is more violence in this book of course since it is war, but not too many super disturbing parts or anything that isn't skippable if you really wanted to. I listened to the audio again and of course it was fantastic. Toni Frutin is back as Languoreth, while Gary Furlong and Siobhan Waring voice Lailoken and Angharad, respectively. I liked all of them and was very happy to have Frutin back again.

I loved the ending of The Forgotten Kingdom, and while you know there will be a third book since it's a trilogy, I was pretty satisfied with it considering who knows how long we will have to wait for the final book. I don't love cliffhangers, and while there are definitely questions, it doesn't really end in a cliffhanger in my opinion which is something I appreciated. You definitely can't go wrong with reading it or doing the audio, and I highly recommend both. I like the book because it has a map and the author's note which the audio I listened to was missing.

I highly recommend reading these books in order, although they could also be read as standalones. I think you will get more of the story though if you read them in the correct order which is what I'm doing. I said it before and I will say it again, if you have any interest in Celtic history or historical fiction with a dash of fantasy, I highly recommend checking out both The Lost Queen, and The Forgotten Kingdom. They have both been five star reads for me, and I will be anxiously awaiting the third and final book in this moving tale.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions and thoughts are my own.

Book two of The Lost Queen Trilogy has not disappointed. Once again Ms. Pike has delivered a well researched, and entertaining world for Lailoken and Languoreth. Like the last book, I could not put this book down!

To see all my favorite characters grow through the change of their worlds. The strength and fight to not let their trials take them down. To continue on their journey’s paths all the while feeling as if i was standing by their sides is what makes a great story teller which Ms. Pike has shown over and over again . The pain of motherhood, sisterhood, lover through war and loss is so very well covered in this series. I cried and cheered at so many moments in reading, The Forgotten Kingdom.

I truly believe that this is my favorite historical fiction of the last year and I am so glad to read the continuing sage of the twins and also their progeny. I will be on pins and needles waiting for the last book of the Trilogy.
Btw- Atria Books, this would make a fantastic movie!!!

Thank you, NetGalley for the opportunity to read The Forgetten Kingdom in Lieu or my honest review.

The Forgotten Kingdom is actually book 2 in a series, book one being The Lost Queen and book 3 not yet out. I have not read The Lost Queen and don’t feel like I was lost in the story, so if you haven’t read the first book, that doesn’t mean you can’t jump in with this book.

I’ve gotten into reading historical fiction lately, though none quite as historical as this! The story takes place around 570-580 AD. I knew absolutely nothing about that time frame, so this was all new to me.

It is the story of the many battles that took place in medieval Scottish history. The different kingdoms are fighting for land and their beliefs. Some are fighting for Christianity and some are fighting for the old ways (think - Celtic pagans.)

The central characters are Langoureth and her brother Lailoken and Langoureth’s daughter, Angharad. There are many more characters, more lords and ladies, lots of warriors, but it would take me forever to copy and paste their names over, since they are all tricky to spell!

This is a fantastic mix of battles, friendships, loyalties, old ways, all set in an amazing setting. Signe Pike makes you feel like you are fighting in the battle, that you are walking through the woods with the muffled sounds of the leaves under your feet.

This is a challenging read, with all of the unusual names, however it is well worth the read. When you get to the end of the book, be sure and read the author’s note at the end, the amount of research that went into exploring this time in history is astounding.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of the book.

"The Forgotten Kingdom" is the compelling second book in Pike's series and it's hard to put down. With lush details and rich characters, it's easy to get caught up in the story of Langoreth, now a queen, her brother, and Langoreth's children. The story places Langoreth in a regretable situation where her husband battles against her brother and lover. And her daughter, taken away for training as a Wisdom Keeper, is in the perilous position of being with Langoreth's brother when war breaks out. This tale weaves through the mystical and dips into dreams as blood pours across the landscape in a battle between the new religion and the ancient one, between the tribes, and the invaders.

I did enjoy this one. I found it was just as good as the first book. I read it on the weekend and good thing I had nothing that I needed to do because I couldn't put this one down.

Second installment of the series, builds on the terrific retelling of Merlin story. Full of memorable characters, action, atmosphere, and depth this is a novel I could not set aside until I finished it.

I have always loved Arthurian legends, and assumed that they had their origin in real men and women whose actual stories were lost to the mist of time, whose legends were shaped by the norms and values of those telling them in the centuries after they lived. Now author Signe Pike has researched the lands of the Britons as they were in the sixth and seventh centuries, read source material, and filled in gaps to weave together a fantastic new Arthurian legend for our time.

Myrddin (the double d is pronounced th) was also known as Lailoken, and he had a twin sister named Languoreth. In AD 580, Lailoken is a Wisdom Keeper and follows the Old Way and the old gods. Languoreth is married to a local chieftain whose father, a minor king, has chosen to follow a version of Christianity. As the book opens, Languoreth’s husband and son are going to battle against her brothers and cousins, and her husband locks her in her room to prevent her from trying to stop them. Her young daughter Angharad, age 8, has been sent to live with her uncle Lailoken for training as a Wisdom Keeper, and she’s there when her father and brothers show up for a battle that will leave the Pendragon’s Dragon Warriors severely depleted. Lailoken goes into exile, and Languoreth uses her wits to preserve her kingdom.

The Forgotten Kingdom follows the story lines of Lailoken, Languoreth and Angharad, who grows from a child into a young woman over the course of the book. It’s really well done, and presents us with a world in which the Britons (modern day Welsh and Scots) are living uneasily beside the Picts and fighting to preserve their lands from the invading Angles. The two religions are also uneasily co-existing. Languoreth is a wise and canny woman who is able to take matters into her own hands. Angharad is shown to have powers as her attempt to escape the battle lead her to travel all over the island, into the land of the Picts and beyond.

This is the second book in the trilogy but I had no trouble reading it as a stand alone. I will be reading the first, and I’m waiting with great anticipation for the 3rd book to release. Signe Pike has done a marvelous job of recreating an ancient world. While I suspect she hasn’t entirely captured how ancient people thought, her world-building is spot-on and her story-telling skills are marvelous. This is a book to read and re-read. Highly recommended.

4.5 stars

The Lost Queen was one of my favorite reads of last year and I raved about it to everyone I knew. Not to mention I gave it to all my friends and family as a Christmas present too.

So it’s easy to say that I had this next book on my TBR the instant I was done with the first book. The second it was available on Netgalley, I downloaded it and started reading.

Not going to lie, this one took me a lot longer to read than I was anticipating. Not because it was bad (not at all!) I just started it at a time when I was busy and couldn’t get to it as often as I wanted.

Summary
The story continues in The Forgotten Kingdom, the second book in the astonishing Lost Queen trilogy, already hailed as “Outlander meets Camelot” (Kirsty Logan) and “The Mists of Avalon for a new generation” (Linnea Hartsuyker).

AD 573. Imprisoned in her chamber, Languoreth awaits news in torment. Her husband and son have ridden off to wage war against her brother, Lailoken. She doesn’t yet know that her young daughter, Angharad, who was training with Lailoken to become a Wisdom Keeper, has been lost in the chaos. As one of the bloodiest battles of early medieval Scottish history scatters its survivors to the wind, Lailoken and his men must flee to exile in the mountains of the Lowlands, while nine-year-old Angharad must summon all Lailoken has taught her and follow her own destiny through the mysterious, mystical land of the Picts.

In the aftermath of the battle, old political alliances unravel, opening the way for the ambitious adherents of the new religion: Christianity. Lailoken is half-mad with battle sickness, and Languoreth must hide her allegiance to the Old Way to survive her marriage to the next Christian king of Strathclyde. Worst yet, the new King of the Angles is bent on expanding his kingdom at any cost. Now the exiled Lailoken, with the help of a young warrior named Artur, may be the only man who can bring the Christians and the pagans together to defeat the encroaching Angles. But to do so, he must claim the role that will forever transform him. He must become the man known to history as “Myrddin.”

Bitter rivalries are ignited, lost loves are found, new loves are born, and old enemies come face-to-face with their reckoning in this compellingly fresh look at one of the most enduring legends of all time. (summary from Goodreads)

Review
So I am going to say this first—I liked the first book better. That’s not to say that this book wasn’t good, I just loved the first book so much that I knew going into this one that it would probably not replace the first one. As I mentioned, I started this one when I was reading a couple of other books and also starting a new job that was busy. So I went days sometimes before coming back to this one which I think caused me to feel a little disconnected with parts of the story.

As always the writing was wonderful and the research—there is no other word for it than impeccable. I remember marveling at the research in the first book and this book is equally thought out and researched. I also read the author notes at the end of this book and was even more in awe of the painstaking research the author must have done in order to create such a wonderful saga.

Her writing and descriptions—especially of the battles—were elegant, haunting and full of action and interest. But this isn’t a book that you want to rush through. There is a lot to digest and process so reading it quickly isn’t something that I would recommend, though I think I would have preferred to read this book a little faster than I did so I could keep everything fresh in my mind.

I did have a hard time recalling certain characters and their role in the story. This book basically picks up right where the first book left off so don’t try and pick this one up if you haven’t read the first book. I recalled the principal characters just fine but I struggled a little at first to place characters and their history or connection to the larger narrative at first. But once I got back into the world and the characters I was perfectly fine.

The cover is stunning and one that you will definitely want on your shelf. It’s truly one of the most eye catching, show stopping covers I’ve seen in a while. I am in love with it. Plus the story is unique and magical. I cannot wait to see how things come to an end in the upcoming book that marks the end of the trilogy.

Though I liked the first book a little better, this was a superb installment and a worthy follow up to an amazing book. If you love historical fiction with a hint of magic, or if you love Arthurian legends, this book right here is a treat for you!

Book Info and Rating
Hardcover, 496 pages
Expected publication: September 15th 2020 by Atria Books
ISBN 1501191454 (ISBN13: 9781501191459)
Free review copy provided by publisher, Atria Books, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 4.5 stars
Genre: historical fiction

Picking up right where the The Lost Queen left off, the Forgotten Kingdom continues to follow the different paths of Langoureth, Lailoken and Angharad as their fates carry them to pivotal points in their kindgom's story. Our characters are put through some incredibly difficult times that both change and shape them. They are complex, fleshed out and feel very real. There is so much richness and texture to the story, and I am particularly intrigued by who Angharad is shaping up to be. This book takes place at the beginning of the Anglo-Saxon invasion of Scotland, and so there are plenty of battles and skirmishes, and even some 'Battle of the Five Armies' vibes for fans of Tolkein as the whole of Scotland tries to protect their home.

These books are also incredibly well-researched. For me in particular, knowing that all of the places in the book are based on real sites in Scotland makes me want to book a trip to Scotland immediately upon finishing the read. Pike really makes the history come alive, rooting her characters deep into the land they live on and the historical writings that have survived from that era.

This book gets 5 stars from me, I was pulled in right from the beginning, the characters and setting are so well-done, and the plot has a huge scope that is very well played out. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction, Arthurian legend, and I would also recommend this for fans of epic fantasy, because the beliefs of the characters themselves shapes how they interpret what occurs in their world - and so there are definitely a few somewhat magical elements at play as well.

I read and reviewed the first book in The Lost Queen series by Signe Pike on this blog here. I was interested in Signe Pike’s approach to the Arthurian mythos. That’s why I decided to join The Forgotten Kingdom Blog Tour and accepted an ARC from the publisher via Net Gallley.

I felt that The Lost Queen was a concept driven novel, and that the concept was original. OTOH, The Forgotten Kingdom is character driven. There’s a cluster of primary characters who are portrayed with genuine psychological depth.

My favorite character was the mysterious Eira whose hidden past emerges over the course of the narrative. As a feminist, I admired her strength that allowed her to overcome all that she had to endure. I liked the fact that Languoreth, the female protagonist, also was impressed with her.

Lailoken, the historical Merlin whose discovery inspired the series, begins to develop an understanding of his purpose by undergoing both a traumatic life event and a ritual ordeal. As a fan of Richard Carpenter’s TV series Robin of Sherwood in which Robin Hood worships Herne and is called Herne’s Son, I was delighted to see how much Lailoken identified himself with Herne in this book.

Languoreth’s daughter, Angharad, began as an amazing child of destiny at the age of nine. Her inner conflicts over the choices she made as she matures, define her as a complex character. Angharad’s training to become a priestess eventually awakened paranormal gifts.

In her author’s note, Signe Pike questioned whether her book should be categorized as fantasy when the people in that era considered paranormal gifts very real. This would require a complete re-evaluation of the historical fantasy sub-genre since rationalism didn’t become more widely accepted until some time in the later half of the 19th century. What about novels taking place in a contemporary context in which all the characters are Wiccans or believe that paranormal gifts are genuine because of their experiences? Should those books also not be considered fantasy? My feeling is that genres exist to help readers find content that they prefer. What definition of fantasy would be most helpful to you as a reader?

Arthur as Artur first appears as a character in The Forgotten Kingdom. This caused me to speculate about how Signe Pike’s characters might be equivalent to conventional Arthurian personages within the myth. Is there already a Guinevere or a Morgan Le Fay? Has the equivalent of Lancelot appeared yet? Perhaps Signe Pike’s alternate vision of the myth doesn’t contain all or even any of these equivalent characters. We’ll just have to continue reading the books in this series in order to find out.

I loved The Lost Queen and was so excited to pick up The Forgotten Kingdom.

This read did not disappoint. I love the characters and how we continue the story of Languoreth and her brother. I felt so much angst reading this one, what a way to set characters against each other!

Historical Fiction isn't usually a genre I read, but I'm so glad I picked these up because they're amazing!

When I read The Lost Queen, I was impressed with the story, and the writing style, both background and description. With so much information, the author made it possible for the reader to gain all the perspective needed, and I love that type of writing style. I was blown away when reading The Forgotten Kingdom. I was immersed in a world that I so badly wanted to be a part of.. know the characters, be within the environment.

In The Lost Queen we were presented with the story of Languoreth, in what I can describe best as her coming of age story, finding her purpose, and seeking all the answers.

The Forgotten Kingdom is her next adventure, or lack there of (if you know what I mean). She is confronted with.. let’s be honest.. family drama, and her along side her family have to figure out what they must do to make things right.

It is heartfelt, sad, heartbreaking at moments, but it’s a true test of family togetherness, and it just make you go through all the feels.. how long must I wait for the third novel? *sobs when realizing the second released only yesterday*

If you love historical fiction, with an Outlander touch.. I highly recommend this series. I like to think also that it’s a blend of Merida from Disney’s Brave, and Game of Thrones.

Sooo so good, and the cover art is so beautiful!

I have not read the first book of The Lost Queen trilogy but that did not keep me from being able to read this book. There is enough summarizing from the first book so I was able to dive right in. This book is a real page turner. There had to be a tremendous amount of research put into this book by MsPike as it is brilliantly written.

Angharad, daughter of future Queen Lanuoreth is preparing to become a Wisdom Keeper. With the help of her uncle Lailoken, Angharad trains and thru a lot of practice, she becomes a strong Wisdom Keeper. There are also many battles being fought to hat change the lives of many.

Thank you have the advance copy of this incredible book!!

I’m so glad I got to jump right into this book after reading the Lost Queen! I think I loved this book even more. The first book is told from the perspective of one character and I was pleasantly surprised to see this novel switch into multiple perspectives. I think that was a smart choice, because it deepened our understanding of certain characters and expanded the world for us. We got to see places and perspectives we wouldn’t have gotten if we’d stuck to the one. For me this book was about the cost/sacrifices of war and went further in exploring their complex relationship with Christianity. The writing was as beautiful as the last book and dropped us right into the time. I highly recommend if you’re looking for a gateway into historical fiction and love books with the epicness of Game of Thrones.

The Lost Queen trilogy is inspired by who they believe was the origins of the stories of Merlin and King Arthur. The first two books felt more like an origin story and I’m looking forward to what will happen next!

Whomever said the study of history is boring, has never read a book by Signe Pike. While historical fiction, her characters are based on actual battles and well known characters.

This series is set in early Scotland. The research done to bring this series to life is evident in the emotional response this reader had to the battles and the consequences of these. You will lose track of time and ignore the world around you as Languoreth and her family face off against each other and their enemies. Plan to get lost in their world for awhile.

This second book in the Lost Queen trilogy was more action packed than the first with battles, allegiances, travel, adventures, and lots of new characters. Languoreth finally becomes queen at the age of 40 and while she may not feel a deep passion for her husband, they have come to a mutual understanding about their marriage. They have become political allies with a common interest of preserving the Old Ways while acknowledging they must show support for the new religion (Christianity) sweeping through their kingdom. Plus, those darn Angles keep pushing the boundaries of the kingdom and something must be done!

Who knew that I would be so interested in one of the bloodiest battles of early medieval Scottish history? Certainly not me! This series totally transported me. I found myself excited to get back to each of these 500+ page books everyday so that I could be whisked away to 6th century Scotland. My heart beat for Maelgwyn and broke for Angharad; I seethed in fury over Mungo, Gwergei, and Elufed's mother; and I was so impressed with Pike's character formation with Lailoken/Myrddin. In hindsight I guess I shouldn't be that surprised since I loved The Mists of Avalon and The Mabinogion Tetralogy.

The backstory and author's notes provided with each of these books was absolutely mind-boggling and beyond impressive. The sheer amount of time and research she has poured over is evident in this epic tale. Although this book was just released, I am really anticipating the final book. The countdown is on!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC of this book! Release date - September 15, 2020

I really liked The Lost Queen a couple years ago. I absolutely love the concept of finding the real historical people who inspired Merlin and Arthur and all those people from legend. Languoreth is an incredible historical character and it's a shame that she has been largely forgotten, so this author bringing her to life has been incredible. You can also tell that she did an insane amount of research and I really applaud that. Especially considering this is not a widely researched time in history, you know she had to do some serious digging.

All that being said, the description of this book sounds a lot more interesting than the book actually is. I do feel like part of this might be me. I think it's a case of the author and I are both interested in these people and this time period, but were interested in vastly different aspects of the story. Just when something interesting was happening from my perspective, she'd shift the focus to something that she was interested in. This explains why I was really into the story at moments, but then would lose interest quickly.

For example, there's a scene of some warriors preparing for battle, recruiting help, planning out how they will get into the enemy camp, and then just when they get inside, the chapter ends and the next chapter jumps ahead to years later! I thought we were building towards a battle, but apparently that wasn't the focus of the chapter from the author's perspective.

Another complaint, that goes along with my last thing is that I was super invested in learning about the real people Languoreth and Lailoken. Like I said, this author did incredible research about their real actions was absolutely fascinating to me. It's what drew me to the book. I know it's historical fiction, but the best historical fiction to me is expounding on real events. So finding out in the author's note that while Angharad was the name of Languoreth's daughter, she likely died as a child and NOTHING that happened to her in this story has any basis in history was disappointing. Because to me the whole point of this trilogy is expounding on this little known history so to take up over a third of the book with the perspective of a basically invented character seems like missing the point to me.

All in all I like the idea of this series but I'm not sure if I will read the third book. It kind of deviated from what I was hoping for and the books are so long. But still, I think Signe Pike is incredibly talented and dedicated to this subject, and I seriously applaud her for that.

When I stumbled upon the Lost Queen in 2018, I had no expectations whatsoever. I found it on some obscure list of the best books of 2018 that people haven’t read yet. After reading it, it became one of the best books I read that year and gave me hopes of becoming one of my favorite trilogies ever. For all you Outlander/ King Arthur/Medieval- Fantasy fans out there: what are you waiting for? GET ON IT! Pick up this book and immediately grab the sequel.
The Forgotten Kingdom followed in the footsteps of the first book: I loved it. It has the same exciting pace, wonderful characters, and twisting storylines that left me frantically turning pages. There is something to be said about a book where you can’t see where it is going, leaving the reader surprised at the events unfolding. I have no idea where the third book is going to go. But the richness of the characters and the road their lives are taking has me hooked and I can’t wait to see how it ends.
It should be noted that Signe Pike does a wonderful job of making the time period come to life. I want to do a deep historical dive after reading the book. Especially about the actual history of the people she breathes life into.
Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

This is the second book in the Lost Queen trilogy and I wish I liked it as much as the first but I didn't. Languoreth was a powerful woman in the sixth century in Scotland. Her story is based on it being the story of Merlin. Her twin brother, Laioken, is supposedly Merlin. There is frustratingly little known about Languoreth because history was written by men who tended to ignore women's contributions.

This story starts with Languoreth locked up in a tower and her husband and son marching off to war against her brother and her lover, Malegwn. To make matters worse, her 8 year old daughter is with her brother training to be a Wisdom Keeper. I don't know why you would send an 8 year old off in a time of war but maybe standards were different.

There is a huge battle and, frankly, I was quite confused. There were so many groups fighting that there was no way to keep the sides straight. I was not able to really follow what was happening except the brother survives and the daughter ends up living with her great grandmother, apparently people lived a long time. Her parents think she is dead. The book then delves into how they come together.

I wish I like it better. I wish I was able to follow it better. It just left me feeling confused. Thanks to Net Galley for a copy of this book in exchange for fair review.