5 Stars for Circle of Days by Ken Follett

From a bestselling author of epic fiction comes the deeply human story of one of the world’s greatest mysteries: the building of Stonehenge.

A FLINT MINER WITH A GIFT
Seft, a talented flint miner, walks the Great Plain in the high summer heat, to witness the rituals that signal the start of a new year. He is there to trade his stone at the Midsummer Fair, and to find Neen, the girl he loves. Her family lives in prosperity and offer Seft an escape from his brutish father and brothers within their herder community.

A PRIESTESS WHO BELIEVES THE IMPOSSIBLE
Joia, Neen’s sister, is a priestess with a vision and an unmatched ability to lead. As a child, she watches the Midsummer ceremony, enthralled, and dreams of a miraculous new monument, raised from the biggest stones in the world. But trouble is brewing among the hills and woodlands of the Great Plain.

A MONUMENT THAT WILL DEFINE A CIVILIZATION
Joia’s vision of a great stone circle, assembled by the divided tribes of the Plain, will inspire Seft and become their life’s work. But as drought ravages the earth, mistrust grows between the herders, farmers and woodlanders—and an act of savage violence leads to open warfare . . .

Truly ambitious in scope, Circle of Days invites you to join master storyteller Ken Follett in exploring one of the greatest mysteries of our age: Stonehenge. 

Purchase Information

 

Stonehenge - 1880 - Wellcome Collection, United Kingdom - CC BY. 

What I thought about Circle of Days 

I've always been fascinated with the megaliths of Europe, especially Stonehenge. What were they used for? How did these enormous stones get moved into place? Where did they come from? How long did it take? Ken Follett attempts to answer these questions in Circle of Days.

Told through short vignettes, the author paints a picture of everyday life in 2500 B.C. The people of the Great Plain gather at the Monument at Midsummer for the ritual and revel, where they trade and party. Their concerns are basic, yet familiar. Love, revenge, relationships are all part of the story.

Told primarily through the eyes of Seft, a flint miner looking for a better life, and Joia, a priestess tasked with understanding the calendar and counting that are accomplished with help from the Monument. The story really does sing when the subject is how to get the stones to the site of the current timber-framed Monument, although I didn't mind any of the other stories told that describe the communities of herders, woodland people and farmers that existed on the Great Plain, sometimes in harmony, sometimes not. There are a few heartbreaks along the way to the story of the stones.

I just loved how this story talked about the purpose of the stones, and provided a very believable description of how the stones were moved. This was the most interesting part of the novel. But I did like how the author showed what life was like. The language and voice here capture the simplicity of the times and I felt transported back to 2500 B.C. to experience the moving and building of the Monument. Having Seft and Joia anchor the story was absolutely wonderful, and it was easy to become invested in both of them.

This story is going to stay with me for a while. It's joyous, happy, tense and sad all in the right places. It will be one of my favorites of 2025. Definitely recommended.  

 

5 Stars for The Enforcer's Revenge (Untamed Hearts #4) by Kele Moon

Tino Moretti is a hardened, dangerous man, forged from the unforgiving fires of the Italian Mafia. The only joy in his difficult life is Brianna Darcy, the woman whose love offers him a defense against the cruel reality he was made to live. She was his last piece of light, his escape from the darkness, until war came in the most horrific way possible and shattered their fragile happiness. In Enforcer’s Revenge, we finally see where it all goes wrong and why loving completely means letting go.

In the wake of tremendous loss, Tino and his brother Nova are left teetering on the brink of surrender. Until the lost kids Tino turned his back on, the ones who once shared his dark past, step out of the shadows to save them right at the moment when they could lose it all. Their loyalty is a lifeline, and together with the growing power of the Moretti brothers, they are ready to embark on an awe-inspiring quest for revenge and dominance of the underworld—Turning the despised bastards into the most feared force in Cosa Nostra.

Welcome to the brutal world of the Moretti brothers and the Lost Kids of Cosa Nostra. Their truths, revealed book by book, pull back the veil to some of the most vicious corners of the underworld. Their stories explore dark themes like violence, addiction, traumatic pasts, grief, the emotional tolls of abuse, and morally complex choices. It includes scenes with extreme violence, drug use, suicidal ideations, and references to past abuse that may be disturbing to some readers. While it is a very real story of love and loyalty, it is born from loss and pain. The lost kids deserve happy endings, but the journey isn’t easy for any of them. This is a dark romance series for a reason.

Reader discretion is always advised. 

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What I thought about The Enforcer's Revenge

Tino Moretti's story continues in The Enforcer's Revenge, the much anticipated return to the Moretti Family story in the Untamed Hearts series from Kele Moon. I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book and once I started it, reading it was all I wanted to do. It's the adventures of Tino and Nova, two of the most interesting male characters I've ever had the pleasure to read about.  In this follow-up, there's more to learn about Tino's life as an enforcer for the Moretti family and the impact it is having on his life and mental health.

The story starts out quietly, with the gang of Moretti's celebrating, but all does not stay quiet for long.  Once the action picks up at around thirty percent into the book, it's non-stop until the very end.  There are some definite hold-your-breath moments there too, which I loved. Even though there were many years between the previous book and this one, it didn't feel that way. I only wished I had time to re-read The Enforcer before I read this one. I don't know what it is about Tino and Nova, but I just love their story. It's so emotional -- raw and dirty and compelling all at the same time. 

There were a few parts of this book that I absolutely loved. There is quite a bit of Carina and Brianna in this one. I really liked getting to know them better, and seeing them interact with Nova and Tino. It's such a crazy life they are all living -- it was really great to have that rounded out in The Enforcer's Revenge. I feel like I learned so much more about all of them, especially Tino. There is a very powerful scene where he talks about all the different "Tino's" there are, depending on who he is with. It was so eye opening and sad, all at the same time.  His emotional state is really in jeopardy by the end of the book. Oh, my heart!

I just love this series.  I recommend it to anyone who will listen.  The writing is terrific -- I feel pulled right into the story from the start. And the emotional content is sometimes tough, sometimes tender, and always interesting.  I can't wait for more.  

Definitely recommended for readers of dark romance, and dark romantic suspense.