Why read Run to the Western Shore?

Book cover of Run to the Western Shore

Book description

A powerful novel about destiny, home and surviving in a world in flux

Britain, AD 72.

Quintus, long exiled from his people, has travelled great odysseys in the retinue of a powerful Roman. Though a citizen of nowhere, is a man of reason, fluent in many languages. Olwen, imperious tribal…

Explore

Topics

Genres

Historical fiction

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Run to the Western Shore as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Erna Buffie

Author

I loved Tim Pears’ novel because, like Groff’s book, it’s as much the story of a lost landscape as it is about the lives of two young lovers trying to escape the masters that oppress them. Set during the Roman occupation of Britain, those two central characters are on the run - Quintus, a young man enslaved by the Romans, and Olwen, daughter of a Celtic chief who has been given as a peace offering to the Roman general who has just defeated her tribe.

But if Quintus and Olwen’s love affair and escape are central to the novel, a…

From Erna's 3 favorite reads in 2023.