Secret Britain

This beautifully illustrated title will be enjoyed by those who are interested in the British Isles, history, archaeology and more. It is a beautifully photographed and wide-ranging tile.

The author begins with an introduction, a timeline and a map. She follows this with the many places where she is interested in “unearthing our mysterious past,” as the title of the book notes.

There are so many places included. To name some there are the Tomnaverie Recumbent Stone Circle, Seahenge, Must Farm, Snettisham Treasures, the Dagenham Idol and Stonehenge. The geography includes Kent, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Moray and many more locations. The first object featured is the Westray Wifey which is over 5,000 years old and was found on Orkney. There are so many more to follow.

This book can be dipped into or read in its entirety. I very much enjoyed the time that I spent with this fascinating title.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-galley. All opinions are my own.

This is a fascinating look at some of Britain’s many ancient sites, with excellent photographs backing up the stories (historical and legend) of these places. I’m an American but have been fortunate enough to visit several of the sites Ms. Ochota includes in Secret Britain; her writing is engaging, descriptive and gives glimpses into the ancient history and modern-day science of these sites. If I were in Britain, this book would live in my car, ready to be hauled out at the first sighting of one of these special places.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

This book is a brilliant tour around the British Isles and a wonderful introduction to Britain’s history. The introduction instantly hooks the reader, and can be read by people who have no prior knowledge, but is still engaging even if the reader is familiar with the subject. The book is always easy to read even though it includes some specialist or simply obscure terms because Ochota makes sure to provide some sort of explanation, clearly anticipating that not everyone will know what a midden layer is.

The book takes the reader on a comprehensive tour of some of the most interesting and important archaeological finds and sites in Britain. It’s very well laid out, with a useful timeline and map at the front of the book that allows your date to quickly dates sites and finds, and locate them, before moving on to reading about these “secret places” in greater depth. The pictures, too, are absolutely stunning, and if the content of the book doesn’t make a reader want to visit these places, the photos almost certainly will.

Reading this was fascinating, even though I’m quite familiar with a lot of what’s mentioned within. Each section is fantastically described, and there were some finds and places I’d never heard of, and rather than bombarding the reader with historical facts and figures and the wider history of a place, instead, each section tells the story (or stories) of the places and objects there, and focuses on that one site or piece. This makes it easy to read, but it often also connects to the wider history of the place, as well as the beliefs, people, and culture attached to those places and pieces.

Ochota presents interesting and occasionally unique takes and theories as to what certain archaeological evidence might suggest about the history and beliefs of a place, and each theory is well-thought-out and well presented, never leaving the reader scratching their head trying to figure out what she means.

My only, very minor, complaint is the lack of focus on Seahenge, despite the fact that Ochota states in the introduction to the book that it’s an important sight. We have the picture and the caption that goes with it and provides some explanation about the site, but where some sites have two or three pages, Seahenge has only its caption. This, however, isn’t uncommon through the book, as several other sites and finds have little written about them.

Overall, it’s a very interesting and enjoyable read, and a very solid popular archaeology book.

‘’Every step you take in Britain treads on the past. A street now filled with shops and houses might once have been a royal palace. An anonymous farmer’s field glimpsed from a car window might have been borne witness to the last gasps of a bloody battle, an event so terrible the people swore it could never be forgotten. An eroded mound under a stand of trees might have been the holy of holies, a sacred place worth travelling weeks to reach, for generations of ancient people. In the landscape and in overlooked museum cabinets, archaeological treasures of profound complexity wait to be noticed. When you stop and look, magic happens.’’

This book is an exciting journey to the mysteries of the past. Through breathtaking photos and vivid descriptions, we enter the realm of mystery in an ancient, mystical land. Pictish stones with inscriptions that have never been deciphered, the peculiar energy and dark past of Glastonbury Tor, the Green Man and his strange relatives. The creepy hooded figures on Hadrian’s Wall, the provocative Sheela Na Gig a.k.a the Naked Lady in A Church, the Cerne Abbas Giant, the cult of the Mother Goddesses that was lost into oblivion and so much more.

Walk in the ruins of the people of a very distant past. Stand on coronation stones. Marvel at beautiful jewellery and tales of power and decadence. Feel the haunting energy of Dartmoor, dance with witches and lost deities. For the past is never far away and this book is the finest time machine.

Many thanks to Frances Lincoln and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Such an interesting book and I will definitely be keeping an eye out for the physical copy to keep in my classroom! The information for each site and discovery is well compiled and concise, meaning it’s not overwhelming or dry to read. The photographs are clear and will really help my students to understand the information - I can definitely see myself making a couple of source based activities using this book!
Thank you for sending me a digital copy, I’m very happy to have been able to read it!

This book is full of beautiful photography and British facts, it was such a great and easy read. The text to photo ration was really well done and it felt really exciting to learn more about British history with this book.

This is a wonderful book if you enjoy history and archeology. The focus is on the many sights in England where ancient artifacts have been discovered and can be seen. I was tickled that I have been to some more famous places like Stonehenge, Uffington White Horse and the world’s largest stone circle at Avebury. But there are so many more that caught my eye when I have a chance to return. I was surprised the book is full of color photos of the different sights, artifacts, churches, bogs and ruins. Most come with a couple pages of information on the history or why the find is important.

This is the kind of book you can jump around and or read straight through. I did like that they list the county of the sights but not being from England I would have appreciated a map to see what was near places I may be traveling. This is well written and researched and I found it very informative. Thank you to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group - White Lion for the temporary ARC and I am leaving an honest review.

Secret Britain, Unearthing our Mysterious Past, to give it its full title is great coffee table book tracing the people of Great Britain from their earliest reported sightings to the present day. Mary-Ann takes us on a countrywide tour of the most historic of our sites.

Starting in Orkney, with its architecture older than Stonehenge, it takes us the length and depth of this island. Each site or artifact is illustrated with some wonderful photography. The descriptions are informative, going into depth where needed to explain the archaeological sites in some detail. It's a book you'll dip back into many times to plan your own journey around Britain.

Mary-Ann Ochota cohosted with Tony Robinson, Time Team for one series near the end of its run. Her writing is authoritative and like her presenting style, easy to understand. This is a book that you'll keep turning back to. I guarantee this won't be left on the shelf.

Much of the history we learn in Britain centres around just a few periods - perhaps the Romans, the Norman Conquest, the Tudors, World War II - and little attention is paid to much else. This book is a wonderful guide to opening your eyes to the history of all periods that surrounds us, focusing on more ancient sites that are often overlooked and taking us back through thousands of years.

The photographs throughout are beautiful and enticing and have made me really want to visit many of these sites - I actually live near a few I haven't visited and the same will be true for most people as it covers the whole country. It's a lovely book to dip into, with each object given a few pages and pictures to explain its importance, and the text written to be interesting to newcomers or those with more knowledge already. The balance of pictures and words is perfect - pictures big enough to give you the chance to see the object/site properly and enough text to explain what you're seeing. This is a book to come back to again and again and one that encourages you to explore our country more fully.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

#SecretBritain #NetGalley

I know a book is really good when I realize I know someone in my personal life i need to gift it to. This book is amazing, with great pictures and stories about artifacts that have been found throughout Britain. But it's so much more! As an American, and as someone who grew up reading British fantasy, this book really brought out why it's possible to feel such a sense of magic when looking at real places. These locations really seem haunted, in a good way.
Thanks so much to NetGalley for letting me read this ARC. And honestly, I'm planning on reading it again when I have more time, and stopping after every section to go online to look at videos of people walking around the areas. It's the next best thing to being able to visit.

Secret Britain by Mary-Ann Ochola is everything I crave in an anthropological and archaeological book...and more. Ochola details a splendid variety of known and lesser-known sites, artefacts, places and objects from thousands of years ago to 1916, each with breathtaking photography. She asks us to question not only the whats and hows but also the whys which remain mysterious and elusive to this day. I have had the honour to experience several in person, all thrilling, evocative and thought provoking.

The introduction reeled me in immediately as the author perfectly captures the beautifully satisfying feeling of walking on centuries of history. Anywhere in Europe makes me wonder who was there before me and how they lived. The more we learn and discover the more we realize we need to know! The book is riddled with gems of discoveries such as the pristine Desborough Mirror, the Isbister tomb with a bit of a tricky entrance, Pictish Roadside cross-slab, ancient Fortingall Yew, rock art, monoliths, decoy chambers hiding secrets, tree Seahenge, pagan and Christian symbols, pottery holding uneaten food, leather purse clasp, medieval Tintagel, towers and tors and a gorgeous gold cape. And that is just the beginning! The timeline is immensely useful.

Whether you are just dipping into Britain's captivating secrets or are already knowledgeable, this book has your name on it. It will satiate your history itch yet will cause you to do further research and seek out adventures. After reading this, my mind feels smarter and inspired! My to-do list in Britain just grew yet again.

My sincere thank you to Quarto Publishing Group - White Lion and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this spectacular book!

Reference book on Britain’s magical relics and sites of interest (in the same vein as DK’s informative offerings) with genuine archaeological rigor. I read the book in a digital format on my iPad and appreciated the beautiful color photos. The print quality in the digital edition is excellent. I’m planning a trip through the UK in autumn of 2024, and found the book handy for planning our route.

"Secret Britain" is a superbly researched, impeccably photographed guide to ancient relics and archeological sites. Mary-Ann Ochota writes life and breathes feeling into these ancient people and the artifacts they left behind. While I, at least, have often imagined those ancient people as unsophisticated or unintelligent, "Secret Britain" acts as an important reminder that the people of ancient Britain had full, meaningful, and exciting lives, trading with cultures all across the world, building extraordinary and complicated henges and buildings, and executing intricate and delicate metalwork.

Each entry of this book is as fascinating and carefully written as the last, creating the ultimate guide to ancient Britain for anyone who cares to uncover the mysteries of the past. A sincere thanks to NetGalley and to Quarto Publishing Group for an Advanced Reader's Copy of "Secret Britain" in exchange for an unbiased review. This is a surefire hit for the travel lover in your life.