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bookishcrafterde's review against another edition
There are a lot of references to incest in the book; and after doing some research on why it features so heavily I uncovered some things about the author that did not sit well with me
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest
thebechdelbitch's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It's kind of impossible to divorce this book from the author's crimes but I decided to read it anyway as I was very intrigued - it was *almost* worth the cognitive dissonance. It's a great story, and very interesting to hear it from the women's perspectives, especially as someone who studied Mallory at uni/is a general mythology nerd/is a massive BBC Merlin stan.
But this book is also so goddamn long and it doesn't need to be! Especially when the world building is kind of non-existent and the whole thing reads a bit like a Medieval gossip column. Which, to be clear, is not a bad thing inherently. I loved all the bitching about Gwenyfhar, lusting after after Lancelet, the witchcraft was awesome and it's chock full of second wave feminism zingers.
Not a five star read but I did have a lot of fun.
But this book is also so goddamn long and it doesn't need to be! Especially when the world building is kind of non-existent and the whole thing reads a bit like a Medieval gossip column. Which, to be clear, is not a bad thing inherently. I loved all the bitching about Gwenyfhar, lusting after after Lancelet, the witchcraft was awesome and it's chock full of second wave feminism zingers.
Not a five star read but I did have a lot of fun.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest
isalizart's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Religious bigotry, and Incest
Moderate: Infertility, Sexual assault, Ableism, Miscarriage, Rape, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Abortion
Minor: War, Pregnancy, and Death
I was enjoying this at first, but towards the end it just became mostly confusing, long-winded and miserable. I realised how uncomfortably difficult topics were handled when I added trigger warnings to my review, because there were a lot. It's even worse considering what happened to the author's daughter. The "feminist lense" the book advertises was interesting at first,plantdog30's review against another edition
Honestly, I had high expectations for this book and was really looking forward to it. But I just had to stop reading because the multiple counts of incest made me uncomfortable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest
olivia_russell's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Abortion, and Incest
momogajo's review against another edition
Not down with Rape and Incest
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Incest
btrz7's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
0.25
I don't even know where to start with this. For starters, I never leave books unfinished but this book was very close to being the first. I had to give myself a deadline, otherwise I would have abandoned it.
There is no amount of plot or character development that can justify the size of this book. There are huge stretches where nothing is happening, and I swear the same theological arguments were revisited every 50 pages by the same characters, with nothing new added to it and nothing productive coming out of it. Religion is a big part of the conflict of the book, informing characters' decisions and morals, but it was to the point of exhaustion.
Characters were another thing. The plot of the book spans decades, but throughout it they always feel like the children/teenagers they were at the beginning. No one changes in any meaningful way. I don't mind flawed characters, but Jesus this whole cast was getting on my nerves. Most of the men don't seem to have any personality, and as for the women, they are all hypocrites, who are at turns jealous or disdainful of one another, due to what? Ah yes, the attention of men. Someone is either a pious prude or a wanton whore, and the best thing is, they seem to be both at alternating times, woth no reason to it. Morgaine disdains other women as being shallow and only talking of marriages and babes, but her inner monologue seems to also focus on those subjects and on who's sleeping with whom. Gwen thinks Morgaine is a whore, but then commits adultery throughout the entirety of her marriage, and somehow ends up blaming her husband and her lover for it, and them somehow accusing them of being homosexual/queer (?) and having unpure feelings for each other. That was an unexpected ride. Anyway the thought pattern doesn't differ much with other female characters.
Then the nail in the coffin. Around close to halfway through, there were somethings making mr a but uncomfortable. Sexualization of young women, and women over 20 being considered 'old' (being historical fiction does not excuse this, low life expectancy had a lot to do with high infant mortality, and not so much with people not living after 50). Big age gaps in relationships, most of which are not exactly consensual. And then the thought processes to justify incestuous or pedophiliac relationships. Which on its own is heavy, but I believe that in fiction you do whatever you want. Except then I find out its not really fiction and it is reflecting the author's own practices and that sours everything.
So yeah, I powered through the last few hours so as to not leave it unfinished, but I will actively not recommend this ever to anyone. Its a shame, because I read it as part of a challenge to read the oldest book in my TBR and this was it on GR, but it wasn't worth the wait.
There is no amount of plot or character development that can justify the size of this book. There are huge stretches where nothing is happening, and I swear the same theological arguments were revisited every 50 pages by the same characters, with nothing new added to it and nothing productive coming out of it. Religion is a big part of the conflict of the book, informing characters' decisions and morals, but it was to the point of exhaustion.
Characters were another thing. The plot of the book spans decades, but throughout it they always feel like the children/teenagers they were at the beginning. No one changes in any meaningful way. I don't mind flawed characters, but Jesus this whole cast was getting on my nerves. Most of the men don't seem to have any personality, and as for the women, they are all hypocrites, who are at turns jealous or disdainful of one another, due to what? Ah yes, the attention of men. Someone is either a pious prude or a wanton whore, and the best thing is, they seem to be both at alternating times, woth no reason to it. Morgaine disdains other women as being shallow and only talking of marriages and babes, but her inner monologue seems to also focus on those subjects and on who's sleeping with whom. Gwen thinks Morgaine is a whore, but then commits adultery throughout the entirety of her marriage, and somehow ends up blaming her husband and her lover for it, and them somehow accusing them of being homosexual/queer (?) and having unpure feelings for each other. That was an unexpected ride. Anyway the thought pattern doesn't differ much with other female characters.
Then the nail in the coffin. Around close to halfway through, there were somethings making mr a but uncomfortable. Sexualization of young women, and women over 20 being considered 'old' (being historical fiction does not excuse this, low life expectancy had a lot to do with high infant mortality, and not so much with people not living after 50). Big age gaps in relationships, most of which are not exactly consensual. And then the thought processes to justify incestuous or pedophiliac relationships. Which on its own is heavy, but I believe that in fiction you do whatever you want. Except then I find out its not really fiction and it is reflecting the author's own practices and that sours everything.
So yeah, I powered through the last few hours so as to not leave it unfinished, but I will actively not recommend this ever to anyone. Its a shame, because I read it as part of a challenge to read the oldest book in my TBR and this was it on GR, but it wasn't worth the wait.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual content, Ableism, Abortion, Blood, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, War, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Xenophobia