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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
informative
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If there’s one thing I love above anything else, it’s history, history has always fascinated me, and though I haven’t delved much into Arthurian stories, I finally decided that it was time. History is such a unique and beautiful thing that can be shaped many ways based off of real life events, and the legendary Bernard Cornwell did that in such an incredible way with this Arthur retelling. This is my first time reading anything by Cornwell and it most certainly will not be the last time I do so. His prose is elegant and a pleasure to read each sentence even if the story is a bit of a slow burn. To make it better, once he gets to his battle scenes, they are just as beautiful but feel almost cinematic in such an epic way.
One of the coolest things about this is his explanation why he chose to make certain changes within the story during his authors notes at the end. By removing the more magical and mythological elements of the story, Cornwell was able to tell a compelling story that felt more like a retelling of actual real events of a time during the Dark Ages that lacked material of events, but still making it feel somewhat fantastical. I also loved the decision to write the story in the storyteller narrative style told by first hand account by Derfel, and the periodic break in between to and older Derfel, similar to The Hobbit, The Name of the Wind & Sun Eater Saga. This is a style I’m loving the more I come across it in my readings.
“Magic, she said, happened at the moments when the lives of the Gods and men touched, but such moments were not commanded by men.”
The cast of characters are the typical names you’d still see from Arthurian legend, like Arthur, Owain, Igraine, Nimue, Guinevere, Lancelot, Galahad, and of course, Merlin. But what he does to the characters by humanizing them and making them mere mortals rather than living legends makes them even more compelling. To see their faults put on the front stage and realize that sometimes, with some characters, the victor gets to tell the story they want to hear told. I really liked what her did with Arthur by making him more of a Lord of War rather than a king. But Derfel and Nimue are easily my favorites so thankfully that since this is told from Derfel’s perspective, that he is a very likable character. Merlin though, doesn’t really come in until later, but he is very interesting because he’s a bit more chaotic and his role makes the long story even better.
The very best thing about this story is the narration by Jonathan Keeble, who’s voice reminds me of Matt Berry, who the UK audience may know from many things, but the US audience will recognize him as Laszlo from What We Do in the Shadows. What he did with this narration was masterful, he felt more like a voice actor with how he was into the characters and the scenes more than just a narrator. The fear, the contempt, the love, the angst, I could feel it all, even down to the tremble in his voice or when he sped up a tad as the scene got more and more dramatic. There’s also a voice he uses for a character that sounds like Old Gregg, and I couldn’t help but laugh every time he spoke 😂. It did take me a while to get used to the Welsh & Irish names and the accents he used, but they were on point and made it even easier to immerse myself. I did run into some issues with the audio whispersync production near the final 10% where sometimes a paragraph and sometimes an entire page stopped working while the narration continued, beyond that 5/5 easily.
Too much rape
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
Bernard Cornwell’s The Winter King is such a book that with reading just one line; it’s giving you that "this is gonna be good" feeling. And it delivers, if you’re into a slow paced book with a side of political intrigue and historical heft. This isn’t your typical King Arthur tale with knights in shining armor and Merlin’s magical hijinks. Instead, it’s more like "Game of Thrones: The Early Years," where everyone is scheming, bleeding, and seriously lacking in the charm department.
The story is narrated by Derfel, a warrior-turned-monk who seems to have traded his sword for a history book and a quill. His recollection of Arthur’s rise is packed with detail, sometimes too much detail. Cornwell’s prose is undeniably rich, but you might find yourself longing for a bit more action and a lot more dialogue to break up the history lecture. Picture an epic tale being told by your very knowledgeable, slightly long-winded uncle. It’s great, but you’re tempted to nudge him and say, “Hey, can we get a little more show and a little less tell?”
Cornwell doesn’t hold back on the grim realities of the time, there’s blood, betrayal, and more mentions of rope than you’d expect in a book about a legendary hero. While it’s clear that he’s aiming for historical accuracy, the frequent reminders that life was brutal, especially for women, might have you wondering if all that screaming was really necessary.
But if you can stomach the grim details, the payoff is a vivid and gritty portrait of post-Roman Britain where the magic is mostly political, and the plot twists come at you like a rogue lance to the gut. The focus on the cutthroat power struggles rather than Arthur’s mythical sword-wielding antics might not be what you expected, but it’s definitely what keeps you turning the pages, whether it’s with fascination or a bit of squeamish “eewing.”
All in all, The Winter King is a different kind of Arthurian adventure, one where the legend is less about magic and more about the messy, bloody business of building a nation. Just be ready for a history lesson that pulls no punches, and maybe keep some lighter reading on hand for when you need a break from the harsh environment.
The story is narrated by Derfel, a warrior-turned-monk who seems to have traded his sword for a history book and a quill. His recollection of Arthur’s rise is packed with detail, sometimes too much detail. Cornwell’s prose is undeniably rich, but you might find yourself longing for a bit more action and a lot more dialogue to break up the history lecture. Picture an epic tale being told by your very knowledgeable, slightly long-winded uncle. It’s great, but you’re tempted to nudge him and say, “Hey, can we get a little more show and a little less tell?”
Cornwell doesn’t hold back on the grim realities of the time, there’s blood, betrayal, and more mentions of rope than you’d expect in a book about a legendary hero. While it’s clear that he’s aiming for historical accuracy, the frequent reminders that life was brutal, especially for women, might have you wondering if all that screaming was really necessary.
But if you can stomach the grim details, the payoff is a vivid and gritty portrait of post-Roman Britain where the magic is mostly political, and the plot twists come at you like a rogue lance to the gut. The focus on the cutthroat power struggles rather than Arthur’s mythical sword-wielding antics might not be what you expected, but it’s definitely what keeps you turning the pages, whether it’s with fascination or a bit of squeamish “eewing.”
All in all, The Winter King is a different kind of Arthurian adventure, one where the legend is less about magic and more about the messy, bloody business of building a nation. Just be ready for a history lesson that pulls no punches, and maybe keep some lighter reading on hand for when you need a break from the harsh environment.
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2.5. a really good concept with a poor execution. arthur is absolutely the star of this book; he's the most defined character, and his characterization is incredible. i feel confident saying he might become one of my favorite portrayals of arthur, frankly. but that's not enough to offset the other issues i have: i don't like derfel as the narrator; i wish arthur was more prominent; the ableism is very off-putting. there's a point where it just feels cruel instead of an attempt to highlight how ancient cultures (maybe) were. arthur is really the only compelling character - everyone else, even derfel at times, kind of fades into the background and doesn't really have much going by way of personality; the only other characters that really have any sort of definition to them are those who are disabled (with those disabilities constantly pointed out), or who have suffered through some great tragedy (and on that subject, i don't like how nimue's rape is somehow used to... empower her? how it's seen almost as a good thing since it's one of the 'three wounds'? just very weird and uncomfortable.)
i know cornwell is a historian, but i do wonder how much of the druid culture present is based on actual evidence of their practices, because in general the magic feels very silly and childish. outside of that, however, i actually did find a bit of the history interesting; of course it's warped to fit a fictional narrative, but the setting IS very vivid and engaging. if only the characters didn't feel so stiff against the backdrop. i'll be reading the rest of the series since it's only a trilogy, but for now, honestly, i've been preferring the show over the books.
i know cornwell is a historian, but i do wonder how much of the druid culture present is based on actual evidence of their practices, because in general the magic feels very silly and childish. outside of that, however, i actually did find a bit of the history interesting; of course it's warped to fit a fictional narrative, but the setting IS very vivid and engaging. if only the characters didn't feel so stiff against the backdrop. i'll be reading the rest of the series since it's only a trilogy, but for now, honestly, i've been preferring the show over the books.
adventurous
As one reviewer said:
"Here lies a book that didn’t enthrall me, but somehow fascinated me. I wasn’t filled with longing to pick it up and continue reading, but every time I did I was given incredibly interesting theories and historical information." (By https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7317186-celeste)
I agree. When I was reading it I was deeply drawn into the world. When I wasn't reading it I wanted the darn thing to be done.
Very well written.
I don't think I'm going to read the other 2 books in the trilogy.
"Here lies a book that didn’t enthrall me, but somehow fascinated me. I wasn’t filled with longing to pick it up and continue reading, but every time I did I was given incredibly interesting theories and historical information." (By https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7317186-celeste)
I agree. When I was reading it I was deeply drawn into the world. When I wasn't reading it I wanted the darn thing to be done.
Very well written.
I don't think I'm going to read the other 2 books in the trilogy.
adventurous
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced