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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
Pretty good read from Bernard Cornwell, my all-time favorite author of historical fiction. Not quite as much action as some of his other works but creditable nonetheless. I'm looking forward to reading the remainder of the series.
Cromwell has a wonderfully vivid imagination for the period, and the way he adapts the familiar legends to what is known of the English Dark Ages is ingenious. His handling of multiple characters and storylines is as deft as his descriptions of events are gruesomely visceral. On the whole, there’s a lot of hacking and bludgeoning, which maybe doesn’t add up to high art. There should probably also be a trigger warning for the amount of casual rape in this book.
Rating 3.7. I enjoyed this book, I am a fan of Arthurian tales and thus decided to try this book out. It isn't your typical Arthurian tale, there are no knights of the round table, Merlin isn't a great wizard, and the story is told from the prospective of Derfel (a dude I've never heard of before in relation to Arthurian tales prior to this book). You will recognize some of your favorite characters but maybe not in the roles you may be accustomed to. Despite this, I found myself very much entertained while reading this. I love that Cornwell used a semi accurate 5th/6th century Britian as the setting for his novel, incorporating issues that folks actually faced back then. This tale isn't fantastical at all, it's historical in some aspects and that makes it just absolutely wonderful.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
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:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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
I understand this book was written in 1995. However, at that time we had the Dragonlance Chronicles. The women in this book, except for one or two, SUCK. Guinevere's portrayal makes her unlikeable. Nimue started out strong and then got very angry and vengeful She's also absent from the middle of the book. And Morgan? WASTE! She had such potential as a woman scarred by fire, but she's mostly grumpy and stubborn. She's never helpful or genuine. Thankfully, Nimue came back strong in the last fourth of the book. She allows herself to love, she marches with Arthur's army, she even wields a sword. Its really one of the few things that got me to the end of the book.
I will say that our narrator Derfel is extremely likeable. His honesty and respectfulness are redeeming. He learns and grows unlike many of the other characters. His moments with the princess were sweet. He works hard and remains loyal to those around him. I appreciated having his voice take us back through Arthur's early years.
Arthur is as you would expect. However, the other characters lacked in depth. They felt like character actors cast as 'the soldier' or 'the bitter woman' or 'the entitled priest.' Lancelot was the second most disappointing character (Morgan being the first). Merlin was somewhat Gandalf-y, if Gandalf was a selfish prick. Though his eventual reveal was very well done.
Cornwell is good at battle scenes and dramatic reveals. The last few chapters were hard to put down. There are thrilling, well-choreographed moments and non-stop action. This is an interesting time, the Dark Ages, in which Briton is being encroached upon on all sides. Rome has abandoned the country after almost completely destroying their local religion and patriotism. Now the threats are coming from everywhere. In the midst of this are the warring kings of Briton. Meanwhile, Arthur is attempting to unite the other warlords to protect their country from the Saxons. I appreciated the historical choices the author made. Its very historically immersive.
Cornwell deals with romanticizing the time versus the reality. The period is brought starkly to life, and its cold, sloppy, lice-ridden, and treats its people poorly. There's also a struggle with the old versus the new when it comes to Christianity rising while the druids continue to influence the population. These points were interesting. Overall, though, the characters were a miss.
Spoiler
after she gets raped.I will say that our narrator Derfel is extremely likeable. His honesty and respectfulness are redeeming. He learns and grows unlike many of the other characters. His moments with the princess were sweet. He works hard and remains loyal to those around him. I appreciated having his voice take us back through Arthur's early years.
Arthur is as you would expect. However, the other characters lacked in depth. They felt like character actors cast as 'the soldier' or 'the bitter woman' or 'the entitled priest.' Lancelot was the second most disappointing character (Morgan being the first). Merlin was somewhat Gandalf-y, if Gandalf was a selfish prick. Though his eventual reveal was very well done.
Cornwell is good at battle scenes and dramatic reveals. The last few chapters were hard to put down. There are thrilling, well-choreographed moments and non-stop action. This is an interesting time, the Dark Ages, in which Briton is being encroached upon on all sides. Rome has abandoned the country after almost completely destroying their local religion and patriotism. Now the threats are coming from everywhere. In the midst of this are the warring kings of Briton. Meanwhile, Arthur is attempting to unite the other warlords to protect their country from the Saxons. I appreciated the historical choices the author made. Its very historically immersive.
Cornwell deals with romanticizing the time versus the reality. The period is brought starkly to life, and its cold, sloppy, lice-ridden, and treats its people poorly. There's also a struggle with the old versus the new when it comes to Christianity rising while the druids continue to influence the population. These points were interesting. Overall, though, the characters were a miss.
There were some slight issues but all in all it was an interesting take on the well known story. I like the depiction of life in Arthurian Britain, the detail, the customs... all of it was interesting. I'll be continuing with the series soon.
Decidedly average. A shame as he's one of my favourite authors.
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No