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jlynnelseauthor 's review for:
The Winter King
by Bernard Cornwell
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.