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A review by angelface777
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley has been one of my favorite books since high school. I borrowed it from the school library and then I bought my beloved and tattered paperback copy at Cellar Stories in 2008. This was also my last book from my 2024 TBR pile.
The Arthurian Legend told from the perspective of the women of the legend. Morgaine of the fairies, Queen Guinevere, Igraine, Morgause, and the several ladies of the lake. There have been so many different interpretations of the legend, and this is one of my favorites.
Igraine lives at Tintagel with her younger sister, Morgause, and her very young daughter Morgaine. They spend many dreary hours together while the Duke Gorlois is away fighting in Ambrosius Aurelius' wars against the Saxons. Then the old kings dies and Igraine, at the wishes of her older sister Viviane, goes with her husband Gorlois to the new king deciding ceremony where she falls in love with the soon to be king Uther Pendragon. With some Snips, snails, puppy dog tails, and chemical X... Arthur, king of the Brits, is born! Destined to rule England and end the onslaught of the Saxons!
We follow Morgaine's journey into becoming a priestess of Avalon and discovering how far she will or won't go to stop the spread of Christianity and the forgetting of the Great Goddess and the ways of the old gods; Guinevere's life of fear and determination to end her childlessness by converting Arthur and all of Britain to a purely Christian nation... while she pines for a man who is not her husband; Morgause in the lands of Orkeney in the far north plotting with King Lot to gain as much power as they can.
It's a long ass book. I can even look past the incest and sexual assault scenes, which make me feel icky, but it doesn't happen too often.
The Arthurian Legend told from the perspective of the women of the legend. Morgaine of the fairies, Queen Guinevere, Igraine, Morgause, and the several ladies of the lake. There have been so many different interpretations of the legend, and this is one of my favorites.
Igraine lives at Tintagel with her younger sister, Morgause, and her very young daughter Morgaine. They spend many dreary hours together while the Duke Gorlois is away fighting in Ambrosius Aurelius' wars against the Saxons. Then the old kings dies and Igraine, at the wishes of her older sister Viviane, goes with her husband Gorlois to the new king deciding ceremony where she falls in love with the soon to be king Uther Pendragon. With some Snips, snails, puppy dog tails, and chemical X... Arthur, king of the Brits, is born! Destined to rule England and end the onslaught of the Saxons!
We follow Morgaine's journey into becoming a priestess of Avalon and discovering how far she will or won't go to stop the spread of Christianity and the forgetting of the Great Goddess and the ways of the old gods; Guinevere's life of fear and determination to end her childlessness by converting Arthur and all of Britain to a purely Christian nation... while she pines for a man who is not her husband; Morgause in the lands of Orkeney in the far north plotting with King Lot to gain as much power as they can.
It's a long ass book. I can even look past the incest and sexual assault scenes, which make me feel icky, but it doesn't happen too often.