SamoaPhoenix Guest Review: Cursed

Title: Cursed Author: Thomas Wheeler & Frank Miller Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers Pages: 416 Synopsis: (courtesy of goodreads) The Lady of the Lake finds her voice in this cinematic twist on the tale of King Arthur created by Tom Wheeler and legendary artist, producer, and director Frank Miller (300, Batman: The Dark Night Returns, Sin City). Whosoever wields the Sword of Power shall be the one true King. But what if the Sword has chosen a Queen? Nimue grew up an outcast. Her connection to dark magic made her something to be feared in her Druid village, and that made her desperate to leave… That is, until her entire village is slaughtered by Red Paladins, and Nimue’s fate is forever altered. Charged by her dying mother to reunite an ancient sword with a legendary sorcerer, Nimue is now her people’s only hope. Her mission leaves little room for revenge, but the growing power within her can think of little else. Nimue teams up with a charming mercenary named Arthur and refugee Fey Folk from across England. She wields a sword meant for the one true king, battling paladins and the armies of a corrupt king. She struggles to unite her people, avenge her family, and discover the truth about her destiny. But perhaps the one thing that can change Destiny itself is found at the edge of a blade.

Just out this month, and soon to be a Netflix TV series, I was at first excited to hear there was a new book centered on a teenage Lady of the Lake who wields Excalibur herself instead of giving it to Arthur. Does it deserve the hype?
Spoilers under the cut.

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review: Knights of the Round Table: Lancelot

Title: Knights of the Round Table: Lancelot Author: Gwen Rowley Publisher: Berkley (Kindle edition) Pages: 362 Synopsis: (courtesy of Amazon) Strong and powerful warriors of nobility and honor, the Knights of the Round Table fought for kings, rescued damsels, and undertook dangerous quests. But true love may be the most perilous quest of all… Sir Lancelot, First Knight of King Arthur’s realm and the Queen’s champion, cannot be defeated by any earthly man—as long as he keeps his oaths to Arthur and Guinevere. Though arrogant and supremely confident, he will be brought to his knees by a mere maiden: Elaine of Corbenic. Together, they will have a son, Galahad—the knight destined to find the Holy Grail. Lancelot du Lac is the greatest knight of a peerless age, blessed by the Lady of the Lake with extraordinary military prowess. His fighting ability has earned him a place at King Arthur's side, but the powers the Lady has given him come with a terrible price. Elaine of Corbenic is struggling to hold her impoverished family together. The keep is a wreck and the peasants, starving, are on the brink of rebellion. Elaine's father is obsessed with finding the Holy Grail, and her older brother, maimed by Lancelot in a joust, is a bitter drunkard. Without a dowry, she has little hope for the future. Incognito, Lancelot rides into Corbenic on his way to the king's tournament. He finds the practical Elaine irresistible. Thoroughly dismayed when she reveals her contempt for "Lancelot," he must face his own arrogance to win her hand. For only with Elaine at his side will Lancelot have the strength to free himself from the enchantments that bind him…

I swore I would never read this book. I liked Rowley’s Gawain a lot, sure, but her Lancelot was such an ass that I didn’t think I’d ever want to read about him in this universe. But it was always niggling at the back of my mind, wondering whether Rowley actually redeemed Lancelot, since some of his douchiness appeared to be not his fault. Thus when I found this book for $2.99 as an ebook and I had some time, I gave in. It should be noted that when I was reading the second half of this book I had a severe concussion; whether or not that impacted my impressions I don't know for absolute certainty but I don't think it did.

Spoilers, etc…

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review: Endings (King Arthur and Her Knights, Part III)

Title: Endings Author: K.M. Shea Publisher: Take Out the Trash Synopsis: (from Goodreads) The thrilling conclusion to the King Arthurs and Her Knights series! Britt has finally settled into her life as King Arthur. Her knights know who she really is, her lands are peaceful, and she has friends and family who she loves. But all of this is threatened when Rome, led by Emperor Lucius, invades. In order to repel the Romans and ascertain Camelot's survival, Britt must achieve Merlin's greatest dream: to unite all of Britain.

The Twist: See my earlier review of the first five books in this series. A young woman is pulled back from the 21^st century to take the place of a vanished King Arthur and begins to build a unique, and ultimately legendary, kingdom.

Spoilers, etc…

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review: King Arthur and Her Knights, Part I

Title: King Arthur and Her Knights Series (Enthroned, Enchanted, Embittered, Embark, and Enlighten) Author: K.M. Shea Publisher: Take Out the Trash Pages: ~600 for all five Synopsis: (from Goodreads) After posing with a rusty sword for a photo in a British graveyard, Britt Arthurs is pulled through time all the way back to the age of King Arthur where the shockingly young and handsome Merlin is waiting for her. The wizard has some bad news: the real Arthur has run off with a shepherdess, and whoever pulls the sword from the stone is to become the King of England. Unfortunately for Britt, the sword slides out like butter when she pulls it after fighting with Merlin. Long Live King Arthurs!

King Arthur and Her Knights Series

--Enthroned

--Enchanted

--Embittered

--Embark

--Enlighten

There are five fairly short ebook-only novellas in this series already and more planned. Due to their length, I will review the first five all together. The next book, Endeavor, will be released in late 2015 so I will try to review it in a timely manner. When it comes time to discuss plots and characters, I will do the plots of each book, the characters that appear in more than one book (most of the important ones do), and then characters that are unique to one book.

Spoilers, etc…

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Legend of the King

Title: Legend of the King Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books Pages: 295 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Sir Terence has come a long way since he first left his guardian twenty years ago and joined the insolent Gawain as his squire.  Dark Forces are at work in England, and Terence and Gawain had set off once more in service of King Arthur, but this time the two friends are sent on separate missions.  At last, a true Knight of the Round Table, Terence has no time to rest on his laurels, but must continue his work to protect King Arthur and the peace that the king and his knights have created for England.  Unfortunately, the king's enemies are at work as well.  Morgause and Mordred had spies even at Camelot itself, and together mother and son attempt to divide the Fellowship of the Round Table, bring Camelot to ruin, and place Mordred on the throne. In this final installment of the Squire's Tales series, Terence and his fellow Knights of the Round Table must ready their swords, enchantments, and wit to come together in a last stand to save Camelot.  The characters Gerald Morris has brought to life throughout his series--Terence and Gawain, Lynet and Gaheris, Luneta and Rhience, Dinadan and Palomides--each have an important role to play if they are to defeat their enemies.  Only by maintaining their faith, selflessness, and honor, can Morgause and Mordred banish and defeat the dark magic from England forever.

Legend of the King was published the year after I graduated from college. I had been dreading it for a lot of reasons, since it had been established since the previous book’s release that this was the last of the Squire’s Tales and it was obvious a lot of beloved key characters would die. In the end of this series, it was also a sort of final good-bye to my teenagehood and an assertion that yes, indeed, I had entered the adult world for good. I had outgrown these books and was ready for what came next, just as the characters are all finally ready for what comes after their final adventure for Camelot. An ending and a beginning.

In this re-read I have been both eager to get this final book over with and fine with putting it off. Some of the delay between the reviews for this book and Squire’s Quest were the two sessions of Camp NaNoWriMo in which Story participated (that knocks out April and July for both reading and writing reviews) but neither one of us has been particularly inclined to prompt finishing the series. This re-read has stripped away a lot of the nostalgia I feel for this series and revealed significant flaws in books I once loved (though nothing can dampen my love for Savage Damsel) and I know there have been a lot of elements that Story has been deeply unhappy with that have made the series overall less enjoyable. But we agreed for the sake of other projects we must proceed with the final review.

Spoilers, etc… and warning for almost 4,000-word review.

Review: The Legend of the King

Title: Legend of the King Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books Pages: 295 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Sir Terence has come a long way since he first left his guardian twenty years ago and joined the insolent Gawain as his squire.  Dark Forces are at work in England, and Terence and Gawain had set off once more in service of King Arthur, but this time the two friends are sent on separate missions.  At last, a true Knight of the Round Table, Terence has no time to rest on his laurels, but must continue his work to protect King Arthur and the peace that the king and his knights have created for England.  Unfortunately, the king's enemies are at work as well.  Morgause and Mordred had spies even at Camelot itself, and together mother and son attempt to divide the Fellowship of the Round Table, bring Camelot to ruin, and place Mordred on the throne. In this final installment of the Squire's Tales series, Terence and his fellow Knights of the Round Table must ready their swords, enchantments, and wit to come together in a last stand to save Camelot.  The characters Gerald Morris has brought to life throughout his series--Terence and Gawain, Lynet and Gaheris, Luneta and Rhience, Dinadan and Palomides--each have an important role to play if they are to defeat their enemies.  Only by maintaining their faith, selflessness, and honor, can Morgause and Mordred banish and defeat the dark magic from England forever.

"Is the Arthurian mythos more than Arthur’s death?  I think Gerald Morris would answer that question with a ‘yes’.  But I also don’t think he’s sure.  And I think that uncertainty has wormed its way into the subtext.  I have one more book to go and only then will I know if the Squire’s Tales will forever be defined by Arthur’s death or remembered for something more." X

(Also, this book is not, in fact, about Mordred and Morgause working together to banish the forces of evil and I am done with book blurbs forever).

Warning for Spoilers

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Squire's Quest

Title: Squire's Quest Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Pages: 275 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Why is it, Terence wondered, that the things you know most surely are always the things you can't demonstrate to anyone else? And why is it, after all these years, that Terence is still just a squire, offering advice on how best to scrub rust spots from armor?  But Squire Terence has more to worry about that his place on the social scale.  For all the peace and prosperity that have made England famous across Europe, Terence is uneasy.  After nearly six months without contact with the World of the Faires--not even from his old friend the mischievous sprite Robin--Terence is sure something is rotten in King Arthur's court.  And while the squire is always on the watch for the latest plot of the enchantress Morgause, he now also has suspicions about Mordred, King Arthur's misbegotten son, who has appeared at court.  Is Mordred after Arthur's throne? In this ninth rollicking adventure in the Squire's Tales series, Terence's efforts to defend the Fellowship of the Round Table lead him on his farthest, and most fantastic, journey yet--a quest that ultimately brings Terence rewards he never imagined or expected.

This is the first book in the series to be released with only the new, more serious, cover designs. In these final two books I feel this is appropriate as the mood shifts towards the twilight years of Camelot. There is still plenty of humor to be had but it is tempered with the revelation that this golden age must come to an end—likely sooner than anyone wants or expects.

The timeline is still completely messed up and none of the time periods the characters give in this story match up with anything logical, but at this point I’ve just decided to ignore it and stop trying to figure out how old everyone is. It will just give me a nosebleed. Sarah alone is anywhere from sixteen to twenty-six and it just gets worse from there.

Spoilers, etc…

Muppet King Arthur Chapter Four Review

Title: Muppet King Arthur, Chapter Four Written By: Paul Benjamin and Patrick Storck Artist: James Silvani Colors: Eric Cobain Letterer: Deron Bennett Assistant Editor: Jason Long Editor: Aaron Sparrow Designer: Erika Terriquez Cover: David Petersen Publisher: Boom Kids! Pages: 22 Synopsis: (from the publisher trade) A Tale of Chivalry, adventure, chickens, and magic!  The tale of King Arthur has been told many times over the centuries, but never before has it included robots, knock-knock jokes, and boomerang fish!  The Muppets bring you this beloved classic in their signature style, adding twists and turns to the quest for the Holy Grail that would make a sane driver pull over and ask for directions!  Will the Frog King save his beloved England from the curmudgeonly Sam of Eagle?  Will the Lady of the Lake get back on the festival circuit?  Will they find a carpenter capable of making a round table?  Find out in MUPPET KING ARTHUR!

More Muppets (that cover is GORGEOUS)!

Warning For Spoilers and General Silliness

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Quest of the Fair Unknown

Title: The Quest of the Fair Unknown Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 264 Synopsis: (from the publisher) On her deathbed, Beaufils’s mother leaves him with a quest and a clue: find your father, a knight of King Arthur’s court. So Beaufils leaves the isolated forest of his youth and quickly discovers that he has much to learn about the world beyond his experience. Beaufils’s search for his father is more difficult than he’d imagined—when a traveler asks him “What is your father’s name?” Beaufils replies “Father, I suppose.” He doesn’t have much to go on when he arrives at King Arthur’s court. There, at a meeting of the Round Table, Beaufils is not the only one surprised when a mysterious dish appears and a voice commands the court to seek this vessel: the Holy Grail. He doesn’t hesitate to join King Arthur’s knights on their quest. Beaufils quickly learns, though, how one quest can lead to another. After accompanying Galahad for a time, Beaufils parts ways with this holiest knight of all to help a new friend, Lady Ellyn, fulfill her own quest, whether she knows what it is or not. Beaufils’s innocence never fails to make his companions grin, but his fresh outlook on the world’s peculiarities turns out to be more of a gift than a curse as they encounter unexpected friends and foes. Oh, and what about Beaufils’s quest?

This was my first disappointment in the Squire’s Tales series since Ballad of Sir Dinadan. I just…I don’t like this story. It has a few likeable elements and a healthy dash of Morris’s trademark wit that always makes me laugh out loud, but at the same time, it’s a weird story. It doesn’t really match up with any of Morris’s others, and to boot it throws the timeline of the series into total disarray. Even on a second go-round years later, Story and I can’t get all the elements to match up in a way that make any sense no matter how much we discuss it. And I’m still not all that fond of it even on a second try with fresh eyes.

Spoilers, etc…

Reread: The Quest of the Fair Unknown

Title: The Quest of the Fair Unknown Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 264 Synopsis: (from the publisher) On her deathbed, Beaufils’s mother leaves him with a quest and a clue: find your father, a knight of King Arthur’s court. So Beaufils leaves the isolated forest of his youth and quickly discovers that he has much to learn about the world beyond his experience. Beaufils’s search for his father is more difficult than he’d imagined—when a traveler asks him “What is your father’s name?” Beaufils replies “Father, I suppose.” He doesn’t have much to go on when he arrives at King Arthur’s court. There, at a meeting of the Round Table, Beaufils is not the only one surprised when a mysterious dish appears and a voice commands the court to seek this vessel: the Holy Grail. He doesn’t hesitate to join King Arthur’s knights on their quest. Beaufils quickly learns, though, how one quest can lead to another. After accompanying Galahad for a time, Beaufils parts ways with this holiest knight of all to help a new friend, Lady Ellyn, fulfill her own quest, whether she knows what it is or not. Beaufils’s innocence never fails to make his companions grin, but his fresh outlook on the world’s peculiarities turns out to be more of a gift than a curse as they encounter unexpected friends and foes. Oh, and what about Beaufils’s quest?

Oh this book.  I have so many issues with this book.  I could easily write a review longer than the book laying out all the problems with it.  I won't do that here--I'll stick to reviewing it within the context of the legend as that's what this blog is for.

It's really disappointing, actually, because Morris has done so well up until this point.  It's almost though he really didn't want to write this book and put as little effort into it as possible.

Warning for Spoilers

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Lioness and Her Knight

Title: The Lioness and Her Knight Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 343 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Lunet is tired of living in dull Orkney with her mother and father (who happens to be the most boring knight of King Arthur's Round Table).  She prides herself on always getting what she wants, so when the opportunity presents itself, she jumps at the chance to stay at a family friend's castle near Camelot.  Her handsome cousin, Sir Ywain--a young knight seeking adventure--arrives just in time to escort her. Along the way they pick up a knight-turned-fool named Rhience, whose wit and audacity set many a puffed-up personality in its place.  Before arriving at Lady Laudine's castle, the trio stops at Camelot, where they hear the story of the Storm Stone, a magical object deep in the forest that soon sweeps everyone into a web of love, betrayal, and more than a bit of magic. Filled with broken promises, powerful enchantresses, unconventional sword fights, fierce and friendly lionesses and damsels in and out of distress, The Lioness and Her Knight proves itself as witty and adventuresome as the rest of Gerald Morris's tales from King Arthur's court.

This is, I think, the first of the Squire’s Tales books I read originally while actually knowing Story and her interest in Arthurian legend. Morris typically had a year or two in between the release of each book in the series, and sometime between Dung-Cart Knight and Lioness I made the jump from high school to college where Story and I met. So this may or may not have been the first Morris book she saw me reading, though Savage Damsel is another contender for that title since I’ve reread it so often.

Spoilers, etc….

Reread: The Lioness and Her Knight

Title: The Lioness and Her Knight Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Pages: 343 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Riding through the great courtyard ringed with banners of the Round Table knights, Luneta felt very alone and uncharacteristically shy.   Luneta is tired of living in dull Orkney with her mother and father.  She would much prefer the rich pageantry of court.  And Luneta prides herself on always getting what she wants, so when the opportunity presents itself to stay at a family friend's castle near Camelot, she jumps at the chance.  Her handsome cousin, Sir Ywain--a young knight seeking adventure--arrives just in time to escort her.  Along the way they pick up Rhience, a young man living as a fool for a year. Together they are about to step into a web of love, betrayal, and more than a bit of magic.

Morris says that the Tale of Yvain is a rare story for Chretien de Troyes because it involves two people whose love leads to a marriage instead of an extramarital affair.  This seems strange to me because Erec and Enide's romance leads to a marriage-- one that eventually becomes unhappy, but still.  A marriage is a marriage.  Cliges has a romance that begins with an extramarital affair, but ends with a marriage.  Perceval too has a romance that ends in a marriage.

In fact, the only story of de Troyes' that ends in an extramarital affair and not a marriage is the Dung Cart Knight.  That is the odd one out.  This one is par for the course.

Also, this cover is weird because they characters look like they're ten.  I don't fancy it.  Nor am I really thrilled with Luneta standing behind Ywain and the Lioness, both of whom are secondary characters to her.  But that's a rant for another day.

Warning for Spoilers

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight

Title: The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 310 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Ever since that tragic night when her mother and guardian were murdered, thirteen-year-old Sarah has been living on her own and searching for the knight who was responsible.  Her quest for revenge leads to an even greater adventure when she witnesses Queen Guinevere being kidnapped.  Soon Sarah finds herself accompanying Sir Gawain and Squire Terence on a remarkable journey to rescue the Queen.  In their travels they meet, among others, a mystery knight traveling incognito in a dung cart, a faery who becomes Sarah's first friend in a long time, a reclusive monk who plans to spend the rest of his life building a tomb for Sir Lancelot, and a princess who might have a little more gumption than she appears to. As the plot thickens, Sarah finds out more about the people she's met and befriended, as well as about herself.  She begins to learn the true consequences of vengeance and what it really means to be a princess. In this funny and unforgettable sixth novel, Gerald Morris creates yet another tangled web of magic spells, enchanted castles, mystery knights, revenge, and heart-pounding adventure.

I have nothing much to say about the covers, or commentary about the first time I read this book (which was in high school). Let’s get this party started!

Spoilers, etc…

Reread: The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight

Title: The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 310 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Ever since that tragic night when her mother and guardian were murdered, thirteen-year-old Sarah has been living on her own and searching for the knight who was responsible.  Her quest for revenge leads to an even greater adventure when she witnesses Queen Guinevere being kidnapped.  Soon Sarah finds herself accompanying Sir Gawain and Squire Terence on a remarkable journey to rescue the Queen.  In their travels they meet, among others, a mystery knight traveling incognito in a dung cart, a faery who becomes Sarah's first friend in a long time, a reclusive monk who plans to spend the rest of his life building a tomb for Sir Lancelot, and a princess who might have a little more gumption than she appears to. As the plot thickens, Sarah finds out more about the people she's met and befriended, as well as about herself.  She begins to learn the true consequences of vengeance and what it really means to be a princess. In this funny and unforgettable sixth novel, Gerald Morris creates yet another tangled web of magic spells, enchanted castles, mystery knights, revenge, and heart-pounding adventure.

SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Warning for Spoilers (this got really long...)

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: Parsifal's Page

Title: Parsifal's Page Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 232 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Piers (or Pierre, as he wants to be called) is desperate to become a page to escape the dirty, tedious labor of his father;s black-smith shop.  So when a knight shows up and says he's on "the quest," Piers begs to go along.  Surprisingly his father lets him, and soon he is off on a series of adventures he never dreamed possible.  However, Piers's knight quickly runs into some difficulties and is slain by an odd character named Parsifal, who is on his own quest to become a knight.  Piers has no other choice but to throw his lot in with Parsifal. Parsifal is unlike anyone Piers has ever met and doesn't behave "knightly" at all, but slowly Piers begins to realize that being a knight has nothing to do with shining armor and winning jousts.  As their journey continues, Piers and Parsifal are drawn into the Quest for the elusive Holy Grail.  They find that to achieve this quest they must learn more than knighthood: they most learn about themselves. No knight's story has been told more often than Parsifal's, but no one else has ever told his story quite like Gerald Morris does in his fourth Arthurian novel, another tour de force of humor, action, magic and, as always, true love.

After the high of Savage Damsel, for me it would be difficult for the next book in the series to top or meet my expectations. This may account for the somewhat ambiguous way I feel about Parsifal’s Page. For me, it has its ups and downs. There are parts I like a lot, and parts I’m kind of “meh” on; there’s nothing that I outright dislike about it but it doesn't sparkle for me the way Squire, Knight, Lady and Savage Damsel do.

Spoilers, etc…

Reread: Parsifal's Page

This has been our 50th Post!!!

Title: Parsifal's Page Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 232 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Piers (or Pierre, as he wants to be called) is desperate to become a page to escape the dirty, tedious labor of his father;s black-smith shop.  So when a knight shows up and says he's on "the quest," Piers begs to go along.  Surprisingly his father lets him, and soon he is off on a series of adventures he never dreamed possible.  However, Piers's knight quickly runs into some difficulties and is slain by an odd character named Parsifal, who is on his own quest to become a knight.  Piers has no other choice but to throw his lot in with Parsifal. Parsifal is unlike anyone Piers has ever met and doesn't behave "knightly" at all, but slowly Piers begins to realize that being a knight has nothing to do with shining armor and winning jousts.  As their journey continues, Piers and Parsifal are drawn into the Quest for the elusive Holy Grail.  They find that to achieve this quest they must learn more than knighthood: they most learn about themselves. No knight's story has been told more often than Parsifal's, but no one else has ever told his story quite like Gerald Morris does in his fourth Arthurian novel, another tour de force of humor, action, magic and, as always, true love.

Unlike Samoaphoenix, I actually enjoy the original covers for these books.  I think, while they may not necessarily reflect anything that happens in the book, they perfectly reflect the tongue-in-cheek tone of the story.  I find the new covers to be far too serious for these books and think they go against one of the big themes in the plot.  The new covers show the epic tale the audience wants to hear while the original covers show the ridiculousness of what actually goes on in the story.

Despite my feelings, my jaw actually dropped when I saw the new cover for Parsifal's Page:

Damn that's a beautiful cover.  And since this is actually a fairly downer book compared to the others, it captures the tone of this story in a way that the original cover really didn't.

Warning for Spoilers

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review: For Camelot's Honor

Title: For Camelot's Honor Author: Sarah Zettel Publisher: Luna Books Pages: 384 Synopsis: (from the publisher) A quest of hidden shadows, old gods and immense power—and the battle for Britain continues! Elen believed nothing could withstand her retribution against her family’s killer. The daughter of a Welsh chieftan, Elen would wield her growing powers to destroy her enemy and win back her lands. But then she learned the power behind the invader—the fearsome sorceress Morgaine, who’d vowed to destroy Camelot… Rather than attack Elen directly, Morgaine created an elaborate plan to cause Elen to betray all she held dear, including her new ally, the High King. Still holding fast to hope, facing deadly foes seen and unseen, Elen traveled through the wild mountains to find a magical weapon to strike down the sorceress. Sir Geraint, her only companion, would risk life and love to complete their quest—but never honor. Yet will Elen choose honor and the future over revenge and a shattered past?

 Yes, it’s finally the last book in the Paths to Camelot quartet! This is technically the second book of the series, but I inadvertently read book three (Under Camelot’s Banner) and then I wanted to find out what happened to Laurel and Agravain (By Camelot’s Blood). As it turns out, it doesn’t really matter that I read this book last. The events described have little to no bearing on the final outcome of the battle between the Orkney brothers and Morgan le Fay, though I fault the abrupt ending of book four more than anything wrong with this book.

Spoilers, etc…

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Savage Damsel and the Dwarf

Title: The Savage Damsel and the Dwarf Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 213 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Her castle under siege by an evil knight who keeps beheading all her would-be rescuers, Lady Lynet realizes that the only way to get help is to get it herself.  So one night she slips away and strikes out for King Arthur's court, where she hopes to find a gallant knight to vanquish the Knight of the Red Lands and free her castle.  Instead, she finds an odd dwarf named Roger and a scruffy kitchen hand named Beaumains. As the three unlikely companions return to Lynet's castle, they face suprising adventures, including encounters with the uncanny Squire Terence, his master, Sir Gawain, and the majestic sorceress Morgan.  And somewhere along the way, Lynet discovers that people can be much more than they seem.  .

It should be said first off that this is one of my all-time favorite books ever. I’ve read it so much my hardcover edition is falling apart. My first wobbly try at screenplay writing was adapting this book. So you probably shouldn’t pay attention to anything I have to say about it. Just go read it for yourself. Preferably in the much better cover of the newer editions.

Spoilers, etc…

Reread: The Savage Damsel and the Dwarf

Title: The Savage Damsel and the Dwarf Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 213 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Her castle under siege by an evil knight who keeps beheading all her would-be rescuers, Lady Lynet realizes that the only way to get help is to get it herself.  So one night she slips away and strikes out for King Arthur's court, where she hopes to find a gallant knight to vanquish the Knight of the Red Lands and free her castle.  Instead, she finds an odd dwarf named Roger and a scruffy kitchen hand named Beaumains. As the three unlikely companions return to Lynet's castle, they face suprising adventures, including encounters with the uncanny Squire Terence, his master, Sir Gawain, and the majestic sorceress Morgan.  And somewhere along the way, Lynet discovers that people can be much more than they seem.

Or, In Gerald Morris' words:

"In this story a skilled knight called Beaumains conceals his real name and takes a menial job as a kitchen servant-- curious behavior that would normally call for some explanation, but Malory never explains.  Then, when Beaumains rides off on his quest, he is sometimes accompanied by an unnamed dwarf who knows his true identity, but Malory never bothers to tell who this dwarf is or how he knows Beaumains or why he cares to ride with him.  After Beaumains arrives at Lynoness's castle, a knight with no name appears from nowhere and fights Beaumains for no apparent reason.  The nameless knight is defeated, but luckily for him, Lady Lynet appears on the scene and magically cures him, although Malory had not mentioned until this moment that Lynet was an enchantress.  Indeed, the modern reader's response to Malory's tale will often be, "Huh?""

--Gerald Morris, pg 211-212 of the Savage Damsel and the Dwarf 

Warning for Spoilers

SamoaPhoenix Guest Review/Reread: The Squire, His Knight, & His Lady

Title: The Squire, His Knight, & His Lady Author: Gerald Morris Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company Pages: 232 Synopsis: (from the publisher) Squire Terence and Sir Gawain are off questing again, but this time their journey is overshadowed by their ultimate destination-- Gawain is to meet up with the Green Knight in a contest that could easily lead to Gawain's death. Along the way the two have a slew of hair-raising adventures and encounter the usual odd assortment of characters: the dreaded Huntsman of Anglesey; the eccentric Parsifal; and the evil Marquis of Alva, from whom they rescue the plucky Lady Eileen.  Sparks instantly fly between Terence and Eileen as she joins the squire and his knight on their travels As they weave their way between the world of men and the Other World, both Gawain and Terence discover much about themselves-- Terence learns more about his past and about what the future holds for him, and Gawain is forced to confront the true nature of courage and honor.

I have no idea what the summary on this book is blabbering about. That first sentence doesn't even make sense. It makes it sound like Gawain and Terence were already out adventuring when they met the Green Knight, but…well, never mind.

I would complain about just about every cover of the old editions of these books (these are the covers that I own) but I will refrain so I don’t repeat myself every time. I will say it only once: I find the weird cut-and-paste-heads-onto-bodies thing that the cover designers did for the first eight books disturbing. Terence looks like a dwarf on this cover, which he clearly is not. View the superior reprint version below (courtesy of goodreads):

The only old cover that I don’t mind is the one for Parsifal’s Page. It is bright and attractive, does not have someone’s head pasted onto someone else’s body, and is still a scene out of the book. There. I have complained once and will say no more about the old covers unless I really like something about one of the new covers and feel compelled to comment.

Back to the review.

Spoilers, etc…