This tells the Arthurian myths from the perspective of Guinevere which is a new take for me. It was very compelling and well written. Lancelot says "strewth" at the end which kind of ruins it a little though!

In this version Guinevere never sleeps with Lancelot and Mordred was never evil. Many other versions also put Guinevere as a devout christian, which is left out of this version as well. About halfway through I felt like the whole tale had been told and I was wondering what was left to say for the last 400 pages. It was worth sticking with though.

It is firmly based on Mary Wesley's Merlin trilogy, which it sadly does not better. ( )

Wonderful book. The Arthur legends as told from the viewpoint of Guinevere, a beautiful, strong, courageous woman and her heartbreaking love of two men - Lancelot and Arthur. We see Guinevere grow from a young girl to the most beautiful woman in England.

An exciting tale and the love she bears for both Lancelot and Arthur - and the love they both return to her made for an engrossing book.Don't pick this one up in the middle of the night thinking you'll read a couple of chapters and be able to go back to sleep. This book cost me a few hours of sleep, but was well worth it. Highly recommended. ( )

http://shelfandstuff.blogspot.com/200... ( )

This was only the second telling of Arthurian legend I've read, after The Mists of Avalon, and while this book kept me engrossed, Mists of Avalon was just better. Each one paints different people as bad guys, and it was interesting to see things from Guinevere's point of view (and Mordred's, as well), but I just don't think that Guinevere is the most compelling or interesting personality in the Camelot story. Mists of Avalon also did a very interesting job of putting the whole story into a Christian vs. pagan perspective that lent it some additional depth. Anyways. McKenzie does a nice job of balancing politics and interpersonal aspects of the story, although I would have enjoyed more historical detail in the "stage dressing". Also, for all the book jacket touts McKenzie's Guinevere as "a modern, courageous woman", she doesn't really undergo any character growth over the 600 pages, she breaks down weeping about every other page, and she waits for the men in her life to save her from all of her problems. In sum, not a bad read, but pick up Mists of Avalon first. ( )