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The Last Enchantment (1979)

by Mary Stewart

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: The Arthurian Merlin Saga (3)

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3,771353,265 (4)113
Arthur Pendragon is King! Unchallenged on the battlefield, he melds the country together in a time of promise. But sinister powers plot to destroy Camelot, and when the witch-queen Morgause -- Arthur's own half sister -- ensnares him in an incestuous liaison, a fatal web of love, betrayal, and bloody vengeance is woven.… (more)
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» See also 113 mentions

English (32)  Spanish (1)  Italian (1)  French (1)  All languages (35)
Showing 1-5 of 32 (next | show all)
One last spin through my hardback cop before passing this series onwards to a new generation.. ( )
  Kiri | Dec 24, 2023 |
In which Merlin, growing old and tired, finally gets to retire. Arthur's kingship is hugely assisted by the prognostications of his magicians; nothing beats being in the right place at the right time. But he also can fight in person and organize a campaign like nobody's business. ( )
  themulhern | Mar 14, 2023 |
Good Arthurian series--number 3.
  kslade | Dec 8, 2022 |
I have put down this book once more with a sigh and a feeling that I have been in the presence of greatness. I have been there with Merlin, with Arthur, with Ambrosius; and I am reluctant, as always, to have it come to an end.

It was almost night, but over beyond Maridunum in the west, a lingering bar of light hinted at the dying sun. It threw a glint on the river skirting the palace wall where I was born, and touched a jewel spark on the distant sea. Near at hand the trees were bare with winter, and the ground crisp with the first frost. Arthur trod away from me across the grass, leaving ghost-prints in the frost. He reached the place where the track led down to the grove, and half turned. I saw him raise a hand. 4/13/20
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The Last Enchantment is Mary Stewart’s third installment in her Arthurian novels, and the last of the trilogy that centers around the character of Merlin. In her inimitable way, Stewart gives us the final days of Merlin and brings us full circle to the beginning of The Crystal Cave, in which we are introduced to an old man setting out to tell his tale of wonder in service to his god.

Arthur, now King of all Britain, must deal with all the obstacles to his reign that have become so much a part of the legend of his life. Evil, in the person of Morgause, his sister and the mother of his only child, rears its head and bites into the fabric of his glory, and Merlin must help him to steer a course through the dangers she presents. Guinevere comes into his life and with her the seeds of a love for his best friend that is forbidden but impossible to ignore. Merlin experiences love and possible betrayal, and the hardest of all things, the waning of his power.

The strength of this series for me has always been the perception of Merlin as a man and not a wizard, a tool of the gods but never a god himself. Stewart carries that theme right to the end in a way that makes you ache for Merlin and share his accomplishments and sorrows in a way that would be impossible if he were all-knowing or in control. The love he inspires in and feels for Arthur is palpable and his failure to understand women and their needs is evident as he deals with the female characters who become so important in his final days.

I said to the ghosts, to the voices, to the empty moonlight: ‘It was time. Let me go in peace.’ Then, commending myself and my spirit to God who all these years had held me in his hand, I composed myself for sleep. This was the last thing that I know to be truth, and not a dream in darkness.

This is not the end of Merlin’s tale, but which of us would not be satisfied to be able to lay our lives down with so little fear and such faith?

I love this series so much and feel so much still when reading them, that I always feel the desire to be able to convey that feeling in some way and inspire others to pick them up and read. There is much of fantasy, history, and legend here, but there is more. There is love, betrayal, purpose, faith and the idea that a life that is lived for something other than self-service is a life worth living and full of reward. There is a sense that if you set yourself in the path of the gods they will guide you toward your true destiny, but that no man can ever go there by himself and without their help. There is the assurance that the encounters we have in life are worth having, even if in the end we must kiss them and let them go. And, perhaps that even in the lives that are touched with great doings and important events, it is the simple things, like the love of a man for his son, that are truly important.

I lifted my head, remembering, once more, the child who had listened nightly for the music of the spheres, but had never heard it. Now here it was, all around me, a sweet, disembodied music, as if the hill itself was a harp to the high air.

The music is there, all around us, and if we listen long enough we will hear it and it will be enough to satisfy us at last. ( )
  mattorsara | Aug 11, 2022 |
Lokabindið í þríleik Stewarts um Merlin og Arthúr konung. Fínasta úrvinnsla á mýtunni um Arthúr og riddara hringborðsins í Camelot. Stewart tekur eins raunsætt og hægt er á göldrum Merlins og setur fram óvænta kenningu um svefn Merlins í fjöllunum og endurkomu þegar konungurinn þarfnaðist hans. Þarf nauðsynlega að lesa aðrar úrvinnslur á goðsögunni um Arthúr og Merlin. ( )
  SkuliSael | Apr 28, 2022 |
Showing 1-5 of 32 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (14 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Mary Stewartprimary authorall editionscalculated
Bennett, HarryCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Czernicki, Friderike v.Übersetzersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Czernicki, Karl-Otto v.Übersetzersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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To one who was dead and is alive again, who was lost and is found.
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Not every king would care to start his reign with the wholesale massacre of children.
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Wikipedia in English (1)

Arthur Pendragon is King! Unchallenged on the battlefield, he melds the country together in a time of promise. But sinister powers plot to destroy Camelot, and when the witch-queen Morgause -- Arthur's own half sister -- ensnares him in an incestuous liaison, a fatal web of love, betrayal, and bloody vengeance is woven.

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Arthur is King! But while he is unchallenged on the battlfield, sinister powers plot to destroy him in his own Camelot. When the rose-gold witch Morgause, Arthur's half-sister, ensnares him into an incestuous liaison -- and bears his son, Mordred, to use to her own evil ends -- a fatal web of love, betrayal and vengeance begins....

Seen through the eyes of Arthur's prophetic protector, Merlin -- whose own mysterious powers are in dire danger -- here is a tale rich with the majesty and turbulence of the magnificent legend it tells....resplendent with Mary Stewart's own special magic.
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