Idylls of the Queen
by Phyllis Ann Karr
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The arrangements for the dinner party were overseen by Queen Quenevere herself. She selected the apples with her own hands. And before the evening ended, a young knight lay dead...and Arthur's beloved, unfaithful queen stood branded as a murderess and condemned to death!Phyllis Ann Karr has taken Celtic legend and given it a fresh new twist in this magical murder-mystery of knights and sorcery, romantic entanglements and courtly intrigues. This is a tale that explores the passions and show more motivations of the men and women who stride through the pages of Mallory's romance: Sir Kay, the sharp-tongued seneschal; Nimue, the elusive Lady of the Lake; Morgan le Fay, Merlin's complex nemesis; the tormented sons of Lot and Morgawse; and Mordred, Arthur's own bitter, terrified son!"In The Idylls of the Queen, Phyllis Ann Karr takes an incident (the murder of Sir Patrise) from Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur and creates an intelligent, complex, and fascinating mystery novel perfect for fans of historical mysteries, of British legends, and of fantasy." -- Cynthia Ward show lessTags
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"The Idylls of the Queen," an Arthurian murder-mystery. Refreshing to find an author who doesn't need to retell the whole Arthurian saga from beginning to end, but is content to bring a small corner of Malory to vivid, original life.
Sir Kay, a neglected part of the Arthurian Cycle, finally gets a chance to shine and present his case in Karr's imaginative book. As a much-put-upon Seneschal of his half brother's illustrious court, Kay finally gets an adventure of his own.
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Author Information
42+ Works 1,088 Members
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1982-06
- People/Characters
- King Arthur; Guinevere; Sir Kay; Mordred; Morgan le Fay; Nimue
- Important places
- England, UK (Arthurian)
- Epigraph
- "...I, Kay, that thou knawes,
That owte of tyme bostus and blawus..."
- THE AVOWYNGE OF KING ARTHUR - First words
- When Patrise put his head down on the table beside me and started groaning and twitching, my first thought was: and they call me the churl of this court.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Now come, Sir Kay," she said, "I think we have time for one short game before evensong."
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Wherefore I liken love nowadays unto summer and winter; for like as the one is hot and the other cold, so fareth love nowadays; therefore all ye that be lovers call unto your remembrance the month of May, like as did Queen Guenever, for whom I make here a little mention, that while she lived she was a true lover, and therefore she had a good end." (Malory XVIII, 25)
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Statistics
- Members
- 225
- Popularity
- 144,773
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (4.11)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 2
