The Skystone

Overall, this is adequate entertainment, but the outlook for the series to me, will be problematic. i don't see the depth of late Roman research that would qualify it as such fine-grained an effort as Cornwell and Sharon K. Penman put into their historical novels. But, I do see that there are at least another six books coming, and the possibility of improvement does exist. The serious jarring note is the ability of a fairly successful Roman soldier having the forethought to plan for the end of a state that in the mid to late Three hundreds CE, was still capable of rewarding his class and occupation adequately. Our present society has a great deal of difficulty alerting the relatively propertied classes to take climate change seriously, show more and I don't think Romans were any smarter than we are. However, Mr. Whyte is laying groundwork for his vision, and does afford an insight into some aspects of conspiracy theory. show less

I believe I first got tipped off about this series by reading a rave on Orson Scott Card's blog. I'm glad I followed up on it.

The Skystone is the first volume of many in a retelling of the legend of King Arthur and Camelot (according to the reviews and the cover blurb). You wouldn't know it from reading the story (until you start getting clues in the latter half of the book). This story is set years before Arthur, when Britain was still under the rule of Rome and the Roman legions. It follows Plublius Varrus, one of those Roman soldiers, through well-staged bloody battles, intriguing political feuds and troubling personal demons. This is quite an adventure.

I found the writing and plotting to be first-rate overall. I read the book show more straight through in a week (it helped to be sitting in airports and on planes). A few things keep me from giving it a full four stars: (1) Secondary characters seem to be either fully trustworthy and noble or not. It's way too easy to identify allies and enemies. Where are the turncoats? (2) Life in ancient Britain comes across as a bit too idyllic. Although some difficulties are described, the author glosses over many of the harsh realities of everyday life in this period. (3) Typical of most secular books, the Christian themes are very muted and easily confused with simple morality.

I will definitely find and read the rest of the books in this series. show less

I'm a fan of Arthurian stories, so tried to like this book but by page 510, I just couldn't bear it any longer. The dialogue was wooden and juvenile. Hardened Roman soldiers don't simper and giggle. The obsession with physically positioning each character in each scene was tiresome, and the anachronistic monologues on self sufficiency were a poor substitute for story telling. And don't get me started on the romance, pages and pages of Victorian purple prose and excruciating male emotive gushing that's completely out of place in a 4th century fighting man. In summary, this book is a badly written Historical Romance.

I first read this book when I was a teenager and obsessed with all things Arthurian, and that's the perspective from which I read it. The final books in the series hadn't been written when I was reading the series, so I set the series aside for over 20 years waiting for the end to be written. Rereading this book now in preparation for finishing reading the end of the series, I realize this is actually a book about preppers/survivalists anticipating the zombie apolca...er...fall of Rome! Still entertaining but also kind of hilarious. Also on second reading I'm more annoyed with the main character who [spoilers follow]

Insists on announcing his name all over creation after having gone through the trouble of faking his own death. I mean, show more really? But still a fairly fun book, if not one rich in great female characters or even vaguely authentic dialogue. I'm interested to know what other surprises are in store for me during this series re-read! show less

I enjoyed this. Was it amazing? No. However, it was surprisingly lighthearted and somewhat fun, but most importantly about a time period that you basically never see anyone try to write speculative historical fiction about (375AD Britain, from the perspective of Romans). Perhaps the biggest minuses are that it (1) paints this time period in an overly happy/tech forward light, when the reality is that it probably was a lot closer to the dark ages that followed it, and (2) the book doesn't teach you all that much about the historical context, even though it probably could. I can sort of forgive these though - it's hard to write about a world and a time we can barely fathom, when a seemingly timeless political and military power was on the show more decline, and years of regression on the horizon. Interested to see where the series goes from here show less

Skystone by Jack Whyte, is the first in a series set late 4th to early 5th century in Britain. It is a much grittier and violent version of the Arthur Legends.

Caius Britannicus, a Roman Patriarch born in Britain, held the long view that Rome was rotting at the core and would soon be forced to withdraw her troops from outlying posts to defend Rome. Even before retiring from the Legions, he began planning and preparing his lands for the vacuum in power which would follow withdrawal of the Legions from Britain.

What I love most about this series is the underlying theme of nation building, laying the very foundations and rules of law upon which Britain would be born. To this was added the wedding of the Celtic royal line with the Roman to show more create a new people.

What I have struggled the most with is the overwhelming thrust of a much harsher and violent time. Whyte makes no excuses for the archaic belief systems and behavior of his characters, good guys and bad guys alike. show less

While I found the book slow to get into since it was outside my typical reading and requires google open for questions I got sucked in about a third of the way through. The characters are wonderfully developed. The interpersonal relationships are captivating. They are people you want to care about, you want to succeed, and you’d like to see in the real world. The characters embody a quality we have lost in modern culture, the ability to disagree and challenge each other to be better without taking offense to the disagreement. There was action till the very last page in the form of battles and interpersonal tension. The foreshadowing was obvious to those familiar with Arthurian legend. This book was a great set up for what I expect to show more be a wonderful series. show less