It's been a long, long time since I've read a book in such a disjointed manner.
It wasn't the length that deterred me, although it was a hefty 1000+ pages, I just vacillated between interest and blatant disinterest. At times I would read voraciously only to set it down and not pick it back up for days. Very strange as I thought I would really be into it. I've had a fascination with King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table from my teenage years. Always hoping his Camelot wasn't entirely mythical but at least containing some kernels of truth or evidence of existence.
After plowing my way thru tho, I'm not sure the author elevated him/his reign (if he did indeed exist) but rather diminished my thoughts about it. She's welcome to her interpretation and this view from the feminine perspective was definitely a different angle than I've been exposed to before. Maybe in battle King Arthur's Knights were formidable but on the home front, his court was caught up in all the usual machinations that plague Royalty ~ pious Priests, betrayal of sacred oaths, petty people & jockeying for power. King Arthurs greatest asset was portrayed as his amiability and not his prowess on the battlefield with his legendary Excalibur sword. Do I like that idea???
One of the worst people in his court was his Queen. Gwenhwyfar was a jealous, hypocritical, shallow woman. None of the characteristics that are seemly for a Kings Consort. If you accept Ms Bradley's proposition that Arthur encouraged Gwenhwyfar into a relationship with Lancelet and she accepted, she certainly was quick to condemn others for engaging in those same activities. bleck
Morgaine was another character I had a strong reaction to ~ she was raised as a Priestess on Avalon, schooled in magic & other mystical arts but yet she turned her back on everything and chose to waste her life living as an ordinary woman. Hard to swallow.
Avalon was a compelling part of the book. An island of Priestesses, devoted to serving the Goddess and completely dependent on people maintaining the old beliefs to stay accessible. Intriguing. Me, who would like to believe in concurrent realms, had a hard time accepting some of the decisions originating from there. Even the Merlins who I had thought of as very powerful in this time period were much diminished and influenced by the Christian faction far more easily than I thought possible.
There's so much more I didn't like but I can't find the will to keep going. Let's just say I felt sad when I finished the book.
***After I was done, I learned about the child abuse and pedophilia accusations against the author. They're pretty awful. I'm not one who usually believes in "cancel culture" but I wonder if I'd bothered reading had I known that??? It sure puts a taint on her work.
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