I loved this broody new take on the Arthurian legend, complete with an emotionally battered heroine and the mercurially motivated Merlin!! What Blood of Hercules is to the Greek retelling, this series is to the Arthurian one - a modern and fresh feminist retelling of Guinevere.
This is not a tale of world building or revisiting locales in an ancient time, the storyline moves with the mercurial Vera, who is thrust headfirst into ancient Camelot, and weaves her way through scandal, faking amnesia, finding a bestie and falling in love with Arthur. With sub plots entrenched in magical lore and the uncovering of secrets, so very many, layers of secrets - some benign and some turgidly malignant ones.
Vera is absolutely delightful, thrown between the chaos and big feelings she left behind, and wanting to crave normalcy and fulfil her part in saving the kingdom - the artifices surrounding these events are suspenseful and intense. With the best intentions, Vera tries to fill the shoes of Guinevere and lull the Kingdom to a semblance of normalcy - what she doesn't anticipate is the mores and customs of the English Court and also, unexpected camaraderie and solace in forging a new path, something the Guinevere of old would have shirked from.
Add in a slew of delightful characters, from the fabulous Lancelot, brooding Gawain, perfect Percival, and mysterious Merlin - with each knight and character fitting into the story like fingers into a glove. The way Paula has infused her Arthurian retelling with reams of modernity in the form of gestures and inclusivity is nothing short of genius! The mix of modern-medieval magical mashup has you reeling with the punches and eager for more!
Thank you and high fives to Kensington Publishing and Erewhon Books as well as Netgalley for sharing the ARC! eagerly waiting for the next jousting session with Paula Lafferty!!!
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