Category: Fantasy
The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight by Gerald Morris
(Cover picture courtesy of Rainbow Resource Center.)
Sarah knelt and cleaned her blade on the grass, then sheathed it. Her stomach was tight and she was slightly nauseated, but she felt no emotion.
Ever since her mother and guardian were killed, thirteen-year-old Sarah has been living on her own, searching for the murderer. Her quest for revenge leads to greater adventure when she witnesses Queen Guinevere being kidnapped. Soon Sarah is accompanying Sir Gawain and Squire Terence on a remarkable journey to rescue the queen. But as the plot thickens, Sarah begins to learn the true consequences of vengeance and what it really means to be a princess.
Well, this was Book 6 of The Squire’s Tales series and I can confidently say that so far I love the whole series. There is no ‘bad’ book in Gerald Morris’ retellings of the Arthurian legends; they’re all great.
Although from the summary I expected Sarah to be a typical girl empowerment character, that was far from the truth. Her actions make sense and her character arc is gradual, but very powerful. Just as a warning to younger readers, let me say that this book is more graphic than the others and may offend sensitive readers. After all, the reason Sarah is looking for revenge is based on real, very tragic historical events. And the road to revenge is not without its victims, so just keep that in mind.
Once again Gawain and Terence show up near the end of the book, but it is Sarah and her Dung-Cart Knight that play a much more important part in the story. Gerald Morris certainly has an interesting take on Lancelot, who shows up later on. Lancelot has changed immensely from the first few books when he was a caricature of a proper knight: foppish, immersed in courtly love, etc. He has actually acquired some depth in this book and I look forward to seeing him in the next few books, if only to see how these changes affect his new life at court.
With a fast plot, amazing characters both old and new and hints at the tragic ending of the Arthurian legends, you won’t want to put down The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight. Even though it’s aimed at younger readers I loved it, which is why I recommend it to readers of all ages.
I give this book 4.5/5 stars.
“The Kane Chronicles: The Serpent’s Shadow” by Rick Riordan
I have finally managed to get my hands on the third and final book of The Kane Chronicles and I must say that Rick Riordan did not let me down with how he finished the trilogy when the time came. I was nervous that I would feel a little let down at the end of the series for some reason, but that was something I really shouldn’t have been worried about.
Carter and Sadie Kane have spent the past six months or so since the last book honing their skills as magicians, recruiting more members to the Brooklyn House, and trying to figure out how to stop Apophis from destroying everything they know. It’s a daunting task to say the least and they encounter several obstacles along the way, some of which were a little unexpected if you ask me.
There were several things that stuck out to me in The Serpent’s Shadow. First was how impressed I was with where the characters of Carter, Sadie, Zia, Walt, and Anubis wind up when the story is said and done. In the first two books there were moments when I wondered how Riordan was going to believably bring all of his cast together in the end to vanquish evil (and beyond of course). However, there is a very impressive twist at the end involving Walt and Anubis, and as a consequence Sadie as well. There is even a fun surprise when it comes to resolving Zia’s storyline that had me smiling. Carter, my favorite character from the series wound up exactly where I hoped he would as the reluctant, but capable leader who learned some very valuable lessons along the way.
It’s always interesting to read books like these that feature characters who are placed in their younger teen years because it’s strange to think of 13, 14, and 15-year-olds saving the world, but Riordan made it work. Props to him for pulling that off if you ask me. I’ve never read any of his other work (strange, I know), but I’ll be diving into the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus books as soon as I can find the time. There is even a blatant hint at the end of this book that Riordan is eventually going to try and write some crossover books between his three successful series. That will be epic if he does it right.
All in all, The Serpent’s Shadow was a great conclusion to a story full of excitement, action, interesting Egyptian mythology, and a healthy dose of heart and grit. It brought all the characters and plot points together into just the right place and managed to do it in a book that was shorter than the first two without feeling rushed.
Grade: B
Length: 401 pages
Curse of the Ice Dragon by Tara West
(Cover picture courtesy of Guerrilla Wordfare.)
Born with mark [sic] of the Mighty Hunter, Markus saves his village from the brink of starvation—for whenever he releases an arrow, his aim is true. But despite his skill and strength, Markus is unable to confront his tyrannical father. Shamed by his cowardice, he distracts himself by needlessly shooting the forest creatures.
When Markus takes no heed of the village prophet’s warning that his actions will attract The Hunter’s Curse—for every animal Markus kills, his loved ones will suffer the same fate—the Sky Goddess unleashes her ice dragon. Now, Markus must flee the dragon without killing it…or his beloved brother will be the next to die.
[Full disclosure: Tara West sent me a free print copy of her novel in return for an honest review.]
When I started Curse of the Ice Dragon, I was expecting the plot to follow the traditional Hero’s Quest format. That’s not an altogether unreasonable assumption in most of the high fantasy I read. Yet my assumption was proved wrong! In some ways it did follow the Hero’s Quest format, but I absolutely love the unique spins Tara West put on old clichés to make the plot exciting and at times unpredictable.
To be perfectly honest, I hated Markus at first. He was cruel, selfish and completely unsympathetic, but that didn’t last for long. Markus goes on quite the character arc and by the end of the novel, he’s a completely new person and I’m looking forward to seeing how he changes throughout the rest of the series. He’s not the only character that stood out, though. All of the characters were three dimensional and had realistic motivations, but Ura particularly stood out for me. She’s concerned about her brother who left to go topside while at the same time must ward off Bane’s advances and keep her father company. Ura is definitely not your typical fantasy heroine and her character arc is just as interesting as Markus’, if not more.
I was rather skeptical about the world-building because it seemed like a typical fantasy world based on Norse mythology. Things couldn’t have been more far from the truth, which was yet another pleasant surprise. Readers will recognize a few typical fantasy elements, but Tara West never strays into the realm of hopelessly cliché. There are so many new things and such an exciting plot that you won’t be able to put Curse of the Ice Dragon down. Personally, I can’t wait for the next book.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Ballad of Sir Dinadan by Gerald Morris
(Cover picture courtesy of Booktopia.)
Dinadan rode out of the front gate of his father’s home, promising himself that he would never again enter those walls.
Young Dinadan has no wish to do any of the knightly things expected of him. But he was born to be a knight, and knights, of course, have adventures. So after his father forces his knighthood upon him, he wanders toward King Arthur’s court in the company of a misguided young lad named Culloch. There Dinadan meets Sir Kai and Sir Bedivere, and the three find themselves accompanying Culloch on the worst sort of quest. Along the way, Dinadan learns that though minstrels sing of spectacular heroic deeds, honor is often found in simpler, quieter ways.
The first four books in The Squire’s Tales have had humour in them, but they never reached into the realm of laugh-out-loud humour. The Ballad of Sir Dinadan does because of Sir Dinadan’s attitude toward love and knights and because of the sheer craziness of some situations he gets into. This is the most cynical, irreverent take on the Arthurian legends and I absolutely love it. In some ways, it makes the first four books seem pale in comparison.
This is the first time we’re actually in the point of view of a knight. The problem is, he doesn’t want to be a knight. Dinadan is no good at sword fighting, jousting or wooing ladies. He is cynical to begin with because his father knighted him while drunk, but he is also hopeful that the world outside his childhood home will be better. But after an incident with a beautiful maiden, Dinadan turns full cynic and that attitude is proven correct time and time again throughout the story. The ineptness of Culloch, the horror of discovering what his older brother Sir Tristram is actually like and the folly of Queen Isuelt…wouldn’t you be cynical too?
The plot of The Ballad of Sir Dinadan moves along fairly quickly and is mostly driven by Dinadan, who seems to get himself into all kinds of trouble. He also solves a lot of problems and encounters a lot of people we now consider legendary in the Arthurian canon. To some it will seem like Gerald Morris is going out of his way to be irreverent toward beloved figures, but when you think about it, these people (if they really existed) were probably like that. I guarantee that Gerald Morris’ fifth book in The Squire’s Tales will change your view of at least one character. If you’re looking for a traditional happy ending, you won’t find it, but the ending isn’t tragic either. In the context of the story, it makes sense.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
Parsifal’s Page by Gerald Morris
(Cover picture courtesy of Better World Books.)
Piers, watching from the door to the shop, gaped with awe at the night.
Piers is desperate to escape the dirty, tedious labor of his father’s blacksmith shop. So when a knight shows up and says he’s on “the quest,” Piers begs to go along. Surprisingly, his father lets him, and soon he is off on a series of adventures he never dreamed possible. However, Piers’s knight quickly runs into difficulties and is slain by an odd character named Parsifal, who is on his own quest. Piers has no other choice but to join him. As their journey continues, Piers begins to realize what being a knight really means.
Apparently the legend of Parsifal is quite famous, although I have only heard of it through the title of Richard Wagner’s opera, fittingly called ‘Parsifal‘. And no, I had not even watched the opera, just heard of it. My only encounter with Parsifal thus far was briefly when Gawain wrestled with him in the Other World. However, I’m glad Gerald Morris saw fit to bring Parsifal to the front of the stage.
This story is not told by Parsifal himself, but rather by Piers, his page. Piers was raised to believe knights should follow a strict code of courtesy and that questions were impertinent. It is this latter belief that gets both of them into trouble and in the end Piers’ views of knighthood are drastically altered. Since this fourth book in The Squire’s Tales is told from the point of view of Piers, we do not get to see Parsifal’s thoughts, which is a real shame. I personally would have liked to learn more about Parsifal’s motivations and his life in the Other World, but Piers is a decent enough narrator.
Once again the story is not so much about Terence and Gawain, although they appear in it and definitely challenge Piers’ views of the relationship between squire and knight. While Parsifal’s Page is not my absolute favourite book in The Squire’s Tales, it’s certainly a good book and a fitting retelling of yet another popular Arthurian legend. Sometimes authors lose their steam by the third or fourth book in a series, but this is certainly not the case for Gerald Morris. He has attacked the legend with all the enthusiasm you would expect and delivers a heartwarming tale of friendship and love.
I give this book 4/5 stars.