Product Description

Gwyna is just a small girl, a mouse, when she is bound in service to Myrddin the bard - a traveller and spinner of tales. But Myrddin transfroms her - into a lady goddess, a boy warrior, and a spy. Without Gwyna, Myrddin will not be able to work the most glorious transformation of all - and turn the leader of a raggle-taggle war-band into King Arthur, the greatest hero of all time.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18223 in Books
• Published on: 2009-05-04
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Customer Reviews

a really good take on the arthurian myth
Philip Reeve is an excellent author whose stories are always written with a great deal of intelligence and charm. His retelling of the Arthurian myth, as seen through the eyes of the charismatic protagonist, Gwyna, is done with affection and shows a substantial knowledge of Arthur's story in it's earliest incarnations. The events that came to be legends are here more often the tricks and coincidences used by Myrddin (the bard) to create his fantastical tales of Arthur's exploits. His understanding of his people's need for a hero leads him to build the very human Arthur into one. This book's triumph is it's ability to tell the story of Arthur in realistic terms without spoiling the charm of the myth. I read it in under a day and thoroughly enjoyed it. Well worth buying if you like historical fiction, or fantasy with an historical twist.

evocative and iconoclastic
Another thrilling story from philip reeve. Beautiful prose coupled with a compelling story. He pulls no punches in demonstrating the brutal realities of life in the Dark Ages.
The plot bears enough similarities with the legends to be recognisable, but has twists of its own to keep you guessing. The writing is fresh and evocative.
His take on Merlin as Arthur's chief spin doctor gives a stark relevancy to the story, affording easy comparisons with the machinations and cynicism of today's political figures.
After the fantastic Mortal Engines books and the charming and funny Larklight, Philip Reeve is fast becoming my favourite author.

A brilliant new book, by a brilliant writer
Beautifully written, moving and blood-chilling at the same time. This book allows you a glance behind probably every kind of political propaganda machine.