Stephen Lawhead
Bibliography, Reviews, and Recommendations
Avalon: The Return of King Arthur. New York: Avon Books(Eos Imprint), September 1999. 448 pages.
A modern retelling of one of our oldest and best-loved legends - the rise of King Arthur. Stephen Lawhead masterfully recreates Arthurian Britain in the twentieth century. Arguably Lawhead's best novel to date, I found it impossible to put down. The novel begins with the death of Edward the Ninth, the last King of Britain. With no heir to the throne, it appears as the monarchy is over and Britain's Prime Minister may become the country's first president. Admist the turmoil and crisis, a certain Mr. Embries (AKA "Merlin") appears and declares a certain commoner, Captain James Arthur Stuart (AKA "King Arthur"), as the legitimate and rightful heir to the throne. This is a well-crafted novel that will keep you up late at night, enthralling you until the last page is turned. Avalon is a modern fantasy that combines Lawhead's vintage storytelling ability and well-crafted language with modern suspense and mystery. You will be hard pressed to find a better or more original retelling of the Arthurian tale. I absolutely loved it!
My Recommendation*****(Five Stars)
Excellent! If you've never read Lawhead, start with Avalon. His best work since Byzantium and one of his best novels so far. I read Avalon in two nights - it was just two hard to put down.
For related information go to: A staff review I wrote for Borders.com.The transcripts from an online chat with SRL about Avalon.
My Review The Iron Lance is the first book in what will be a trilogy based on the Crusades. The main character of the novel is Murdo, a young man who is left at home to watch over the estate, while his father and two brothers leave the island to join the first crusade. Soon after their leaving, the lands are deceptively given by the bishop to a raiding party of Norse Vikings. Murdo and his family barely escape with their lives. They move in with friends and Murdo falls in love with the daughter, but he soon realizes that their only hope in recovering their land is with the help of his father and brothers. Murdo makes the hard decision to leave and travel to the Holy Land to bring back his father and brothers. The story follows both Murdo's and his father's journey as they travel to the Holy Land and their return.
My Recommendation****(Four Stars) Similar to Grail, the story is slow going, but I enjoyed both the story and the writing. It was a story that I savored in little portions. I read about two chapters each day, while traveling back and forth to work on the train. I highly recommend everything Lawhead has written. If you enjoy historical fiction, you'll especially enjoy The Iron Lance. One little piece of advice - read Byzantium before reading The Iron Lance. It takes place a few hundred years before this book and almost acts as a prequel in that it gives you a strong foundation for the religious and political evironment you'll find in The Iron Lance. Happy reading!
My Review
The Grail is a stand-alone story narrated by Gwalchavad (Sir Galahad) about the Holy Grail. King Arthur has suffered a mortal wound in battle and is brought to the palace of Avallach, the Fisher King. Avallach is the secret guardian of the Holy Grail. Seeing that Arthur is about to die he brings the Grail to him and he is miraculously healed. Arthur then dreams of using the Grail to usher in the Summer Kingdom and he builds a shrine for it to be housed in. Shortly after being placed in the shrine, the Grail is stolen. Arthur and his knights pursue the thieves into the darkness of Llyonesse only to be led into a horrific trap.
My Recommendation ***(Three Stars) The first third of the book was slow getting into, but once I was involved I had a hard time putting it down. Like always, Lawhead's writing is beautiful. This is a great story of righteousness prevailing over evil. It can be read alone, but if you haven't already read the series I'd recommend starting at the beginning.
For related information go to: A Review. Silver's Review,Karl Henriksson's Review,Lion Publishings Synopsis.
My Review Byzantium is an extremely well written historical novel. The central character is Aidan, a 10th century Irish monk. He is chosen to take the Book of Kells and present it to the Emperor in Byzantium. Aidan's faith is severly tested when he is captured by Vikings and the Book is taken as loot. This is just the beginning of his many adventures on a journey that takes years.
My Recommendation
*****(Five Stars)This is historical fiction at the highest level - I enjoyed and savored every chapter. Argueably Lawhead's best work yet. Well developed and hard to put down this story will involve all of your emotions.
For related information go to: The Book of Kells, The Book of Kells, An Interview, and Byzantium.
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