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Feb 27, 2009

Vanna rated it:

I have to say, this is one of the most fantastic, well written books I have ever read! I've liked the rest of the series, but this book did a really great job of concluding it. I was quite fascinated at all the history behind it, and I think Lawhead researched the time period extremely well. As I was getting to the ending,I was so excited to know what happened next that I found myself reading till three o'clock in the morning and still convincing myself that I wasn't too sleepy to read anther ch More...

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 15, 2009

Erika rated it:

I’m not sure where to start with this review since I didn’t make time in the past couple of years to review Hood and Scarlet, but the only reason I kept reading this trilogy was because of Robin Hood.

I love Robin Hood and I love this series. I don’t love the writing of these books. Except, there’s something that kept me reading and that was the need to get to the end and find out if this version has a happy ending.

I don’t want to ruin it or anything, but, it does.
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0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 10, 2011

Anthony rated it:

Definitely the best book of the trilogy.

I admit the trilogy was a bit hard to read at times, I am not a complete fan of Lawhead's writing style, like Ken Follett, it can be a bit long winded at times and get to be dry reading, but the story itself, the meat of it, the research and history infused into the classic tale, that's what kept me reading. And Lawhead, like Follett and the Pillars books, does it well, from the pronunciation guide at the beginning of the books to his author no More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Oct 12, 2010

Tori rated it:

Written for book club:
More desperate then ever to free his land from invaders, the Phantom Raven of the forest sets out once again to try his might against his adversaries. But with some surprising twists, and unanticipated hardships, can the group see it through to the end? The third and final installment of Stephen Lawhead's King Raven Trilogy, Tuck reunites readers one last time with Bran and his Grellon and their fight for freedom.
After King William turns traitor and refuses t More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Jun 21, 2010

Lydia rated it:

This was the best book of the trilogy, hands down. Friar Tuck has always been one of my favorite characters in the Robin Hood stories - but he was almost replaced by a new character introduced in Tuck - that of Alan a'Dale. Lawhead did a beautiful job of writing this character and I found myself searching for as much of him as I possibly could throughout the story.

Everything must come to an end, and a satisfying end this was. I loved Tuck's role in the resolution (even though it d More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 18, 2010

Fred rated it:

It took me awhile to warm up to Tuck. I think part of it was coming into the story on the third book of a trilogy, having to get oriented as the tale of Rhi Bran and his band of outlaws was building to a climax.

The Robin Hood legend is familiar and comfortable for most of us, I think, but Lawhead throws it akilter by setting it in an historical Wales with a Robin who’s more than just a dashing redistributor of wealth. He’s a dispossessed prince, a man who should be king, and he’s car More...

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Aug 12, 2009

Hank rated it:

When I started reading this, I didn't know it was the third book in a trilogy, but I soon realized it is a stand alone book that makes occasional references to events in the previous two books. A knowledge of the first two isn't necessary to enjoy the third one.

Basically, this is a re-telling of the Robin Hood legends with a twist. Instead of Sherwood Forest the setting is the Marches on the border of England and Wales. The story takes place in the reign of King William Rufus, the More...

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Jul 21, 2009

MKat rated it:

The ending might have been a LITTLE sentimental, but, honestly, I'm happier for it. A happy ending, especially when the characters genuinely deserve it, is always fulfilling. And that's exactly how the wonderful King Raven Trilogy comes to its end.

Stephen R. Lawhead has done a brilliant job of blending history, legend, and his own fictional world to bring this Robin Hood story to life in a way that seems completely believable and tangible. His story explains where the majority of More...

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Jul 09, 2009

Amydeanne rated it:

How many out there enjoy watching Robin Hood when you were younger (or even now?). It brings back good memories for myself, whether it was the cartoon version or the actual movie. Not to mention I keep seeing Men In Tights in my head lol.. sorry..

And while I’ve grown up and put Robin and his merry men in the back of my memories, something has drawn it out again!

Tuck by Stephen Lawhead is all about those merry men! And let me say, I loved it.

First, I really e More...

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May 20, 2009

Jill rated it:

Review by Jill Williamson

In Tuck, Stephen Lawhead’s third and final instalment of his King Raven Trilogy, William the Red has reneged on his promise to restore Elfael to Bran Brychan, the rightful king. Bran and his flock flee back to the forest as Abbot Hugo’s men give chase. The rebels make it back safe, but Bran knows that something more must be done. The Normans are men without honor and will not listen to reason. And Bran’s band of rebels is not enough to overtake his Norman foe More...

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Sep 23, 2009

Rachel rated it:

What we know now as legend, old and familiar as the dusty books we read as children, began in the dark distance of the past as something else—as some truth we’ve changed until we remember things that never were and forget those that really happened.

For every legend we love, another story lies buried somewhere, tantalizing and forever out of reach.

“It will seem strange to many readers,” writes Stephen R. Lawhead, "and perhaps even perverse, to take Robin Hood out of S More...

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Mar 29, 2011

Sue rated it:

A good final installment in the trilogy of the story of how Robin Hood - well - became Robin Hood!. How time and that old childhood game of passing the story down a line of children will make the story be completely different at the end of the telling. But this look at the start of the legend is an honest one and it makes for good fun, even though the story really isn't that 'slap happy' or 'stooge-like' (visions of the Walt Disney version with the oh-so-clever foxes comes to mind here...!!). More...

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Mar 30, 2011

Jake rated it:

The final book in Stephen Lawhead’s King Raven trilogy, Tuck picks up almost immediately where Scarlet left off. It’s hard to be more specific than that without giving away spoilers, but suffice to say, Rhi Bran and his Grellon are on the run. Again. And the monk known as Friar Tuck is with them.

Unlike Scarlet, which shifted between a first-person narrative by the titular character and a third person narrative focused on other events, Tuck is written entirely in the third person. In More...

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Aug 23, 2011

Diana rated it:

Im dritten Band hatte Bran ap Brychan sich alle Mühe gegeben, um genug Geld für König Rufus aufzubringen, damit dieser ihm sein Land wieder zurückgibt. Genommen hatte Rufus das Geld, nur Bran bekam sein Land nicht zurück, einzig sein ärgerster Widersacher wurde wieder nach Frankreich zurückgeschickt.

In diesem dritten Band versucht Bran nun also einen Pakt mit Abt Hugo zu schließen, um wieder an sein Land zu kommen. Unnötig zu sagen, dass auch dies nicht gelingt und Bran und seine Gefol More...

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Apr 25, 2010

Jen rated it:

When Stephen Lawhead looked into the history of Robin Hood, he discovered that Robin Hood could not have hid his band of merry men in the Sherwood Forest, for it was too cultivated at the time that Robin Hood was supposed to have been in business. So, Lawhead looked into where Robin Hood COULD have operated from during that time, and re-imagined the entire story based out of Wales (with a Celtic background).

The trilogy starts with "Hood," continues with "Scarlett," More...

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May 25, 2009

Terri rated it:

Not being a big fan of the Robin Hood legend, I read this book with trepidation, ready for a tedious number of woodland battles, rescues from castle dungeons and "clever" banter among the "merry men." In general, I was not "disappointed." The characters were generally stereotypically shallow. Tuck, for a man of God, was juat a bit too ready to bash in skulls and a bit too glib as men were being shuffled out of their moral coil to meet their masters for my tastes.
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Oct 22, 2010

Werner rated it:

With this volume, Lawhead brings his King Raven trilogy to a rousing conclusion! The general comments I made on the first two books apply here, too; but the emotional impact of this book nudged it into five-star territory. This is outstanding fiction of its type --a worthy capstone to a thoroughly excellent series. Lawhead has done himself proud here.

In all three books of the series, Bran ap Brychan --Rhi Bran y Hud-- is the central figure, the linchpin of the story. But as we sa More...

3 comments like (4 people liked it)

Feb 26, 2009

Holly (2 Kids and Tired) rated it:

Wonderful. The story is told, in part, from the perspective of Friar Tuck. However, it is still a third-person narrative rather than a first-person like Scarlet. Tuck's role in this third novel is much more significant. And the idea that a humble priest can have such an impact on the lives of everyone around him, including the King of England is important.

Tuck picks up right where Scarlet leaves off, with Bran and his followers leaving the King, after the King has gone back on hi More...

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Jun 03, 2010

Cindy rated it:

This was a satisfying conclusion to this series, and I enjoyed reading it. However - though I enjoyed this book - I did notice some definite shortcomings of this book in particular and the series as a whole. Lawhead is a great storyteller - he knows how to tell a good yarn - and extremely well-researched, which made this series fascinating. That said, as a writer/wordsmith, he is definitely lacking. Throughout the series I felt that character development was clunky and not well done (in particul More...

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Nov 10, 2009

Cv rated it:

In the conclusion of Lawhead's exciting Robin Hood trilogy, Friar Tuck observes and participates in the intrigues of the outlaw's life - from court betrayal by King William to the politics and dirty doings of the power-mad abbot. Tuck is another new, unique voice and the author pulls it off nicely, giving great care to the priest's earnest desire to see to the band's spiritual well-being. What I loved about it is that despite being at odds with his higher-ranking church brethren, Tuck knows he More...

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Apr 22, 2009

Debbie rated it:

Loved the third book! Such a great trilogy and such a treat to have sequels be as good as the first.

I love the story of Robin Hood (especially the Disney version)and was so pleased that the author could continue an engaging story through 3 books. And each one was so different! (Kinda fun to have the French thrown in too even though mine is rusty!) Another reason I love book club - I would have never picked Hood on my own. Thanks Telarry for getting me started on this adventure More...

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Jun 22, 2009

cecilia rated it:

I thought the beginning was a little slow and confusing for me, but that could be attributed to the fact that I had not read its 2 predecessors. The Welsh names used for the outlaws threw me off, as did the different names for villians and locations (no mention of Sherwood or Sheriff of Nottingham). The story did not pick up momentum for me until Bran, Tuck, and company set out to free a captive king - and when it started to get more exciting, I definitely became more engrossed in the story and More...

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Jun 02, 2010

Melanie rated it:

I've now got the whole of the "King Raven Trilogy" under my belt, and it did not disappoint. I have to confess that I was worried about a retelling of Robin Hood in a new time and place. But the way Lawhead wove Rhi Bran's story was fantastically done, and I feel more comfortable with Rhi Bran y Hud after three books than I feel with Robin Hood over previous 20 years. :)
I enjoyed "Hood," and, though I typically feel like second books in a series are the weak-link, I li More...

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Mar 03, 2009

Robin rated it:

I enjoyed this series. It had a lighter touch than many of Lawhead's books, and the character of Friar Tuck is one of the better articulated characters. The ending is satisfying, but in the context of medieval Welsh history and the ongoing confrontations with the Norman/English kings a little too fairy tale, but enjoyable all the same. Two things Lawhead doesn't do particularly well are female characters and realistic romantic relationships. The main female characters are 2-dimensional stereotyp More...

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Aug 29, 2011

Kara rated it:

I read some goodreads.com comments and many said that they didn't see Friar Tuck in this book at all-I beg to differ on that. The first book was spiritual, the second was folkfore mixed with prayer and corrupt priests this third is a lot of praying which is Friar Tuck's influence. Tuck (the book) has a lot of action. The best part is the way the group trick a king out of his prisoner, trick an army into believing they are fighting another army when they only have 10 men and the way they get p More...

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Nov 20, 2011

Maryana rated it:

Characters - 4/5 (the characters are human, their flaws not downplayed, and it is in overcoming these flaws repeatedly, that they become heroic)
Plot - 5/5 (well researched, as can only be expected of Lawhead, makes for a surprisingly historical and realistic version of Robin Hood whose adventures are not at all predictable even to those familiar with the character)
Themes - 3/5 (nothing unexpected here; of course justice, vengeance and mercy play key roles and are dealt with satisfactor More...

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Nov 21, 2010

Jeremy rated it:

Tuck was a lackluster end to a lackluster series. It had the problems of its predecessors (flat characters, inconsistent viewpoints, glacial pacing) and nothing new to add. There's really none of the gleeful mischief of the legend of Robin Hood - none of the sense of fighting because it's the right thing. It's all aimed at the ultimate goal of getting official recognition of the kingship of the cantref, and that just isn't particularly satisfying, given the cost.

Overall, I find the More...

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Oct 31, 2011

Rusty rated it:

Enjoyed this read a great deal but not as much as Scarlet. Tuck is a gentle, pious man who believes in justice and fairness. He tells the story in his own way. I felt that Lawhead had a little trouble getting into this character. Perhaps it's my imagination but I thought that he seemed more attuned to Will Scarlet! It was fun to read about the battles and how the long bow could stand against knights with swords and horses. Thank you Mr. Lawhead for more information about that topic at the More...

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Aug 03, 2009

Whitney rated it:

What an amazing ending to a fantastic story. The first two books in this series deal with Rhi Bran, King Raven, or Robin Hood fighting the Normans for control of his small fiefdom in Wales.

He is a usurped King in search of freedom for his people and land. In the course of the final installment of this series, Rhi Bran, comes head to head with William the Red; the current King of England. This book is narrated from the point of view of the beloved Friar Tuck. Tuck creates a vivid pict More...

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Aug 04, 2011

Megan rated it:

WOOOHOOO. I finally finished the trilogy. It's kind of a sad thing, because I was enjoying the characters and story so much I was sad to have it end, but glad to see how it ended. Definitely books that I will read again. Like Scarlet was from the point of view of Will Scarlet, Tuck is from Friar Tuck's point of view. With the entire series I love how Lawhead weaves British history and poetry into his story. I highly recommend the King Raven Trilogy to anyone who likes historical fiction, More...

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