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Oct 17, 2007

Kevin rated it:

I read this book in high school. I'm sure I read it before the year I graduated, but since I can't remember the specific year, I'll just put 96.

This book was fantastic when I read it in High School. It was truly a different perspective to the story of King Arthur than in books that I originally read on Arthur.

It's interesting that in many depictions of Arthur, the version of Christianity that he is depicted of following differs from story to story, and in this version, More...

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Sep 30, 2011

Toby rated it:

Just finished the 3rd in Stephen Lawheads 'Pendragon Cycle', "Arthur". While it took me longer to get through than the previous two books, it was no less entertaining. Lawhead continues to weave wonder fiction around history and myth. While the depth of character was maintained in this book, the storyline was not nearly as detailed as the earlier ones. To portray Arthur as a master strategist, the story is filled with the history and detail of many battles. The unfortunate thing i More...

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Jan 06, 2011

Brian rated it:

I continued my Arthurian travails with The Pendragon Cycle series. This is a modern sci-fi / fantasy take on the Arthurian legends. The first book started off as an interesting fantasy take on Arthur with some Atlantis thrown in. I thought it was pretty original and easy reading at first. However, the characters were pretty weak and didn't keep me totally engaged. As the series progressed, it dragged more and became a lot more preachy and the characters were just too shallow. The prose was More...

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May 13, 2011

Peter rated it:

This book is the third installment of Lawhead's Pendragon cycle. It turns out there are five books, but this one seems to reach a final conclusion. Did Lawhead plan more in his original vision for the series? I found this book too long and repetitive to be truly enjoyed. The legend of King Arthur fascinates me and the earlier books in the cycle added to my interest. This book was full of battles and the hoped for Summer Kingdom once attained was glossed over in a sentence. Christianity is woven More...

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Jan 02, 2012

Rusty rated it:

A very good read. The tale is told by different characters but still flows well. Arthur's rise to become High King is difficult as he works to gain the support of all the kings in the kingdom. Battle after battle must be engaged to free the kingdom of invaders and to prove to these kings that he is the leader they need. Even when he attains the crown his support among some is tenuous. The impact of Morgian, her father, and her son Medraut takes its toll on Arthur's supporters. When Arthur More...

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Aug 23, 2011

James rated it:

Lawhead's continues his Pendragon series with Arthur. Like the first two books, I also enjoyed reading this book. In this story, we see Arthur become the foretold high king ruler of the Isle of the Mighty. We are taken through the arduous process Arthur must undertake to create the Kingdom of Summer. Arthur and Myrddin must combat treasonous kings as well as multiple invasions of Britain by barbarians. The battle sequences are epic and very well told. I'm glad Lawhead chose to use the first pers More...

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Aug 06, 2009

Gabby rated it:

Oh, Lawhead. You certainly do love changing up the point of view -- no matter if it's in the same book. Overall I thought Merlin was interesting, as there's a lot more to play with, as far as inventing a new story. It was mostly told in Merlin's point of view, but then Arthur changed a lot and I didn't think there was all that much more of an interesting story to tell. Not to mention the ending just kinda ... ended. I know Lawhead didn't think to make this past three books (the first was Taliesi More...

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May 11, 2009

Jayne rated it:

Good story == I have been re-reading the five book series of King Author by Stenphen R. Lawhead. The books begin at the tail end of the Roman heydays and the implosion of Atlantis. They take the reader through the few people who escaped to Britain and establish a community there. Heir to these people if Merlin and King Author. The stories are greatly embellished and provide believable tale of Authur, his round table, knights, many battles and the search for the holy grail. Good reading! Th More...

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Aug 02, 2011

Elise rated it:

Then, upon waking one morning, it came into my mind that Morgian, Queen of Air and Darkness, was fear driven. It is so simple! Why did she act now after all these years? Because something drove her to act – and the something was fear. Morgian was afraid.

I'm so glad I got around to re-reading this book! It's such a brilliant book about the Arthurian legend! It shows Arthur becoming a great and strong king to rule over Britain but also focus' on the other people that helped get him t More...

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Jul 25, 2010

Tori rated it:

Overall I thought this book ended well, but it tended to drag on a bit. In general I was hoping for a book of Arthur's peaceful reign and meetings of the round table knights in their gleaming armor. However, that was not the case. I understand why, but after 2 full books building up the hopes of a Kingdom of Summer, I thought it would be more grandiose.

I must note that Lawhead's treatment of Morgan was very good. He had created this image of an evil fiend, but through the second More...

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Dec 31, 2008

Jessi rated it:

I liked this book as a whole. The ending of it made me very thoughtful and a little depressed. I like when books leave a strong feeling in my heart. That's a sign that it was a good book. The thing I didn't like was the lack of relationship and feeling in the story. Until the end, the story revolved around war and basic male camaraderie and fealty. Aneirin was by far my favorite part of the book.

Edit: I have finished this series finally. I went back and read the third book of Arthur More...

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Dec 13, 2010

JC rated it:

Great ending to a fun series. This was probably my favorite book in this series as most of the characters were quite familiar to me (from King Arther and Queen Gwenhwyvar to Merlin of course). The book is a tale of Arthur uniting the British "Summer Kingdom" together and so there is a lot of battles and war. All the same, I quite enjoyed the story and was very impressed overall with Stephen Lawhead's ability to tell this story and his knowledge of the British legends. I plan to read mo More...

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Jan 28, 2011

Brad rated it:

It was good, entertaining, but not nearly as enjoyable as Merlin. The ending seemed like a bit of a cop out, and had a tendency to seem to play fast and loose with chronology. So that's something. Merlin is still fun, and the best part of the book is the part dedicated to his mystical adventures and mishaps, Lawhead's Arthur is fun and very "Braveheart-esque". Worth a read, as with the others, but not a jump up and scream about it good like the previous ones.

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May 29, 2009

Suzy rated it:

This has been a good series so far....but the story line is getting a little old. Taliesin (#1) was good, Merlin (#2) was great and Arthur (#3) was good at the beginning and ended average. There are two more books to go - Pendragon (#4) and Grail (#5) - I think I will read them eventually, but I need a break at this point. Lawhead is a good writer, but not terribly creative over the long haul. That said, I still recommend these first three books if you're looking for a fun/interesting/entert More...

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Aug 07, 2011

Gwenhwyfar rated it:

Lawhead is a brilliant writer in many aspects but also not so brilliant in others, his lengthy scenes and descriptions can drag on too long and be completely unrelated to the story. But a lot of the time I do enjoy his writing and how he portrays each character, I especially like how Arthur is portrayed as a strong and yet vulnerable young king.

Overall I really enjoyed this book.

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Sep 07, 2010

Douglas rated it:

Lawhead is a Christian writer that has the ability to weave Christianity into the fabric of a story (even historical fiction) without cheapening the faith or ruining the story. This is what he has accomplished in his telling of Arthur story.

Imagine beginning with the destruction of Atlantis, the conversion of the Druids and Christianization of the British Isles. A fantastic story!

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Feb 19, 2010

Anna added it

One of the books I can't technically claim to have read myself, but heard the entirety of read aloud (by my mother mostly) during the sacred family reading time that happened each night. I didn't like Lawhead as much for some reason, but I think that stemmed from a general dislike for fantasy which, as luck would have it, was a genre my parents (or at least Dad) seemed to like a lot.

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Apr 22, 2011

Jeannie rated it:

OH.MY.GOSH. This is my absolute, most favorite book about King Arthur EVER written. It's not the magical, golden, dripping with gems story that you might be thinking. This is a soldier's story, a man who could discern the ebb and flow of a battle better than anyone every had. Arthur was a hero of battles, a great leader even though he was young. I was enchanted with this version of Arthur. The battle at Hadrian's wall had me breathless. The description of the land, the smell of the horses More...

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Jan 06, 2009

Devon rated it:

Didn't care about Arthur. Very interesting uses of mythology--both Christian and ancient Brit., but also a great deal of boring battle. And I didn't care about Arthur--what good's an arthurian novel sequence when you don't connect with Arthur?

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Nov 02, 2010

Christine rated it:

I loved this series. I've given them the honor of having been read in their entirty more than once. I'd happily read them again, but first I'll read "The Once and Future King" by Mr. White for a comparison. :)

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Jul 18, 2009

Julia rated it:

I remember feeling like this book was an endless description of battles and of barbarians eating poorly cooked meat. While Arthur as a legend fascinates me, this book was disappointing in that regard.

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Sep 21, 2009

Jason rated it:

This series began to waver here, and I can't even remember if I actually finished this one. I never went on with the series after this.

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Aug 27, 2009

Hollybrimholly rated it:

Don't know why I'm still reading this series. These books can be slow and boring. I guess I must like the Arthurian legends!

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Mar 14, 2009

Stephen rated it:

No Authurian (spelling?)legend has ever put the Christian religion in such an important role to the story.

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Feb 16, 2011

Karen rated it:

I started reading this last night. So far, excellent. I don't expect anything less from Lawhead.

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Oct 27, 2010

Joel rated it:

I enjoyed this series of books over ten years ago, but in retrospect it's a little preachy.

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Mar 25, 2011

Ashleigh rated it:

Lawhead has a way with words that just sits so right with me, I love his Pendragon cycle!

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Jun 19, 2010

Cass rated it:

I like the character of Arthur far less than that of Merlin. Still it is a great book.

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Jan 21, 2009

Db rated it:

Was so dragged out by Merlin that I had a hard time enjoying this one.

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Mar 26, 2010

Drew added it

Arthur (The Pendragon Cycle, Book 3) by Stephen R. Lawhead (1990)

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