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Tales of Guinevere #1
The Dragon Queen
Arthur turned and strode toward us. He was magnificent, and I will never forget that, in that moment, I first loved him. And I believe--had I known what the future held for us: all the trouble, torment, battle, and grief of our lives--I still believe that I would have yielded my heart into his keeping as I did then . . .
In a sweeping epic of the imagination, Alice Borchardt enters the wondrous realm of Arthurian legend and makes it her own. The Dragon Queen is the first volume in a trilogy of novels that boldly re-imagines Camelot--and casts Guinevere as a shrewd, strong-willed, magical warrior queen.
Born into a world of terrible strife, where war is constant and weapons are never far from the hands of men or women, Guinevere, daughter of a mighty pagan queen, is a threat to her people and a prize to the dreaded sorcerer Merlin. Sent into hiding, she grows up under the protection of a shapeshifting man-wolf and an ornery Druid. But even on the remote coast of Scotland, where dragons feed and watch over her, she is not safe from the all-seeing High Druid Merlin. He knows the young beauty's destiny, and he will stop at nothing to prevent what has been foretold. For if Guinevere becomes Queen and Arthur, King, they will bring a peace to the land that will leave the power-hungry Merlin a shriveled magician in a weary cloak.
Yet Guinevere possesses power of her own--dazzling power to rival even that of Merlin. Summoned from her home by forces she cannot fathom, she travels from the Underworld to an Otherworld of the Past, at each step calling on ancient powers to aid her way. When young Guinevere proves her mettle to an embarrassed Merlin, even her faithful dragon protectors cannot prevent the evil that the sorcerer rains down. Seeking revenge, Merlin banishes Arthur to a world from which the only escape is death. Now Guinevere must face Merlin's wrath without him--and prove that she is worthy of being Arthur's Queen.
From the glass-roofed Great Hall at Tintigal to the lush garden forts of Wales, Alice Borchardt details the travels of Guinevere in a rich fabric of prose. The Dragon Queen is a novel of great emotional depth, timeless romance, and soul-stirring adventure.
In a sweeping epic of the imagination, Alice Borchardt enters the wondrous realm of Arthurian legend and makes it her own. The Dragon Queen is the first volume in a trilogy of novels that boldly re-imagines Camelot--and casts Guinevere as a shrewd, strong-willed, magical warrior queen.
Born into a world of terrible strife, where war is constant and weapons are never far from the hands of men or women, Guinevere, daughter of a mighty pagan queen, is a threat to her people and a prize to the dreaded sorcerer Merlin. Sent into hiding, she grows up under the protection of a shapeshifting man-wolf and an ornery Druid. But even on the remote coast of Scotland, where dragons feed and watch over her, she is not safe from the all-seeing High Druid Merlin. He knows the young beauty's destiny, and he will stop at nothing to prevent what has been foretold. For if Guinevere becomes Queen and Arthur, King, they will bring a peace to the land that will leave the power-hungry Merlin a shriveled magician in a weary cloak.
Yet Guinevere possesses power of her own--dazzling power to rival even that of Merlin. Summoned from her home by forces she cannot fathom, she travels from the Underworld to an Otherworld of the Past, at each step calling on ancient powers to aid her way. When young Guinevere proves her mettle to an embarrassed Merlin, even her faithful dragon protectors cannot prevent the evil that the sorcerer rains down. Seeking revenge, Merlin banishes Arthur to a world from which the only escape is death. Now Guinevere must face Merlin's wrath without him--and prove that she is worthy of being Arthur's Queen.
From the glass-roofed Great Hall at Tintigal to the lush garden forts of Wales, Alice Borchardt details the travels of Guinevere in a rich fabric of prose. The Dragon Queen is a novel of great emotional depth, timeless romance, and soul-stirring adventure.
480 pages, Hardcover
First published October 30, 2001
61 people are currently reading
3234 people want to read
About the author
Alice Borchardt
14 books274 followersAlice O'Brien was born on 6 October 1939 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. She was one of five sister of Katherine "Kay" Allen and Howard O'Brien. The O'Brien family moved to Richardson, Texas, when Alice was a teenager. She began her nursing career in Houston, where she met and married her husband, Clifford Borchardt. After a 30-year career as a licensed vocational nurse, Borchardt faced staff reductions at the hospital where she worked. Alice's sister, the writer Anne Rice, encouraged her, helped her find an agent, and wrote introductions to several of her books. She wrote seven books. She passed away on 24 July 2007 in Houston, Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
June 22, 2008
Women fighting men with swords - whats not to like?
May 20, 2010
Although I liked this tale overall, there were pieces of it that bogged the story down for me.
The Dragon Queen is yet another entry into the tales of Arthur and The Knights of the Round Table. For those who love their Arthurian legends with Merlin as the big bad- then this book's for you. For those who don't-then Run away!
TDQ centers around Guinevere, the warrior queen of Arthur and in Borchardt's version she is indeed a warrior. Guinevere, has the beauty of previous Arthurian tales, but in TDQ she's not the sweet little misguided star-crossed lover of Lancelot that we usually see her portrayed to be. Courageous and bold she has power in her right hand where ferocious fire emanates (grand super power that!), and healing in her left. Moreover, arrows flyout her bow as if an extension of her arm, she communicates with dragons- as well with the dead- displays prophetic abilities, and audaciously defeats asundry of evil beasts that Merlin flings at her.
The story begins with Maeniel, Guinevere's soon to be foster father. Maeniel, otherwise knows as the Gray Watcher, is a shapeshifting man/wolf who has personally felt the destructive powers of Merlin. Deciding that being a wolf was much preferred to living with the humans, he escapes to the wilds and begins a family. It is during his time with the wolves that Guinevere falls into his care, and the Gray Watcher, along with the sorcerer Dugald- who Merlin chased into hiding long ago- take up the charge of raising her. The Gray Watcher's wolf mate nurses
Guinevere from the time they find her left on a cliff and later a woman joins them who will teach her the ways of her people- a people she never knew.
As a child, Guinevere helps her village to defeat a marauding group of seafarers- and it is here where we see her potential for greatness begin to come forth. Guinevere grows in stature, wisdom and power and, though still only a young teen through much of the story, she quickly finds herself thrust into peril. Merlin wants her dead, and though the author details many things in TDQ, I never quite got the gist of his motive for seeking to destroy her so passionately. The only thing I can figure is that she must be the one who either precipitates or actually carries out Merlin's eventual destruction.
Many other side characters show up to aid or engage her in battle. There are all kinds of fantasy creatures- including mythological gods- that she meets up with and, eventually, she meets her future in the boy of Arthur.
Arthur is just as strong as she- and closer to her age then what I've seen portrayed before. Set long before Camalot, he's young and only discovering who and what he's eventually going to be. Much of the middle of the book is from his POV, where he meets the Lady of the Lake. I was disappointed however, that at the end of TDQ, he and Guinevere do not meet up again. (I suppose that will come in later installments.)
The jumping around of POV's was rather confusing for me and the author lost me a bit until it began to pick up again toward the end. The book is full of detailed descriptions of the world Borchardt has created and some of it became overwhelming. To me her descriptions dragged the story down and lost me for most of the middle of the book. But, as I said before, by the end I was back with her.
This is definitely sequel bait- the story is far from over. I'm interested to see where the author- who was Anne Rice's sister, btw- will take it.
The Dragon Queen is yet another entry into the tales of Arthur and The Knights of the Round Table. For those who love their Arthurian legends with Merlin as the big bad- then this book's for you. For those who don't-then Run away!
TDQ centers around Guinevere, the warrior queen of Arthur and in Borchardt's version she is indeed a warrior. Guinevere, has the beauty of previous Arthurian tales, but in TDQ she's not the sweet little misguided star-crossed lover of Lancelot that we usually see her portrayed to be. Courageous and bold she has power in her right hand where ferocious fire emanates (grand super power that!), and healing in her left. Moreover, arrows flyout her bow as if an extension of her arm, she communicates with dragons- as well with the dead- displays prophetic abilities, and audaciously defeats asundry of evil beasts that Merlin flings at her.
The story begins with Maeniel, Guinevere's soon to be foster father. Maeniel, otherwise knows as the Gray Watcher, is a shapeshifting man/wolf who has personally felt the destructive powers of Merlin. Deciding that being a wolf was much preferred to living with the humans, he escapes to the wilds and begins a family. It is during his time with the wolves that Guinevere falls into his care, and the Gray Watcher, along with the sorcerer Dugald- who Merlin chased into hiding long ago- take up the charge of raising her. The Gray Watcher's wolf mate nurses
Guinevere from the time they find her left on a cliff and later a woman joins them who will teach her the ways of her people- a people she never knew.
As a child, Guinevere helps her village to defeat a marauding group of seafarers- and it is here where we see her potential for greatness begin to come forth. Guinevere grows in stature, wisdom and power and, though still only a young teen through much of the story, she quickly finds herself thrust into peril. Merlin wants her dead, and though the author details many things in TDQ, I never quite got the gist of his motive for seeking to destroy her so passionately. The only thing I can figure is that she must be the one who either precipitates or actually carries out Merlin's eventual destruction.
Many other side characters show up to aid or engage her in battle. There are all kinds of fantasy creatures- including mythological gods- that she meets up with and, eventually, she meets her future in the boy of Arthur.
Arthur is just as strong as she- and closer to her age then what I've seen portrayed before. Set long before Camalot, he's young and only discovering who and what he's eventually going to be. Much of the middle of the book is from his POV, where he meets the Lady of the Lake. I was disappointed however, that at the end of TDQ, he and Guinevere do not meet up again. (I suppose that will come in later installments.)
The jumping around of POV's was rather confusing for me and the author lost me a bit until it began to pick up again toward the end. The book is full of detailed descriptions of the world Borchardt has created and some of it became overwhelming. To me her descriptions dragged the story down and lost me for most of the middle of the book. But, as I said before, by the end I was back with her.
This is definitely sequel bait- the story is far from over. I'm interested to see where the author- who was Anne Rice's sister, btw- will take it.
November 7, 2018
I did not like this book. However, it is my first 1 Star, so it's got that going for it.
Why did I read this? It was selected for my wife and roommate's book club, and I parasitically piggyback a lot of their books (gives me something to talk about...). It's Arthurian! It's from Guinivere's perspective! Magic! Celtic! Post 'Fall of the Western Empire'! These things and more!
No, it's terrible. Why did I keep reading it? It did take me on a journey: I experienced all the 'Stages of Grief' (some of them more than once.
Denial: Ha, it's so weird, but it'll get better! The chapters are long, but that's okay! Weird, the perspective shifted...?
Anger: I liked the other character; this one is dumb. She's a Mary Sue! WTF? That just worked out for her with zero effort! Okay, she needs to show some growth...
Bargaining: ...Okay, the parts with Arthur aren't bad, maybe?
Anger: Why are they having revenge sex in the forest?
Denial: Arthur is cool, yes, he's very cool... :|
Depression: I really shouldn't be reading this anymore; I think it's actively hurting me.
Acceptance: There is only book. Oh yeah, I guess your shoes can do that. Yep, you're definitely super fucking hot, and everyone wants to be or be with you. Sure why not? I don't have enough brain power to think it should be any different. After all, you're the best, Gwen!
But the real joy of this book is in not starting it. If you made that mistake and you're too masochistic to give up, then finishing it is an exultant experience
The contents are one thing, but they aren't even well served by the writing. Transitions are abrupt and jarring. I back-read multiple times to try and figure out where the hell I was, only to realize there wasn't any explanation; it just got there and it was fine (it wasn't fine).
This thing had such potential: Arthurian set in the 'proper' time frame, the Christianization of Britannia and the clashes with pagan beliefs that ensue, Celtic and Brythonic myth woven throughout. But it all reads so poorly in the end. The author is far too verbose and floral with her language. First person POV ruins any sense of actual accomplishment because we only see the character succeeding; no real growth or change is experienced. I find Divine Right to be problematic, and this book is very much into the romanticism of a destined ruler (both for Arthur and for Gwen).
Oh yeah, Merlin is evil and helps Arthur's mom torment Arthur, I guess? Like, if you hate the kid so much just kill him? Oh wait, 'destiny'...
Tedious tripe, glorified garbage, wretched rubbish. What a waste of time.
Why did I read this? It was selected for my wife and roommate's book club, and I parasitically piggyback a lot of their books (gives me something to talk about...). It's Arthurian! It's from Guinivere's perspective! Magic! Celtic! Post 'Fall of the Western Empire'! These things and more!
No, it's terrible. Why did I keep reading it? It did take me on a journey: I experienced all the 'Stages of Grief' (some of them more than once.
Denial: Ha, it's so weird, but it'll get better! The chapters are long, but that's okay! Weird, the perspective shifted...?
Anger: I liked the other character; this one is dumb. She's a Mary Sue! WTF? That just worked out for her with zero effort! Okay, she needs to show some growth...
Bargaining: ...Okay, the parts with Arthur aren't bad, maybe?
Anger: Why are they having revenge sex in the forest?
Denial: Arthur is cool, yes, he's very cool... :|
Depression: I really shouldn't be reading this anymore; I think it's actively hurting me.
Acceptance: There is only book. Oh yeah, I guess your shoes can do that. Yep, you're definitely super fucking hot, and everyone wants to be or be with you. Sure why not? I don't have enough brain power to think it should be any different. After all, you're the best, Gwen!
But the real joy of this book is in not starting it. If you made that mistake and you're too masochistic to give up, then finishing it is an exultant experience
The contents are one thing, but they aren't even well served by the writing. Transitions are abrupt and jarring. I back-read multiple times to try and figure out where the hell I was, only to realize there wasn't any explanation; it just got there and it was fine (it wasn't fine).
This thing had such potential: Arthurian set in the 'proper' time frame, the Christianization of Britannia and the clashes with pagan beliefs that ensue, Celtic and Brythonic myth woven throughout. But it all reads so poorly in the end. The author is far too verbose and floral with her language. First person POV ruins any sense of actual accomplishment because we only see the character succeeding; no real growth or change is experienced. I find Divine Right to be problematic, and this book is very much into the romanticism of a destined ruler (both for Arthur and for Gwen).
Oh yeah, Merlin is evil and helps Arthur's mom torment Arthur, I guess? Like, if you hate the kid so much just kill him? Oh wait, 'destiny'...
Tedious tripe, glorified garbage, wretched rubbish. What a waste of time.
March 18, 2020
This book was splendid in the story-telling sense. The story was epic and magical and engaging. Also, this is, by far, the best Guinevere I have encountered in modern fiction so far. She was strong but not brass, brave but not stupid, powerful yet humble, compassionate but not weak, feminine yet full of agency. Perhaps what I liked the most about her was that she was in communion with animals and gods alike and knew her place in the wheel of existence. She was wise like that, but never overbearingly so. I loved her. I wanted to *be* her.
Arthur I also liked very much, and I liked that this was a tortured Arthur who had suffered child abuse at the hands of her horrible queen mother Igrane (*the* worst evil queen ever) but was still good and noble and could not lie and never feared danger. I liked his relationship with his father, Uther, the High King, which was refreshingly healthy and loving. Merlin I hated. This is a book with a bad Merlin in it, which I don't like as a trope. I much prefer my Merlins to be good and Gandalf-like, but in this case it worked to have him be so evil and act as the villain. The black magic he wrought was one of the sickest and most horrifying ones I've ever read in a story.
Alice Borchardt seems to know her history well, so much so in fact that it's almost like if she lived in this period of time (Roman - Saxon) in a past life. I, for one, appreciated all of the extraneous detail relating to the customs and mores of the time because it made the world-building that much better.
The magic system in this book was refreshingly deep and believable. So many magic systems in recent fantasy books are light and superficial, as if they had been thought up in brainstorming sessions instead of being fully inspired. Not so with Borchardt's story; the magic here seemed inspired by the author's own psyche and thus, was multilayered and poliphacetic, changeable and malleable but also essentially true to its own core.
I also liked that an existencial and historical struggle was hinted at: the convergence between paganism and Christianity, if there can be a convergence at all. It was only hinted at here but I wouldn't mind if this theme in particular were elaborated more in the second book (The Raven Warrior) because it is of particular interest to me. On some level I think it was also of particular interest to Borchardt, as well. I am a huge fan of Anne Rice's (Alice Borchardt's sister) Vampire Chronicles, and Rice definitely waxes philosophical about her own struggles with different faith systems and beliefs in her own fiction, much more so than Borchardt, who chose to focus more on the story. But I wouldn't have minded if she had expanded on this in her fiction, just like her sister did. But then again, I am of a philosophical bent and like these kinds of tangents.
Why the three-star rating, then, if I liked the book so much? Well, the story was golden, but the writing was confusing at times, especially at the beginning and end. Sometimes it was almost stream-of-consciousness like, and I got lost and confused. At other times, when a character referred to somebody else as 'she', for example, I didn't know who they were talking about, because there were several 'she's' they could have been referring to. So some more specificity in this and other similar instances would have been appreciated. Sometimes, also, the writing got too dream-like, too airy fairy and dreamy...and perhaps more concrete writing would have served the book better overall. I also suspect this book could have had tighter editing. I know for a fact Anne Rice is not a fan of people editing her writing, and I don't know if Alice Borchardt felt the same as her sister does in this matter, but I for one think good editing is absolutely crucial in any book.
Putting this aside, though, I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading the second and final installment. This was meant to be a trilogy, but unfortunately, the author died from illness before she could complete the third book, so two books is all we have. I will read her other books as well, though. She's a gem of a story-teller, at least in my estimation.
Arthur I also liked very much, and I liked that this was a tortured Arthur who had suffered child abuse at the hands of her horrible queen mother Igrane (*the* worst evil queen ever) but was still good and noble and could not lie and never feared danger. I liked his relationship with his father, Uther, the High King, which was refreshingly healthy and loving. Merlin I hated. This is a book with a bad Merlin in it, which I don't like as a trope. I much prefer my Merlins to be good and Gandalf-like, but in this case it worked to have him be so evil and act as the villain. The black magic he wrought was one of the sickest and most horrifying ones I've ever read in a story.
Alice Borchardt seems to know her history well, so much so in fact that it's almost like if she lived in this period of time (Roman - Saxon) in a past life. I, for one, appreciated all of the extraneous detail relating to the customs and mores of the time because it made the world-building that much better.
The magic system in this book was refreshingly deep and believable. So many magic systems in recent fantasy books are light and superficial, as if they had been thought up in brainstorming sessions instead of being fully inspired. Not so with Borchardt's story; the magic here seemed inspired by the author's own psyche and thus, was multilayered and poliphacetic, changeable and malleable but also essentially true to its own core.
I also liked that an existencial and historical struggle was hinted at: the convergence between paganism and Christianity, if there can be a convergence at all. It was only hinted at here but I wouldn't mind if this theme in particular were elaborated more in the second book (The Raven Warrior) because it is of particular interest to me. On some level I think it was also of particular interest to Borchardt, as well. I am a huge fan of Anne Rice's (Alice Borchardt's sister) Vampire Chronicles, and Rice definitely waxes philosophical about her own struggles with different faith systems and beliefs in her own fiction, much more so than Borchardt, who chose to focus more on the story. But I wouldn't have minded if she had expanded on this in her fiction, just like her sister did. But then again, I am of a philosophical bent and like these kinds of tangents.
Why the three-star rating, then, if I liked the book so much? Well, the story was golden, but the writing was confusing at times, especially at the beginning and end. Sometimes it was almost stream-of-consciousness like, and I got lost and confused. At other times, when a character referred to somebody else as 'she', for example, I didn't know who they were talking about, because there were several 'she's' they could have been referring to. So some more specificity in this and other similar instances would have been appreciated. Sometimes, also, the writing got too dream-like, too airy fairy and dreamy...and perhaps more concrete writing would have served the book better overall. I also suspect this book could have had tighter editing. I know for a fact Anne Rice is not a fan of people editing her writing, and I don't know if Alice Borchardt felt the same as her sister does in this matter, but I for one think good editing is absolutely crucial in any book.
Putting this aside, though, I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading the second and final installment. This was meant to be a trilogy, but unfortunately, the author died from illness before she could complete the third book, so two books is all we have. I will read her other books as well, though. She's a gem of a story-teller, at least in my estimation.
April 11, 2009
This was a did not finish book for me.
So after reading about 185 pages of The Dragon Queen by Alice Borchardt I have decided to thrown it down and stop reading. I thought I would like it being about Quinevere and all but I hate it. It's not like the Arthur legends I've ever known. But that's not really even it though. I could handle a different take on the stories ( I still have yet to read any books about Arthur that are out there that are more well known) it's just the way she has written it. She jumps from one place to another and it's like when did that happen? Also sometimes when there are a few people talking 'she says...' your like who is talking? Which one is saying what. UGH. I hate not finishing a book but I really can't continue to read it anymore.
Having said that I really have no urge to read Bequiled which is also by her. I read the first in that series and while it was better written then The Dragon Queen I really don't love the characters in the first book to continue to read the second one anymore. Not after trying to get through The Dragon Queen and hating it. It's sad but yeah. I love Anne Rice's books and hoped that I would equally like her sister's books. But I guess they are just not for me.
I've read reviews on these two books and it sounds like her werewolf books are pretty good but I think I may wait a while to even attempt to try those ones.
So now its off to the library today to pick up some more to read.
So after reading about 185 pages of The Dragon Queen by Alice Borchardt I have decided to thrown it down and stop reading. I thought I would like it being about Quinevere and all but I hate it. It's not like the Arthur legends I've ever known. But that's not really even it though. I could handle a different take on the stories ( I still have yet to read any books about Arthur that are out there that are more well known) it's just the way she has written it. She jumps from one place to another and it's like when did that happen? Also sometimes when there are a few people talking 'she says...' your like who is talking? Which one is saying what. UGH. I hate not finishing a book but I really can't continue to read it anymore.
Having said that I really have no urge to read Bequiled which is also by her. I read the first in that series and while it was better written then The Dragon Queen I really don't love the characters in the first book to continue to read the second one anymore. Not after trying to get through The Dragon Queen and hating it. It's sad but yeah. I love Anne Rice's books and hoped that I would equally like her sister's books. But I guess they are just not for me.
I've read reviews on these two books and it sounds like her werewolf books are pretty good but I think I may wait a while to even attempt to try those ones.
So now its off to the library today to pick up some more to read.
January 10, 2019
This was like reading someone's dream. The ideas were all loosely connected but the transitions were weird and random or completely non-existent. However, the characters and concepts were fun and interesting and I did like this book.
March 21, 2020
Eigenlijks lees ik nu een boek van mijn man maar wauw wat is dit een gave uitgave en boek. Nu op naar boek 2
October 14, 2018
I'm very sorry to say, I could not finish this book. I REALLY wanted to be in love with this story. I even purchased the 2nd book from Thrift Books soon after I started this one. I figured they would become part of my Arthurian obsession, and I would need to own them. It started out with a great concept, and I liked the differences in the legend that I hadn't read before. I wanted to know more about the different characters, but it was so choppy, from one point of view to another back and forth, I couldn't keep track of which character I was reading about.
It just dragged on and on and on and on....it was trial after trial after trial. The characters would accomplish one win and suddenly face another trial. I felt like I was reading a bad rendition of The Odyssey. I REALLY wanted to love it. But reading became a chore, and I fell into a reading slump. The book sat in one spot for a couple weeks, and I felt it hanging over my head. I finally decided enough was enough. I wanted to be eager to read again. So I took out the bookmark, and this is going on my "couldn't finish" list.
I will donate the set to a Free Little Library somewhere, and I hope someone else will get some pleasure out of them.
It just dragged on and on and on and on....it was trial after trial after trial. The characters would accomplish one win and suddenly face another trial. I felt like I was reading a bad rendition of The Odyssey. I REALLY wanted to love it. But reading became a chore, and I fell into a reading slump. The book sat in one spot for a couple weeks, and I felt it hanging over my head. I finally decided enough was enough. I wanted to be eager to read again. So I took out the bookmark, and this is going on my "couldn't finish" list.
I will donate the set to a Free Little Library somewhere, and I hope someone else will get some pleasure out of them.
November 9, 2018
I do have to start by saying that this is the first Arthurian legend I can recall reading. I don't think that really affected my POV but...
Extremely hard to get through from the beginning. Kept hoping it would get better but nope. Not only was the switching between third and first POV annoying but it was made worse by the main character. Did not want her voice at all. It was also hard to tell what was going on/who was speaking at times (during the third POV of course). In the beginning I went back to the and re-read things but quickly learned there was no point. Sometimes things arrived randomly and others I realized I had just spaced out because of all the needless words. You could take out half the words in this book and be all the better off for it...
Also if I had to read "As I said..." one more time...!
I can't remember the last time I didn't finish a book and if I hadn't had to read this because of my book club I don't think I would have finished. Says everything in a nutshell.
So much more but I'll just leave it at that. Extremely glad to be done with this book!
Extremely hard to get through from the beginning. Kept hoping it would get better but nope. Not only was the switching between third and first POV annoying but it was made worse by the main character. Did not want her voice at all. It was also hard to tell what was going on/who was speaking at times (during the third POV of course). In the beginning I went back to the and re-read things but quickly learned there was no point. Sometimes things arrived randomly and others I realized I had just spaced out because of all the needless words. You could take out half the words in this book and be all the better off for it...
Also if I had to read "As I said..." one more time...!
I can't remember the last time I didn't finish a book and if I hadn't had to read this because of my book club I don't think I would have finished. Says everything in a nutshell.
So much more but I'll just leave it at that. Extremely glad to be done with this book!
June 21, 2019
Voto de confianza... esta m¡¡bien escrito y la revisión de la leyenda artúrica es muy interesante. Al final, en algunos capítulos, se le va un poco la pinza con salidas algo paranoicas que me han dejado bastante descolocado... lo que es seguro es que no me lo esperaba... pero tampoco comprendo demasiado la razón para ello. Veremos cómo acaba y si se queda en una anécdota.
January 10, 2021
Really enjoyable, a page Turner that I didn't want to be finished. I am looking forward to reading the 2nd book.
July 4, 2019
It's an interesting retelling of Guinevere and Arthur. I loved every bit of it and can't wait to read the sequel.
January 22, 2014
This book was weird. I think it might have been tolerable if the author didn't try to weave it into the Arthurian legend (ie. if she made up original characters), but as it is I just couldn't get into it. There were some parts/scenes that I did enjoy, and others that I didn't... but overall I found it very confusing, and often found myself asking "What is happening right now?" and "Why?"
The story line flip-flopped around a lot... the characters were not wholly believable (Guinevere did NOT seem like a 13 year old girl, by any stretch of the imagination).. and I found parts of the plot silly and unrelated.
I won't be reading any of the other books in this sequence.
The story line flip-flopped around a lot... the characters were not wholly believable (Guinevere did NOT seem like a 13 year old girl, by any stretch of the imagination).. and I found parts of the plot silly and unrelated.
I won't be reading any of the other books in this sequence.
October 7, 2014
I think you have to really like arthurian legends to read this book. I liked it in the beginning, it started telling the story of Geunivere as a young girl and the "what if" this was her upbringing. There were wizards, men who turned into wolves and of course, merlin and morgana. About halfway through she meets Arthur, and then the book divides into the telling of each of their lives and they each stray into their own mystic journeys. To me, it spent too much time on these mystic journeys and by the end, i was ready to be done with this whole story. Not interesting enough ending for me to read into the sequel.
October 5, 2008
Maybe some day I'll come back to this book, but I just don't think I can read this book. I find myself wondering if I'm not following something of if this book is just beyond my reading. The writing is in a way that makes it seems like, wow we want the read to think this author is just so descriptive and great. Only it becomes confusing and bored. If you aren't familiar with the story of Guinevere then there is no point in reading it because nothing is explained and you are just sitting there wondering what the heck is going on.
May 19, 2013
I enjoyed this book up until the last third and then it got way too much involved with Arthur. It didn't quite wrap up the way I had expected and I would suggest not reading it unless you want to continue on with the series. I may read the sequel at a later time but I need a break from the acid trip like sections with Arthur.
December 22, 2013
I really wanted to like this book.
About halfway through, I got bored and tried to push through it, but ultimately gave up. There was so much description and not enough happening.
Also, considering this was titled the Dragon Queen, I expected more dragons. Their lack of presence was disappointing.
About halfway through, I got bored and tried to push through it, but ultimately gave up. There was so much description and not enough happening.
Also, considering this was titled the Dragon Queen, I expected more dragons. Their lack of presence was disappointing.
October 4, 2012
I got about halfway through this book. Someday I'll give it another chance, or maybe try to figure out what exactly the author did wrong. A sword weilding Gweneviere? It could have been great. I thought it would be after reading the description on the back of the gorgeous cover.
Want to read
July 17, 2008... t read
August 16, 2008
an overall awesome book
November 19, 2017
I struggled with this book and I couldn't finish it, although it was a great idea, I didn't love this book.
November 9, 2023
I had this book about 20 years ago, tried to read it, but I just couldn't get into it. I got another copy used and gave it another try. While not as bad as my first experience in the first 20 pages, I found in the ensuing pages that the narrative is quite disjointed, and timelines are fluid and unclear to me. Perhaps that was Borchardt's intent, but I was confused by it. Additionally, it seems that characters are magically transported to strange places without any transition that I could discern. This narrative was hard to follow.
The book begins in a scene in 470 in Tintigal (not Tintagil, the famous castle in Cornwall where Arthur was conceived and born in the traditional romance). Ostensibly, the main character is a wolfman (a wolf who changes into a man when he chooses to) named Maeniel, and he is a friend to the British king Vortigen, who is not the villain he is normally portrayed as in history and the romances. Merlin shows up with a contingent of Saxons, and a battle ensues in which Vortigen is slain and Maeniel is knocked unconscious by an unknown cudgel. In the next scene, he wakes up on a hillside far away, presumably the far north, near Hadrian's Wall, and he becomes the mate of a she-wolf, who bears him a son, Black Leg (who will become Lancelot in the second novel The Raven Warrior). Sometime later, we find that 70 years have passed since Vortigen's death. Oddly, there is a baby girl in the nearby village, Guenevere (Borchardt spells her name differently depending on who is addressing her), who is one of the major characters of this series, the eponymous destined Dragon Queen. When Guenevere is 15, we are then told that 100 years have passed since Vortigen died. Confusion abounds.
This story had occasional high points, with modern fantastical treatments of the transformation duels, but I really had a hard time following the flow of Borchardt's narrative. I am a pretty astute reader, so I find it difficult to believe this was my fault. Borchardt seemed to be playing coy with the unfolding of events, and that was annoying. She was the sister of the better-known Anne Rice, author of the Vampire Chronicles, so I tried hard to give this a chance.
Borchardt intended to make this a trilogy, but the passed away in 2007 before the third book in the trilogy could be published. I don't know if anyone picked up her notes with the intent to complete her work, and I can't imagine that there was a demand for it. I do intend to slog through The Raven Warrior, as it is my rule to read books through and evaluate them honestly. If they're bad, I point out why. The lack of comprehensible transitions in time and space are my primary complaint with this novel. I hope that The Raven Warrior is more cognizant of walking me through how characters get from Point A to Point B than this one was.
The book begins in a scene in 470 in Tintigal (not Tintagil, the famous castle in Cornwall where Arthur was conceived and born in the traditional romance). Ostensibly, the main character is a wolfman (a wolf who changes into a man when he chooses to) named Maeniel, and he is a friend to the British king Vortigen, who is not the villain he is normally portrayed as in history and the romances. Merlin shows up with a contingent of Saxons, and a battle ensues in which Vortigen is slain and Maeniel is knocked unconscious by an unknown cudgel. In the next scene, he wakes up on a hillside far away, presumably the far north, near Hadrian's Wall, and he becomes the mate of a she-wolf, who bears him a son, Black Leg (who will become Lancelot in the second novel The Raven Warrior). Sometime later, we find that 70 years have passed since Vortigen's death. Oddly, there is a baby girl in the nearby village, Guenevere (Borchardt spells her name differently depending on who is addressing her), who is one of the major characters of this series, the eponymous destined Dragon Queen. When Guenevere is 15, we are then told that 100 years have passed since Vortigen died. Confusion abounds.
This story had occasional high points, with modern fantastical treatments of the transformation duels, but I really had a hard time following the flow of Borchardt's narrative. I am a pretty astute reader, so I find it difficult to believe this was my fault. Borchardt seemed to be playing coy with the unfolding of events, and that was annoying. She was the sister of the better-known Anne Rice, author of the Vampire Chronicles, so I tried hard to give this a chance.
Borchardt intended to make this a trilogy, but the passed away in 2007 before the third book in the trilogy could be published. I don't know if anyone picked up her notes with the intent to complete her work, and I can't imagine that there was a demand for it. I do intend to slog through The Raven Warrior, as it is my rule to read books through and evaluate them honestly. If they're bad, I point out why. The lack of comprehensible transitions in time and space are my primary complaint with this novel. I hope that The Raven Warrior is more cognizant of walking me through how characters get from Point A to Point B than this one was.
July 24, 2025
Honestly? 5/6 or 4.75/6
I really loved this book! It's hard to describe what exactly I loved about it though lol. It had a very ethereal quality to it... The magic in this world is just a fact of life, some peple have it, while others don't, and yet, it didn't feel fantastical. Everyone knows about magic and most peoples still believe in the gods and things even though "The Church" (christianity) is present on the British Isles.
Borchardt grounds the story in the time right after Rome leaves the Isles, though they are still very much an influence on the peoples. It was a very mystical vibe to the whole story, kind of like there is a shroud of fog that is the magic of the world. IDK, like I said, hard to describe lol.
I loved Guinevere, and I liked how different characters referred to her by various spellings/pronouciations thoughout the story, as if they were speaking different languages. It is a very different take on the Arthur/Guinevere story, and very much an action oriented one, with Guinevere being the focus of the action and not just a passive bystander.
I though the portrayal of the other major characters interesting, and they were given roles that they are not usual given in the story. Arthur is "good", Merlin and Ingrane are the "evil" ones, Guinevere is strong willed and knows what she wants and sets out to get it. She doesn't seem like the type of person who will betray Arthur with Lancelot, but we'll just have to find out! (I hope she doesn't). The portrayal of these characters (and other named characters) made me do some research to try to get a better picture of if they had ever been portayed like this before. My search was unsucessful lol, as they were very diffefrent from "traditional" stories, but I haven't really read many retellings, so I cant be sure if they are exclusive to this story.
My only compaint with this book is that I found out it was supposed to be a trilogy!!!! And YET there are only two books! T.T *cries* I know the author can't help that she passed away, but book 2 came out in 2003 and she passed in 2007! That seems like a decent amount of time to finish the third book (I'm being very ungrateful, I know I am, I just lament what never was). Also apparently Anne Rice of vampire fame is Borchardt's sister?!?!?! She doesn't have like an early draft of her sister's just laying around??? T.T
I will def be reading the next one! (this one took me so long because I paused to participate in a read a thon and then got distracted by other books lol and then I got busy with work so I didn't have as much time to read)
I really loved this book! It's hard to describe what exactly I loved about it though lol. It had a very ethereal quality to it... The magic in this world is just a fact of life, some peple have it, while others don't, and yet, it didn't feel fantastical. Everyone knows about magic and most peoples still believe in the gods and things even though "The Church" (christianity) is present on the British Isles.
Borchardt grounds the story in the time right after Rome leaves the Isles, though they are still very much an influence on the peoples. It was a very mystical vibe to the whole story, kind of like there is a shroud of fog that is the magic of the world. IDK, like I said, hard to describe lol.
I loved Guinevere, and I liked how different characters referred to her by various spellings/pronouciations thoughout the story, as if they were speaking different languages. It is a very different take on the Arthur/Guinevere story, and very much an action oriented one, with Guinevere being the focus of the action and not just a passive bystander.
I though the portrayal of the other major characters interesting, and they were given roles that they are not usual given in the story. Arthur is "good", Merlin and Ingrane are the "evil" ones, Guinevere is strong willed and knows what she wants and sets out to get it. She doesn't seem like the type of person who will betray Arthur with Lancelot, but we'll just have to find out! (I hope she doesn't). The portrayal of these characters (and other named characters) made me do some research to try to get a better picture of if they had ever been portayed like this before. My search was unsucessful lol, as they were very diffefrent from "traditional" stories, but I haven't really read many retellings, so I cant be sure if they are exclusive to this story.
My only compaint with this book is that I found out it was supposed to be a trilogy!!!! And YET there are only two books! T.T *cries* I know the author can't help that she passed away, but book 2 came out in 2003 and she passed in 2007! That seems like a decent amount of time to finish the third book (I'm being very ungrateful, I know I am, I just lament what never was). Also apparently Anne Rice of vampire fame is Borchardt's sister?!?!?! She doesn't have like an early draft of her sister's just laying around??? T.T
I will def be reading the next one! (this one took me so long because I paused to participate in a read a thon and then got distracted by other books lol and then I got busy with work so I didn't have as much time to read)
August 15, 2024
This book was not for me. I had high hopes, the summary sounded interesting. It took me much longer than usual to finish this book as I struggled to enjoy it and I will not be picking up the second installment. I almost DNF'd this book several times but decided to stick with it.
The first half of the book felt like it was the author's freewriting development of the book, which she never bothered to go back and actually edit into a cohesive and understandable story. It was like being is some kind of dream where everything was hazy and only loosely connected. Sometimes you ended up in an entirely different location or time without even realizing it. It was also almost impossible to understand who was being discussed as the author tends to avoid using names and simply use pronouns leaving the reader to try and figure out (usually without success) who the "she" is that is being discussed. It was also very interesting that the author (or editor) chose to spell Guinevere's name differently throughout the book.
The second half was a little better and is the only reason I didn't give this book a one star. I don't mind Merlin as the antagonist as some other reviewers do and I found his character interesting. However, I did not really like the relationship between Arthur and Guinevere. I'm not sure how I am supposed to be convinced that this was some fated love story when they met for all of maybe an hour total. It seemed more insta-lust than anything else and there was no relationship development at all after that.
Overall I spent my time either being very confused and a little bored or kind of confused and mildly interested.
The first half of the book felt like it was the author's freewriting development of the book, which she never bothered to go back and actually edit into a cohesive and understandable story. It was like being is some kind of dream where everything was hazy and only loosely connected. Sometimes you ended up in an entirely different location or time without even realizing it. It was also almost impossible to understand who was being discussed as the author tends to avoid using names and simply use pronouns leaving the reader to try and figure out (usually without success) who the "she" is that is being discussed. It was also very interesting that the author (or editor) chose to spell Guinevere's name differently throughout the book.
The second half was a little better and is the only reason I didn't give this book a one star. I don't mind Merlin as the antagonist as some other reviewers do and I found his character interesting. However, I did not really like the relationship between Arthur and Guinevere. I'm not sure how I am supposed to be convinced that this was some fated love story when they met for all of maybe an hour total. It seemed more insta-lust than anything else and there was no relationship development at all after that.
Overall I spent my time either being very confused and a little bored or kind of confused and mildly interested.
August 30, 2022
2.5 stars.
I REALLY like the character of Guinevere, but there were other parts of the story I didn't enjoy.
The writing style can be very winding and even abstract in some ways. There are whole parts you can skim without missing much. There aren't a ton of people, but enough to get them confused, especially a couple with similar names.
I'm always very frustrated with stories that try to have strong female characters but still have an overly sexually charged world. There are so many wonderfully creative parts of this world and then we default back to several tired tropes. There's just no need.
Some chapters are 30 pages, some are 5. It doesn't appear based on POV or time, so why is this so inconsistent?
And finally... I understand this is the first book of the trilogy, but this book just felt like a long prologue. Other series the first book is still a worthwhile read and entertaining story. This is more of an origin story before you fully appreciate the main story. So there are very mixed feelings about continuing the series because while I love Guinevere, there's an awful lot to overlook.
I REALLY like the character of Guinevere, but there were other parts of the story I didn't enjoy.
The writing style can be very winding and even abstract in some ways. There are whole parts you can skim without missing much. There aren't a ton of people, but enough to get them confused, especially a couple with similar names.
I'm always very frustrated with stories that try to have strong female characters but still have an overly sexually charged world. There are so many wonderfully creative parts of this world and then we default back to several tired tropes. There's just no need.
Some chapters are 30 pages, some are 5. It doesn't appear based on POV or time, so why is this so inconsistent?
And finally... I understand this is the first book of the trilogy, but this book just felt like a long prologue. Other series the first book is still a worthwhile read and entertaining story. This is more of an origin story before you fully appreciate the main story. So there are very mixed feelings about continuing the series because while I love Guinevere, there's an awful lot to overlook.
October 30, 2020
First of all, I love Arthurian legends. Second, I always finish books, constantly hopeful that the story will improve, but I must confess that I skimmed this book to the end. I just cannot read any more!
This story has no cohesion, no main narrator and skips from one location to another mid-chapter. Plus there are men suddenly shapeshifting into wolves, and back again; no reasons given; no context for the intrigue and killings taking place; and a young girl child, supposedly Guinevere of Arthurian legend, being suckled by a she-wolf after being kidnapped.
Imaginative description is great in a fantasy story; confusion is not. This book is one long puzzle - a maze with apparently no direction, interspersed with some flowery descriptions of sunsets and misty mornings; visions of ravens and dragons (fishing); and a cast of hundreds of unrelated and irrelevant characters. Reading this book feels akin to experiencing one of those dreams in which you are lost and desperately trying to find your way back home.
Need I add that I did not enjoy this book, and will not be reading the sequel?
This story has no cohesion, no main narrator and skips from one location to another mid-chapter. Plus there are men suddenly shapeshifting into wolves, and back again; no reasons given; no context for the intrigue and killings taking place; and a young girl child, supposedly Guinevere of Arthurian legend, being suckled by a she-wolf after being kidnapped.
Imaginative description is great in a fantasy story; confusion is not. This book is one long puzzle - a maze with apparently no direction, interspersed with some flowery descriptions of sunsets and misty mornings; visions of ravens and dragons (fishing); and a cast of hundreds of unrelated and irrelevant characters. Reading this book feels akin to experiencing one of those dreams in which you are lost and desperately trying to find your way back home.
Need I add that I did not enjoy this book, and will not be reading the sequel?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 21, 2020
Rating this book was a challenge. It was an impulse grab. I suspected it would be wonderfully terrible or terribly wonderful and there was only one way to find out.
What I liked: Arthurian legend from Guin's point of view. Cool. That awkward time period in history when they were both Christian but still observed many pagan rites. It had all the names I knew, and some of the tropes I knew: Vortigen, the witch in the well, so on and so forth from various movies I've seen.
What I disliked: the writing. Some of the dialogue wasn't needed. The descriptions could be too much in places and entirely lacking in others. Who is speaking? What do they look like? They were a human in a tower and now they are a fish? When? How? Transitions don't exist. This makes it hard to follow.
It was a wild ride, and I hung on until the end because I was curious as to how it would turn out. Turns out there's a sequel...I don't know that I have that in me...
What I liked: Arthurian legend from Guin's point of view. Cool. That awkward time period in history when they were both Christian but still observed many pagan rites. It had all the names I knew, and some of the tropes I knew: Vortigen, the witch in the well, so on and so forth from various movies I've seen.
What I disliked: the writing. Some of the dialogue wasn't needed. The descriptions could be too much in places and entirely lacking in others. Who is speaking? What do they look like? They were a human in a tower and now they are a fish? When? How? Transitions don't exist. This makes it hard to follow.
It was a wild ride, and I hung on until the end because I was curious as to how it would turn out. Turns out there's a sequel...I don't know that I have that in me...
January 11, 2024
I didn't love it, nor did I hate it.
Everything was magical, mystical, and mysterious; Borchardt painted an imaginative world with interesting and diverse characters. She evidently has a deep knowledge of the British Isles, its history, and its lore.
But the writing was, at times, completely chaotic and confusing. As if someone was just spilling their string of thoughts without sufficient context or details - or too many of the wrong details. More than once, I found myself confused by abrupt changes in the situation, only to learn - through narration - that a memory was being shared.
This book didn't capture me nor engross me by any means, but it did beckon me to come back and finish it. If I come across the next book in the series, I will read it simply out of curiosity - what happens next for our heroes and villains? But I won't go hunting for a copy of it anytime soon...
Everything was magical, mystical, and mysterious; Borchardt painted an imaginative world with interesting and diverse characters. She evidently has a deep knowledge of the British Isles, its history, and its lore.
But the writing was, at times, completely chaotic and confusing. As if someone was just spilling their string of thoughts without sufficient context or details - or too many of the wrong details. More than once, I found myself confused by abrupt changes in the situation, only to learn - through narration - that a memory was being shared.
This book didn't capture me nor engross me by any means, but it did beckon me to come back and finish it. If I come across the next book in the series, I will read it simply out of curiosity - what happens next for our heroes and villains? But I won't go hunting for a copy of it anytime soon...
October 23, 2023
Set in a Britain freshly rid of Roman rule, this tale is loosely based on Arthurian legend. Readers meet a noble Arthur, a wise Morgana, a mesmerizing yet nasty Merlin, and a very different sort of Guinevere. Raised by wolves and endowed with ivylike skin armor reminiscent of Celtic tattoos, this young woman is no frail maiden in need of a Lancelot. Young Guinevere blossoms into womanhood while finding herself at the center of a struggle for the soul of her country. On one side is the powerful archdruid Merlin, who has sold out to Romano-British slaveholders. On the other side are matriarchs, sorcerers, and sorceresses, all of whom honor the old ways.
A fresh retelling of Arthurian Legend with strong characters all around
A fresh retelling of Arthurian Legend with strong characters all around
May 31, 2020
Great story- 5star. Reading easiness- 2star. I have no idea about the Arthurian legend tales and I enjoyed it. I completely understand about the difficulty in reading it. I thought it was the age of the book and my lack of non teen books read. Personally if you haven't read this yet I would read each chapter to do with one person. I would have enjoyed it a lot more. I couldn't follow what was going on. I would constantly have to re read pages to know I had swapped characters and storylines. Which is a big shame but I thought they were both great stories. Just read like a tv soap swapping scenes and characters which ruined it but can be solved.
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