Discuss Road to Avalon - Spoilers Possible

[SarahC]

Discuss here if you have read the book and are comfortable with plot spoilers.

[Chrissie]

Since is the very first book I have read about King Arthur; I have absolutely nothing to compare this novel with. I am very curious to hear what other's think and how they compare this book with other's they have read on this topic.

[SarahC]

Chrissie, I have not read the last of the book, so I will add some comments in the No Spoilers folder.

[Chrissie]

I will check out your comments there.

[Thalia]

I'm wondering if anyone else is finding the characters a little too "perfect" in The Road to Avalon? They don't seem to have any flaws, lol!

[Chrissie]

Thalia, this was my first "King Arthur" book. I wasn't terribly impressed! It felt completely like fiction - never did the story have the urgency of real life! You can check out my review fo the book. I was a little bit surprised b/c many really liked this book.

[Thalia]

I'm done the book now. I was thinking to myself, as I was reading, that I wonder at her intended audience. It seemed almost like it was aimed at a young reader as it was so "clean". Everybody was beautiful and talented and everything was so romantic. I thought this was a romance novel going in but that didn't even live up to expectations (although thankfully in that case - I'm not a fan of graphic sex scenes). The characters seemed to lack dimension. I did like the family relationships between the characters (Merlin being actually related to Arthur for example) and Morgan and Arthur conducting a long term love affair was unusual. Wolf portrayed Morded not as the bad guy, I liked that too. But I didn't understand, in a novel that seemed to do the arthurian legend without magic, why the telepathic abilities needed to be used. It diminished the...um...er...authenticity/believability of the story exponentially for me. I REALLY hated that.

[Chrissie]

Different readers seem to be approaching this from different perspectives..... I simply wanted to know the legend. For me, it was way too simplistic! I am much more iterested in real, true life biographies!

[Thalia]

Yeah, this is certainly NOT Arthuriana at it's finest...

[Old-Barbarossa]

Chrissie wrote: "Different readers seem to be approaching this from different perspectives..... I simply wanted to know the legend. For me, it was way too simplistic! I am much more iterested in real, true life bio..."

Not read this myself, but if it's something to help familiarise yourself with the legend then it sounds too much of a "reimagining" to be a good place to start. Try The Once and Future King.

[Chrissie]

Thank you for linking me to your recommendation! OK, here is my question: science fiction isn't my thing....and this seems very science fiction. On the other hand anything put in the hands of a good writer becomes marvelous. So what do you really think - maybe I should just admit my deficiency. Maybe I should just avoid this genre.

[Thalia]

That is one of the beauties of Arthurian legend. It can be thick with magic and therefore sci fi like or without the magic it can read like a straight up historical fiction. If the sci fi bothers you then The Once and Future King might not be the best choice. Perhaps something likeSword At Sunset by Rosemary Sutcliff is a better choice.

[Chrissie]

Thalia that is really nice that you have given me a more "historical" version. I have actually added both books . It could be good for me to try the more fantastical version after reading the historical one!

[Old-Barbarossa]

Chrissie wrote: "Thalia that is really nice that you have given me a more "historical" version. I have actually added both books . It could be good for me to try the more fantastical version after reading the histo..."

Have a browse round the threads here (starting with the "general" stuff like "Who does it best" etc) and check some reviews via the bookshelf and you'll get a good idea of what constitutes Arthurian lit...broad church. From the X-men in armour stuff to the betrayal and cuckolding, from mail and mead of the dark ages to shining armour and league tables of the joust geeks, from 2d cardboard characters to the complexities of betrayal mixed loyalties and honour.
There's pretty much something for everyone. The story tends to be very varied also, but check the mentions on the threads of what are the "canonical" works. These tend to have the core tale which all re-tellings spin off from.

[Chrissie]

Barbarossa, to put it simply. I wish I had not started with this book! Oh well. Thanks for your info.

[Chrissie]

Sawyer, that is nice you encouraged me. I had added it to my TBR shelf, not even the "maybe" shelf. However it still hasn't reached a must-shelf! Perhaps in a while I will feel like giving it a try.