Welcome to the I, Guinevere Tour,
sponsored by
YA Bound Book Tours!!
For my stop, I'm featuring an excerpt
with mini-review!
I, Guinevere
(Mythic Maidens, Book 2)
C.K. Brooke
Trade Paperback, 213 page
C.K. Brooke, Publisher
November 25, 2018
Kindle Edition, 138 pages
October 14, 2018
Arthurian Fiction, Fantasy, Feminism,
Arthurian Mythology, Retellings,
Young Adult Fiction
Your legends have it wrong. Arthur never pulled that sword out of the stone. I did. I, Guinevere.
On
the winter solstice, a mysterious sword in a stone appears in the
churchyard. Not even the mightiest of the village men can remove it,
until fifteen-year-old Guinevere gives a try. The sword heeds the
unsuspecting maiden, proclaiming the unthinkable: she is the blood of
Pendrakon, heir to the vacant throne of Camylot.
Guinevere never
dreamed she was born royalty. Now, between apprenticing with the eccentric
wizard, Merlyn; swordplay lessons with an abrasive—albeit,
attractive—boy named Lance; and clandestine, magical meetings with the
formidable High Priestess of Avalon, Guinevere is swept up in a
whirlwind of training and preparation for her monumental new role as
future queen. But invasions by the barbarous Saxyns and visitations from
mysterious dark forces constantly warn that she may be in over her
head. Can Guinevere defend the kingdom from the darkness and deception
that threaten to seize it? Despite her doubts and the sinister forces
working against her, can she harness the power to wield Exkalibur and
rule the realm? Or is Camylot already destined to fall?
From the
unstoppable pen of C.K. Brooke comes a fresh and unforgettable new
retelling steeped in Arthurian mythology. Queen Guinevere has her own
tale to share, and it's nothing like what you thought! Experience the
magic and myth of Camylot and Avalon like never before as, in the vein
of Brooke's award-winning Secrets of Artemis, this legendary maiden of
lore recounts her side of the story.
Note
This mini-review is of the excerpt below, and not the entire book. I have already bought the Kindle edition, and will later purchase the paperback.
I WANT TO DEVOUR THIS BOOK!!
What an EXCITING read this obviously is!! I have LOVED the Arthurian tales since I first came across them, around the age of 11. This retelling presents the possibility that the REAL wielder of the famous "sword in the stone" was Guinevere, and not Arthur. The scene in which she pulls the sword out is described so well, her feelings, and the crowd's contempt, so palpable, that chills ran up and down my spine as I read. This is the beginning of a tale of a powerful woman, who then becomes the iconic ruler of the fabled Camelot, here spelled "Camylot".
In this novel, Guinevere is not the despised adulterer who betrays King Arthur. Instead, she herself is the legendary heroine who pulls the sword from the stone, and becomes Queen Guinevere, she who became the stuff of legends.....
The silver sword sparkled as I approached, pleading—nay, burning—for
me to reach out and touch it. An unusual, dazzling haze surrounded the
artifact. I blinked, worried my vision had gone blurry. But the sword,
the stone, and everything around me was in perfect focus.
I could hear the sword humming. Buzzing like a swarm of insects. It was alive.
Had any of the other contestants noticed this? If so, why weren’t they all talking about it?
Ancient runes I couldn’t decipher were carved into the hilt. Up
close, I saw the pommel was forged in the shape of a dragonhead.
Compelled by magnetism, my hand closed over it. The rounded dragonhead
fit perfectly in my palm, as if designed for me. It vibrated fiercely,
eager beneath my touch.
I brought my other hand over the hilt and heaved.
There was no need to strain. The blade slid out with ease. The stone
was like churned butter, the illusion of rock. While I heard the gasps
of the crowd, I was immune to it all. It was just me and the magnificent
sword that claimed me.
The villagers erupted in uproarious applause.
“We’ve a champion,” bellowed the deacon. Before I could stop him, he
lifted my sword-wielding arm high, and yanked down my cowl for all to
see my face. The downward thrust of my hood pushed my hair ribbon along
with it. My long blonde hair came tumbling past my shoulders.
The applause died. I lowered my arm, bracing myself for the blowback.
“She’s but a girl.” A man scowled.
Another scratched his head. “Why was she allowed to enter?”
“Someone get that sword out of her hands,” cried the laundress, “before she hurts herself!”
I stepped back, clinging to my prize. The deacon stammered, confounded.
Arguing broke out. Although I well understood that the sword—which
now hummed serenely in my hands—was exceptional, I wondered why they
were so upset. It was just a contest, after all. So what if I’d won?
“Witchcraft,” shrieked the butcher’s wife.
At this, the old, bearded man advanced on his staff. “Nay.” He spoke
in a firm, resounding timbre, silencing the crowd at large. “No witch
could’ve enchanted that sword out of that stone.” He glanced over at a
formidable-looking woman I hadn’t noticed until then was with him. Her
raven hair was graying but lustrous. She wore a set of flowing, lavender
robes, her posture practically regal. “Right, Vivien?”
The woman nodded sagely. But her deep, knowing eyes flitted with evident suspicion.
Morgan’s teacher. I shuddered on my best friend’s behalf. No doubt
Morgan would be in high water for the stunt she’d pulled with the
glamoured coin. I didn’t envy her position. Lady Vivien, High Priestess
of Avalon, was the most intimidating woman I’d ever seen.
The old man drew himself to full height. “The sword,” he indicated
the one I held, “Exkalibur, responds only to the blood of Pendrakon.
Which means no one but a Pendrakon could have pulled it from the stone.
Therefore,” he paused, the crowd held its breath collectively, and my
heart began to pound before I even understood why, “the young lady is,
unquestionably, the blood of Pendrakon, and heir to the throne of
Camylot.”
Had it not been for the weight of the sword keeping me rooted, I would’ve tottered to the ground on the spot.
Blood of Pendrakon?
Heir to the throne?
C.K. Brooke is an
award-winning author of over a dozen romance and fantasy novels. Her
debut novel, The Duchess Quest (48fourteen, 2014), was selected by Shelf
Unbound Magazine as a Top 100 Notable Indie Book of 2015, and her YA
novel, Secrets Of Artemis, received the Indie B.R.A.G. Medallion Award
in 2017. She is also the author of The Wrong Prince (48fourteen, 2016), a
Global EBook Award Honorable Mention title, as well as the historical
romance, Capturing The Captain (Limitless, 2016), which was a RONE Award
Nominee and a Finalist in the Mid-Michigan RWA Best Banter Contest. She
lives in Michigan with her family. Visit her at her website and
subscribe for updates!
