Some of these writers were born in England, while others, such as Katherine Mansfield and Doris Lessing, came from countries of the former Empire or Commonwealth. The volume also includes entries for women of color, such as Kamala Markandaya and Buchi Emecheta.
In flight from the magic visions that plague him, Merlin falls into the hands of the wodewose—wild folk who, according to legend, live in the company of wolves and devour children.
But far from being wild, the wodewose are an enormous family of the unwanted, the abandoned, and the homeless. For once Merlin has found a place where an orphan like himself belongs. I saw it, and it is a true tale. So begins the story of Merlin, born the illegitimate son of a Welsh princess in fifth century Britain, a world ravaged by war. Small and neglected, with his mother unwilling to reveal his father's identity, Merlin must disguise his intelligence - and hide his occasional ability to know things before they happen - in order to keep himself safe.
One beautiful afternoon, while exploring the countryside near his home, Merlin stumbles across a cave filled with books and papers and hiding a room lined with crystals. It is the home of Galapas, who becomes Merlin's tutor and friend, and who teaches Merlin to understand the world around him Merlin will rise to power and enter history - and legend - as advisor to King Arthur.
But all stories must begin somewhere. A fictional story that has been well researched fitting in true historical fact as much as possible. See details. In prose that is as vividly, achingly real as it is poetic, New York Times bestselling author Mary Stewart brings to life the man behind the myth: Myrddin Emrys. I'm still not entirely sure how she did that, but it will never cease to amaze me. Another thing that I absolutely loved about this trilogy was the refreshing historicity of it all.
This isn't a fanciful rendering of a stars-n-moon caped Merlin the Magician, but a gritty depiction of early Britain, caught in the middle of the shift from paganism to Christianity.
The scenes are all depicted so well that I could literally feel myself inside them. It's been years since I've reread these books, but I can still feel the warm stones under my feet from the Roman pipes under the floors. View 1 comment. Jul 31, Sud rated it it was amazing Shelves: fantasy , classics , fiction-novel , favorites. Mary Stewart's Merlin Trilogy is brilliant. A beautiful retelling of the Arthurian myth. Though, to be fair, this is really Merlin's story. But, the two are so interlinked in the story that it could be the story of both.
Stewart uses a mix of historical reality with some basic supernatural powers. To be even more fair, the powers attributed could be construed as the "Sight" or the power or prophecy. But, it tends to be more subtle than that. The "historical" setting is fairly spot on. As Stewart uses the Historia Brittonum written by an Irish monk as her setting premise. The Kings from Vortigern to Horsa are real people. The phenomenal edition collects all three volumes into one magnum opus.
It is well worth your time. The Crystal Cave is the first of the books. It tells the story of how a young Merlin grows up and learns his skills. In time he will reunite with his father in Brittany and lead Ambrosius to the shores of England to battle the Saxon Horde.
In time, he will help Ambrosius' brother, Uther, to the throne. But, there is yet a great King to come. A High King to unite all England and deal with the next great Saxon invasion. This is the prophecy that drives Merlin to aid and abet Uther's lust for Ygraine and the book ends with the birth of Arthur. Uther's grasp on power is getting weary and he has little love for Merlin. But as the threat of the Saxon invasion looms and Uther weakens, Merlin must prepare Arthur to become the one and true King.
This second book covers the events leading up to Arthur becoming King. The third book, The Last Enchantment, covers the time period between Arthur's defeat of the Saxons and the raising of Camelot. It also covers Merlin's replacement by Nimue and his eventual "death". A truly wonderful Arthurian or is it Merlin? On every level, it succeeds. Well written, beautiful prose, and a semi-realistic story that still retains the power of myth. I am also glad to have purchased the "final" volume "The Wicked Day" which should finish the Arthur adventure and will be reading next.
Any fan of well-written fantasy, especially any fan of Arthur or Merlin, should consider this a must-have book. A true classic. Jul 02, Shaina added it. Oh no. Just the first one and I loved it.
The first one is a 5!!! View all 6 comments. Aug 12, Walter Conner rated it it was amazing. I first read this series many years ago, including the sequel, The Wicked Day in which the Arthurian legend comes full-circle with the story of Arthur's bastard son Mordred. I found her approach to the legend very fascinating. I have since reread them at least twice I have the hardbound set , and enjoyed them immensely each time. Some reviewers have noted the "slow" pacing of these novels, and they do, indeed, move more slowly than many modern readers prefer.
For me, however, Mary Stewart's incr I first read this series many years ago, including the sequel, The Wicked Day in which the Arthurian legend comes full-circle with the story of Arthur's bastard son Mordred. For me, however, Mary Stewart's incredible prose easily carries the stories and sweeps me right along.
Stewart one of the inspirations for my own writing efforts. Aug 20, Misfit rated it it was amazing. It's got to be a good years since I read these three books, and were just as enjoyable now as they were then. Stuart has a lovely way of describing a scene, the land and the people. If you purchased the trilogy in one book, just remember that they were originally three separate books. I found m It's got to be a good years since I read these three books, and were just as enjoyable now as they were then.
I found myself skipping through those sections. You won't find any great surprises in the story, if you are familiar with the legends of King Arthur. This story is mainly Merlin's from boyhood to old man and beloved cousin and counselor of Arthur. While I don't usually enjoy a book written in the first person -- as you lose so much from what the other characters are experiencing -- the author pulled this off well enough.
With Merlin's visions, we were able to see happenings that were not personally witnessed by Merlin. All in all very enjoyable and I would recommend this for younger readers whose parents are trying to find well written books without the constant presence of bodice ripping. A thumbs down to the publisher, I found many small typos that became a bit irritating after a while, i. You would think that after the first publication they would catch these and fix them for subsequent pulications.
View all 4 comments. This is a lovely book containing all three of Mary Stewart's brilliant Merlin stories. The first "The Crystal Cave" is about his childhood and how he ended up helping Arthur come to be more towards the end , the second "The Hollow Hills" concerns his relationship with Arthur as he grows up to become king, and the third "The Last Enchantment" is the end of his role in the Arthurian story and his relationship with Nimue.
And I have to say I loved all three books equally and for different reasons. Because I read them all from one book, one after the other, it IS a little difficult for me to think of them as three separate books, though, so if I seem to overlap, jumping from something that happened in Crystal Cave to Last Enchantment without batting an eye, that's why.
I LOVE the relationship between Arthur and Merlin in this one, particularly because they are much closer in age Merlin only has roughly twenty two years on Arthur, rather than being a full-blown fussy grandpa type figure as well as being cousins. They have a very close family bond that was very cute to read about. In particular I love the scene where Arthur and Merlin have an argument which ends with Arthur brokenly admitting the real reason he's angry with Merlin is that he was hoping Merlin would turn out to be his father instead of Uther and was disappointed to learn Merlin had never even been with a woman by this point, so couldn't have fathered him.
Another scene I loved was when Arthur discovers before Merlin does that Nimue was a girl she was pretending to be a boy to study under Merlin's tutorage and basically says that if she turns out to be evil and hurts Merlin, he'll kill her no matter how close they are.
She was sooooooooo likable in this book! Not evil at all. Basically she pretended to be a boy because Merlin accidentally put the idea in her head when he mistook her for a sort of reincarnation of a dead boy he'd wanted to tutor. She wants to learn from him, so she poses as a lad and they become friends which turns into something more after Arthur basically points out, "Hey, you know that boy who follows you everywhere is actually a GIRL right?
Sep 28, Kyleigh rated it liked it Shelves: read-unowned. A fascinating spin on the same old King Arthur story. Stewart focuses on Merlin as the main character in this series, starting with his young years as a bastard and continuing through his demise shortly into Arthur's reign.
Stewart's strength was in bringing these so well-known characters to life and giving them depth. Her weakness was incredibly slow pacing. Yes, we knew what was going to happen, but that doesn't make the story completely unimportant. Foreshadowing was well-used, between Merlin A fascinating spin on the same old King Arthur story. Foreshadowing was well-used, between Merlin's foresight and the reader's assumed knowledge of the basics of the story, impending doom was alluded to well.
To some extent this is forgivable, as that was no doubt the sentiment towards women during the time that the events supposedly took place, but having read a story like The Mists of Avalon, it's not hard to see how it might have been otherwise. Nov 20, Bill rated it it was amazing. This series puts a very touching, very human face to the ancient Merlin story, as the legendary magician faces the trials of discovering and developing his own power, and later as he grooms the young Arthur Pendragon to assume the throne and unite a kingdom after the chaos following the fall of the Roman Empire.
The story traces Merlin's journey from boyhood through the height of his reknown, and even into his twilight years as he settles into 'retirement', and discovers that it is never too lat This series puts a very touching, very human face to the ancient Merlin story, as the legendary magician faces the trials of discovering and developing his own power, and later as he grooms the young Arthur Pendragon to assume the throne and unite a kingdom after the chaos following the fall of the Roman Empire.
The story traces Merlin's journey from boyhood through the height of his reknown, and even into his twilight years as he settles into 'retirement', and discovers that it is never too late to find love. Told with spectacular imagery and tremendous depth of feeling, this is a tale that reminds us that even legends are all too human, and magic is sometimes a very ordinary thing.
Nov 23, Monica Davis rated it it was amazing Shelves: favorites. By far one of the best books I have ever read. Using the title character, Merlin, as her narrator, Mary Stewart is masterful in her storytelling A wonderful backstory to the usual focus, much happens before Camelot is introduced to us pages into the book. Highly recommend this thoroughly enjoyable read. May 26, Sara rated it it was amazing Shelves: historical-fiction , favorites. This is one of the most overlooked wonders in fiction.
This is Merlin, the wizard and the man, revealed to us as he must have been. The only thing wrong with this story is that it ends Mar 15, Roberta rated it really liked it. No idea how long ago that I read this series, but remember really liking it! View 2 comments. Feb 06, E. Ardell rated it it was amazing Shelves: my-favorite-fantasy-books. I am sucker for Arthurian legend.
Anything starring Arthur and Lancelot, I will give a chance. I've always been amused by Merlin, but he was never a favorite character of mine until this book. Mary Stewart creates a serious Merlin that we follow from boyhood into adulthood. Merlin is brilliant, cunning and humble and the bastard son of King Ambrosius, brother of Uther Pendragon, making him Arthur's uncle. I love that he's not a bumbling old man, but a handsome prince who doesn't want titles and d I am sucker for Arthurian legend.
I love that he's not a bumbling old man, but a handsome prince who doesn't want titles and decadence.
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