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Liked It “The story of Arthur separated from its mythical aspects of magic and chivalry. |
Didn’t Like It “The year was 450 in the Dark Ages of Britain. |
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“really hard to get my hands on ”
Jennifer G wrote this review Monday, August 10 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“The story of Arthur separated from its mythical aspects of magic and chivalry.
Amey wrote this review Wednesday, April 1 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Once you get over the gory details of dark ages and absence of fantastical elements, the story is very engaging. I am looking forward to the next books in the series, though if this book is any indication, I am pretty sure I will be taking frequent breaks from reading to get over the more “historically accurate” parts.
http://lazyhabits.wordpress.com/2009/02/20/the-kingmaking/
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“First sentence: He was ten and five years of age and, for the first time in his life, experiencing the exhilaration of the open sea and, for this short while, the novelty of leisure.
Kristi (Books and Needlepoint) wrote this review Friday, March 6 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
So begins the book, The Kingmaking by Helen Hollick. We join Arthur at 15 on a ship bound for Caer Arfon and Gwynned - home of Cunneda and his daughter Gwenhwyfar. He has been brought on the voyage by Uthr Pendragon - much to the chagrin of Uthr mistress, Morgause. She cannot understand why Uthr favors the boy. She sees him as the bastard child of one of the servants - being raised as a foster son by Uthr's brother.
As the story unfolds, Uthr is killed in a battle with Vortigern - fighting to be the rightful King of Britain. Arthur is devastated until Cunneda announces that he - Arthur - is the rightful heir of Uthr Pendragon. His identity had been kept hidden to protect his life from Vortigern.
When I first picked up this book - I wondered what I had gotten myself into. I was not a big King Arthur fan - and knew little about that era. However, Helen Hollick's book drew me in from the beginning. I loved that she gave the pronunciation of the names and after awhile I found myself reading them "correctly". It gave me a sense of authenticity. The book was not hard to read (like I thought it would be) due to the era, but instead was very engrossing. I even carried it with me to my son's bus stop - and it is a HEAVY book at 563 pages.
This is the first book of her Pendragon's Banner Trilogy. The other two books are Pendragon's Banner and Shadow of the King!
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“Wow! What an amazing beginning to this trilogy and I am hooked. The Kingmaking is Hollick's story of Arthur and the king that he might have been. It begins with our first introduction to Arthur as he meets Gwenhwyfar and finds that someday he might be king. The Kingmaking takes the reader on a journey, both Arthur and Gwenhwyfars', and the struggles and triumphs that may lead to Arthur becoming king. It is a journey filled with blood and battles, love and redemption, and so many other things that make up a great novel.
Samantha A wrote this review Thursday, March 5 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Can I just say right now that I loved this novel? I mean this is historical fiction at its' best and I was entranced. I fell in love with Arthur and Gwenhwyfar's relationship right at the beginning of the story. I felt like Hollick portrayed Arthur realistically so that the reader could see all of his faults along with his strengths. This just helped me to like his character even more although there were times that I wished I could shake him when he was making the "wrong" choices. This was a gritty novel that brought to life the legend of Arthur and made it come across as realistically as possile.
Helen Hollick is a very talented writer and the writing flowed for me. For such a long novel (over 500 pages), I found myself knocking off huge chunks at a time as I couldn't put the book down. I flew through this story and when I was finished I instantly wanted more. I'm so excited to read the next portion of this story and can't wait to get my hands on the 2nd book. Here is a taste of Hollick's writing:
"Gwenhwyfar smiled at him, her eyes crinkling. She remembered her hand, and shyly withdrew it. She liked him! He made her laugh. With mock sincerity Arthur said, 'I grant you are an exceptional girl, Gwenhwyfar, but a man needs other men.'
'A man needs a woman to comfort him through the night and to give him sons.' Gwenhwyfar's retort came with a knowing grin."
All in all, I absolutely enjoyed this book and am going to highly recommend it. Anyone who enjoys historical fiction should give this one a try as it is an epic tale that kept me on my toes. Seriously, this was a really great read and a huge thanks to Paul at Sourcebooks for sending this one to me.”
“The Kingmaking is a story about one of the most mysterious, legendary characters, King Arthur. It tells the story of Arthur’s childhood, adolescence and his rise to the position of the king. It also tells the story of love between him and Gwenhwyfar, a beautiful and strong-minded woman. It all starts in 450 AD. It’s a period of British history of which not much is known and a lot is shrouded in legend and mystery. But Helen Hollick did a superb job giving us Britain with its villainous leaders trying to usurp power for themselves, with its customs, its brutality, the dawn of Christianity and fading of old gods. Simply put, she brings the Dark Ages to life.
liliana s wrote this review Monday, February 23 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Probably, the boldest move Ms. Hollick made was in giving us Arthur Pendragon as he was before he became King Arthur. His childhood was horrible. He was believed to be a bastard of suspected but uncertain heritage. He was hated by Morgause, a lover of one person that truly loved Arthur, Uthr Pendragon. Because of this one woman’s hatred and abuse, Pendragon grew up to hold all women in disregard, to use them for his pleasure and nothing more. What you’ll read, will be far different from the chivalrous King Arthur of the legends. It is a breath of fresh air, however, because we finally have a chance to take what used to be a subject for fantasy tales, with Merlin heading the company, as a very real and very rich part of the British history.
Another character, just as important as Arthur, is Gwenhwyfar. She is a wonderful woman. I couldn’t help but keep comparing her to Boudica. Gwenhwyfar, Arthur’s one and only love, might be insolent at times, however, one can’t help but side with her. She is strong, stands her own and is very independent, in deed and mind. That is no small feat considering she lives in 2nd century Britain, when women were generally no more than servants and bedmaids to their husbands.
Ms. Hollick fully displays her talent with this first part of The Pendragon’s Banner trilogy. There is enough action and nail-biting moments in there to sit up late at night reading. With her imagination, knowledge and apparent passion, the author pulls the reader into the whirl of life, warring, revenge, loyalty and love. ”“The year was 450 in the Dark Ages of Britain.
Cheryl wrote this review Saturday, February 21 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Arthur Pendragon never dreamed that he would become heir to the throne of Britain as such a young age. After Uthr Pendragon passes away; Arthur learns that he is the next to claim the throne. Unfortunately it is not that easy. Arthur will have to fight for his place. You see as the Roman Empire was crumbling apart a vicious tyrant by the name of Vortigeru took control of the throne from Uthr. Now that Uthr has died, the people are ready for a new king.
Every king needs a beautiful woman by his side. Luckily there is just such a lady. Her name is Gwenhwyfar. Arthur and Gwen felt a mutual attraction to each other when they were younger. Now that they are older those feelings have not changed, even through people have tried to separate them. Gwen would gladly marry Arthur if he asked, that is exactly what Arthur plans to do. To his surprise he learns that Gwen’s father has promised her to another, which happens to be his enemy. Arthur and Gwen find themselves in a love triangle that consists of greed, betrayal, and honor.
The Kingmaking is book one in the Pendragon’s Banner trilogy. I liked the concept of this new tale of Arthur and Gwenhwyfar. Like any one else, I can remember author pulling the sword from the stone and becoming king but other then this fact; there isn’t much else we know about Arthur. While I enjoy historical novels, The Kingmaking moved a little too slowly for me. I stumbled along a few times. Though I really appreciated the layout of this book, as it was broken up into sections. As each new section started, the year and month was stated so you could experience all the changes as the times moved.
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“Wonderfully well-written. It was not the story of a mythical Arthur, but Arthur, aman with weaknesses, ambitions, and cunning. I thoroughly enjoyed it.”
kingofreads wrote this review Wednesday, December 12 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
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