Isolde, Queen of the Western Isle
This feminist reimagining of the Tristan and Isolde legend follows the traditional Arthurian story dutifully, but with some creative touches inspired by modern new age beliefs. Isolde, Princess of Ireland, is a loyal worshipper of the Mother Goddess who would rather spend time learning the healing arts than preparing for her future role as her country’s defender. Her mother, the unnamed Queen of the Western Isle, finds solace in the arms of her latest lover, the boastful Marhaus, who goads her into letting him invade neighboring Cornwall on her behalf. When the victorious Tristan, Cornwall’s champion and nephew of the boorish King Mark, is sent to the beautiful Isolde for healing, the stage is set for tragedy. In the meantime, in a continuation of Miles’ previous Guenevere storyline, King Arthur and his queen must contend with a royal bastard. The setting is historically ambiguous, with Saxons, Northmen, and Picts all threatening to invade–but this is based on legend, after all. Purists may scoff at a Celtic otherworld that’s also called the astral plane, but fantasy fans probably won’t mind. Readers who enjoyed Diana Paxson’s The White Raven, which imagined Isolde’s maid Brangwain/Branwen as the true heroine, will likely find their opinions of Isolde swayed by Miles’ convincing portrayal.
