Voices of the Stars
Morgan, Lady of the Lake, is the primary focus of this novel about King Arthur, but the scope is wide. Not only does Morgan include in her history of the era multiple accounts written by others, but the author also describes her book as “a metaphysical, psychological, action/adventure, myth and magic, tragic romance, medieval warfare, fantasy, historical fiction novel.” The shifting points of view and diverse interests lead to digressions, which inevitably interrupt the narrative flow.
The story is set in post-Roman Britain rather than the High Middle Ages of romance, but the political situation and many historical details seem unlikely: 6th-century warriors would not carry bronze shields, for example; nor the Picts enter into an alliance with Arthur and the Romano-Britons; even the British kingdoms were unwilling to co-operate with each other. Spelling is erratic; sometimes amusing (“meals of Fish and foul”), sometimes confusing (“Ambrosius Aurelius/Aurillious”), sometimes annoying (“amoung” and the use of Briton for Britain). As in romance, characters are either good or bad.
More interesting is the reinterpretation of Arthurian tradition: true love between Arthur and his half-sister Morgan, and between Merlin and Nimue; Morganna Le Faye in the role of a wicked Morgause; a nasty Gwenyfar and an admirable Saxon princess Rowena (unsurprisingly); no Lancelot, rather Bedwyr as Arthur’s closest friend.
This will appeal to devotees of New Age mysticism and Marion Zimmer Bradley’s Mists of Avalon, with which it shares similarities.
