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Camelot Shadow
The Camelot Shadow
"A chance to save her. Improbably, impossibly, inconceivably."
Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam spends each day in much the same way: caring for his terminally ill wife and trying to lose himself in the dusty tomes that fill his library. Everything changes when he receives a visit from a man representing a clandestine organization operating with the backing of Queen Victoria herself. The group seeks his aid in finding an Arthurian artifact that, legend holds, can cure its bearer of any wound or disease.
Skeptical but desperate to help his wife, Alfred is convinced that the fabled item might actually exist after witnessing a seemingly impossible display of power by the organization's leader, James Nigel. He decides to pursue the treasure, accompanied by an eccentric scholar, a deadly druid, and his best friend, a sardonic bookseller who is far more than he seems. As he follows an arcane trail of clues from the gas-lit streets of London to the wilds of Scotland and deep into ancient catacombs in Italy, Alfred becomes enmeshed in a web of hidden agendas, secret societies, and ancient enchantments. Along the way, he learns a dark secret about Nigel's past—and the true power of the artifact he seeks.
Steeped in a compelling mythology and filled with unexpected twists, The Camelot Shadow will leave readers stunned, breathless, and wrestling with an impossible question: what do you do with an object that has the power to both save the world and destroy it?
(Don't miss The Strange Task Before Me for further adventures in the Camelot Shadow world.)
Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam spends each day in much the same way: caring for his terminally ill wife and trying to lose himself in the dusty tomes that fill his library. Everything changes when he receives a visit from a man representing a clandestine organization operating with the backing of Queen Victoria herself. The group seeks his aid in finding an Arthurian artifact that, legend holds, can cure its bearer of any wound or disease.
Skeptical but desperate to help his wife, Alfred is convinced that the fabled item might actually exist after witnessing a seemingly impossible display of power by the organization's leader, James Nigel. He decides to pursue the treasure, accompanied by an eccentric scholar, a deadly druid, and his best friend, a sardonic bookseller who is far more than he seems. As he follows an arcane trail of clues from the gas-lit streets of London to the wilds of Scotland and deep into ancient catacombs in Italy, Alfred becomes enmeshed in a web of hidden agendas, secret societies, and ancient enchantments. Along the way, he learns a dark secret about Nigel's past—and the true power of the artifact he seeks.
Steeped in a compelling mythology and filled with unexpected twists, The Camelot Shadow will leave readers stunned, breathless, and wrestling with an impossible question: what do you do with an object that has the power to both save the world and destroy it?
(Don't miss The Strange Task Before Me for further adventures in the Camelot Shadow world.)
374 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 31, 2014
About the author
Sean Gibson
6 books5,995 followersSean Gibson, "author" and slackonteur, is not a professional mini biography writer (if he were, this would be much more compelling). Instead, he’s a business professional by day, hangs out with his amazing wife, son, and daughter by night, and writes somewhere in between. He holds a BA in English Literature from Ohio Wesleyan University and an MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University, though rumors persist that he also attended mime school (he is silent on the subject). Sean is a fan of sports teams from Detroit, a distressingly large number of bands that rose to prominence in the 1980s, and writing in the third person. He currently resides in Northern Virginia, and, given how much he hates moving, and given that his house has an awesome library, is likely to remain there for some time.
Sean is the author of several stories starring Heloise the Bard, including the #1 bestseller The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True (which Publishers Weekly drunkenly gave a starred review), "You Just Can't Hide from Chriskahzaa," and The Chronicle of Heloise & Grimple. He also wrote the Victorian-set fantasy thriller The Camelot Shadow and its prequel short, "The Strange Task Before Me." Most recently, he contributed the short story "Chasing the Dragon" to the anthology Dragons of a Different Tail. He has also written extensively for Kirkus Reviews, and his book reviews have also appeared in Esquire.
You can follow him on Twitter at @Gibknight, but is that really how you want to spend your precious years of life?
Sean is the author of several stories starring Heloise the Bard, including the #1 bestseller The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True (which Publishers Weekly drunkenly gave a starred review), "You Just Can't Hide from Chriskahzaa," and The Chronicle of Heloise & Grimple. He also wrote the Victorian-set fantasy thriller The Camelot Shadow and its prequel short, "The Strange Task Before Me." Most recently, he contributed the short story "Chasing the Dragon" to the anthology Dragons of a Different Tail. He has also written extensively for Kirkus Reviews, and his book reviews have also appeared in Esquire.
You can follow him on Twitter at @Gibknight, but is that really how you want to spend your precious years of life?
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
May 10, 2017
Is there anyone who doesn't secretly love stories about King Arthur and Camelot?
So I've been curious about this story for a while, but I avoided it because Sean is a good friend.
I mean, he named his daughter after me, that's how close we are!
Not really. Total coincidence. Roll with it, though, because I like to feel special.
Anyway, when it popped up in my feed again the other day, I caved in and added it. So, of course, Sean (because he knows how cheap I am) offered to gift it to me. His only stipulation was that if I trashed his book, I had to make the review funny.
About 4% into the book, I was trying to come up with Knock-Knock jokes.
Knock-knock.
Who's there?
Imma.
Imma who?
Imma pretty sure Sean's gonna de-friend me after this review.
*rim shot*
Here's the thing, I don't like books that are full of unnecessary description. And as the main character was being introduced, I started getting bogged down by descriptive prose.
The blowing wind made him grateful for the warm glow that emanated from the library's fireplace, an antique structure surrounded by a bronze relief that depicted a parade of ancient gods. In the evening, the fire would cast shadows across the wall, presenting a fierce struggle worthy of those same gods, one that raged until the blaze had burned itself out.
Ok, after reading that, some of you are looking at me like, What's wrong with you?! That's beautiful writing!
But then some of you, my brothers and sisters in the Move-It-The-Hell-Along sect, are nodding your heads and grimacing.
My version of those same sentences?
Brrr. It's cold. Thank fuck I lit a fire.
Boom! Done.
For those of you who are like me, I want to point out that this is only an issue in the first chapter. After that, shit starts happening.
I have a sneaking feeling that Sean's son stole his purple crayon back, and probably drew something Refrigerator-worthy with it. Thank you, Henry!
Ok. The second problem I had when I started didn't have anything to do with the writing or story. I was actually just having a hard time taking anything Sean wrote seriously. See, he & I both belong to the same comic book club. Now, the other members & I like to think we're getting together to chat about graphic novels, but the reality is that most of what we talk about is simply depraved nonsense.
Would you like an extra pat of butter on that blue waffle?
And Sean is just as twisted as the rest of us, which makes him about as mature as a queef joke. How do you read a book written by a walking queef!?
One of the characters would start to say something important, and my mind would send me off-path. Suddenly, I'm thinking about something ridiculous that Sean had said about creme filled donuts.
Heh. Lady creme...
Anyway. At first, it was hard to stay on track.
But then something weird happened about 9% of the way into this sucker.
I fucking forgot about Sean!
He just sort of disappeared from my mind, and I totally got into the story.
I should mention that this is set in the...
Um? Well, whenever Victoria was queen of England.
*cough*
Whatever! It'll come to me, eventually.
Alfred and Will are two middle-aged friends who've known each other for most of their lives. Alfred is a happily married noble, kind of an introvert, and (most importantly) he's one of the premier experts on the Arthurian legend. Will is a respected bookseller, confirmed bachelor, and all-around fun guy.
Despite their differences, they're pretty much BFF's.
Ok, Alfred's wife is dying, and he's heartbroken that he can't save her. So, when a shady dude claiming he's from a secret agency within the British government corners him at a party and tells him that they need his help to locate King Arthur's scabbard (which is reported to have healing properties), Al can't help but jump on board.
Alfred confides his plans in Will and takes off to meet a mysterious figure named Nigel.
Right off the bat, you know Nigel is not what he seems...
In my head, I'm screaming for Alfred to get the hell away from this guy.
He's nefarious! Noooo! Don't get bedazzled by his powers!
Run, man! RUN!
But, it turns out, Will is not entirely what he seems, either. I don't want to spoil anything, but he knows more than he lets on about stuff, and he begins working desperately behind the scenes to protect his friend.
Now, I'm not an expert on Camelot, so I have no idea about whether the legends used were accurate, or whether Sean just made all that shit up, but it sounded legit when I was reading it. I gobbled it up, and that's all that really mattered.
This was a surprisingly good story! I mean, just the fact that the main characters wereold guys mature men and not 20somethings was a total bonus for me. I'm so sick and tired of everything revolving around youth like somehow you never do anything fun or adventurous after you turn 35.
Horseshit! It rocks to get older!
Alright. That ending. What. The. Fuck.
Seriously, Sean? Seriously? That shit is not going to fly, pal. I mean, I get it. It was a total dude-ending. Bro-hug, keep a stiff upper lip, take a drink, and squint your eyes to find the tiny sliver of light at the end of the tunnel.
No! No way. I want a sequel! I need these two to go on a few more adventures before they hang it up.
Get on it!
Anyway, this was just a great buddy-adventure with a pinch of magic thrown in for good measure. It had pretty much everything I look for in a book. I still can't believe it didn't suck. I mean, it's not some crappy indie turd that my friend banged out on his tablet! Color me shocked.
Now, come here and pull my finger, Sean...
So I've been curious about this story for a while, but I avoided it because Sean is a good friend.
I mean, he named his daughter after me, that's how close we are!
Not really. Total coincidence. Roll with it, though, because I like to feel special.
Anyway, when it popped up in my feed again the other day, I caved in and added it. So, of course, Sean (because he knows how cheap I am) offered to gift it to me. His only stipulation was that if I trashed his book, I had to make the review funny.
About 4% into the book, I was trying to come up with Knock-Knock jokes.
Knock-knock.
Who's there?
Imma.
Imma who?
Imma pretty sure Sean's gonna de-friend me after this review.
*rim shot*
Here's the thing, I don't like books that are full of unnecessary description. And as the main character was being introduced, I started getting bogged down by descriptive prose.
The blowing wind made him grateful for the warm glow that emanated from the library's fireplace, an antique structure surrounded by a bronze relief that depicted a parade of ancient gods. In the evening, the fire would cast shadows across the wall, presenting a fierce struggle worthy of those same gods, one that raged until the blaze had burned itself out.
Ok, after reading that, some of you are looking at me like, What's wrong with you?! That's beautiful writing!
But then some of you, my brothers and sisters in the Move-It-The-Hell-Along sect, are nodding your heads and grimacing.
My version of those same sentences?
Brrr. It's cold. Thank fuck I lit a fire.
Boom! Done.
For those of you who are like me, I want to point out that this is only an issue in the first chapter. After that, shit starts happening.
I have a sneaking feeling that Sean's son stole his purple crayon back, and probably drew something Refrigerator-worthy with it. Thank you, Henry!
Ok. The second problem I had when I started didn't have anything to do with the writing or story. I was actually just having a hard time taking anything Sean wrote seriously. See, he & I both belong to the same comic book club. Now, the other members & I like to think we're getting together to chat about graphic novels, but the reality is that most of what we talk about is simply depraved nonsense.
Would you like an extra pat of butter on that blue waffle?
And Sean is just as twisted as the rest of us, which makes him about as mature as a queef joke. How do you read a book written by a walking queef!?
One of the characters would start to say something important, and my mind would send me off-path. Suddenly, I'm thinking about something ridiculous that Sean had said about creme filled donuts.
Heh. Lady creme...
Anyway. At first, it was hard to stay on track.
But then something weird happened about 9% of the way into this sucker.
I fucking forgot about Sean!
He just sort of disappeared from my mind, and I totally got into the story.
I should mention that this is set in the...
Um? Well, whenever Victoria was queen of England.
*cough*
Whatever! It'll come to me, eventually.
Alfred and Will are two middle-aged friends who've known each other for most of their lives. Alfred is a happily married noble, kind of an introvert, and (most importantly) he's one of the premier experts on the Arthurian legend. Will is a respected bookseller, confirmed bachelor, and all-around fun guy.
Despite their differences, they're pretty much BFF's.
Ok, Alfred's wife is dying, and he's heartbroken that he can't save her. So, when a shady dude claiming he's from a secret agency within the British government corners him at a party and tells him that they need his help to locate King Arthur's scabbard (which is reported to have healing properties), Al can't help but jump on board.
Alfred confides his plans in Will and takes off to meet a mysterious figure named Nigel.
Right off the bat, you know Nigel is not what he seems...
In my head, I'm screaming for Alfred to get the hell away from this guy.
He's nefarious! Noooo! Don't get bedazzled by his powers!
Run, man! RUN!
But, it turns out, Will is not entirely what he seems, either. I don't want to spoil anything, but he knows more than he lets on about stuff, and he begins working desperately behind the scenes to protect his friend.
Now, I'm not an expert on Camelot, so I have no idea about whether the legends used were accurate, or whether Sean just made all that shit up, but it sounded legit when I was reading it. I gobbled it up, and that's all that really mattered.
This was a surprisingly good story! I mean, just the fact that the main characters were
Horseshit! It rocks to get older!
Alright. That ending. What. The. Fuck.
Seriously, Sean? Seriously? That shit is not going to fly, pal. I mean, I get it. It was a total dude-ending. Bro-hug, keep a stiff upper lip, take a drink, and squint your eyes to find the tiny sliver of light at the end of the tunnel.
No! No way. I want a sequel! I need these two to go on a few more adventures before they hang it up.
Get on it!
Anyway, this was just a great buddy-adventure with a pinch of magic thrown in for good measure. It had pretty much everything I look for in a book. I still can't believe it didn't suck. I mean, it's not some crappy indie turd that my friend banged out on his tablet! Color me shocked.
Now, come here and pull my finger, Sean...
February 28, 2017
Click here to watch a video review of this book on my channel, From Beginning to Bookend.
It is the time of Queen Victoria's reign over England, and Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam is a reputable scholar who specializes in Roman and Anglo-Saxon history, with special attention paid to the dark ages and Arthurian lore. When he is commissioned by a secret organization to recover a long-lost artifact, he learns that his knowledge of King Arthur might lead him to a relic that could change the course of history and save his dying wife.
Alfred Fitzwilliam is an endearing protagonist for his many favorable traits. He is charming, perceptive, empathetic and friendly to all, including subordinates. He has excellent taste in spirits and an enviable library; in fact, his reverence for his library - a collection that includes tomes that are centuries old - will resonate with all bibliophiles.
The Camelot Shadow has a wide range of supporting characters, each memorable for their notable differences in personality. A particular favorite is Henry Milner, a man with grapheme-color synesthesia, a neurological phenomenon that allows people to perceive colors when looking at words or numbers. He also has a general synesthesia that grants him the ability to associate unique meaning for individual words, so his declarations are often amusing.
The dialogue is superlative throughout, hearkening to the Victorian era in ways both eloquent and cunning.
"I must say, it's such a delight to dance with a true artiste, one who hasn't traded in his beautiful blade for the amateur stench of gunpowder." He shook his head mournfully. "Such a shame - we practice a lost art, my friend."
Lyrical passages are evenly distributed and play with one's senses in delightful ways:
The ancient tome that currently rested in his lap was among the most prized in his vast collection, and as he carefully turned a vellum page, he marveled once again at its smooth feel, like the leaf of an orchid, and at the elegant script that covered its surface.
Even with his senses enmeshed in the present - the chill from the door, the hot ceramic mug, the quiet hum of conversation, the rich, acrid smell of burnt coffee, the pleasantly bitter taste - he found his mind slipping away to the past.
While there's no shortage of sword fighting, talk of sexual exploits, or drinking of scotch, The Camelot Shadow is threaded with questions of a more serious nature concerning the moral implications of various acts or deeds that are not listed in this review for fear of spoiling the plot.
With supreme effort, he managed to block out the distracting sounds and imagine the verdant rings of trees that must once have stood here, the gurgling trickle of a rain-swollen stream, perhaps even a mist-covered rainbow arcing between the rounded hills that crested over the horizon. Before long, however, his tranquil flight of fancy was interrupted by the imagined clash of steel and the screams of dying men, doomed to spend the final moments of their too brief lives wondering why they threw their lives away for a cause not worth dying for.
Lives are at stake and no one can be trusted in this rousing adventure based on Arthurian lore.
It is the time of Queen Victoria's reign over England, and Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam is a reputable scholar who specializes in Roman and Anglo-Saxon history, with special attention paid to the dark ages and Arthurian lore. When he is commissioned by a secret organization to recover a long-lost artifact, he learns that his knowledge of King Arthur might lead him to a relic that could change the course of history and save his dying wife.
Alfred Fitzwilliam is an endearing protagonist for his many favorable traits. He is charming, perceptive, empathetic and friendly to all, including subordinates. He has excellent taste in spirits and an enviable library; in fact, his reverence for his library - a collection that includes tomes that are centuries old - will resonate with all bibliophiles.
The Camelot Shadow has a wide range of supporting characters, each memorable for their notable differences in personality. A particular favorite is Henry Milner, a man with grapheme-color synesthesia, a neurological phenomenon that allows people to perceive colors when looking at words or numbers. He also has a general synesthesia that grants him the ability to associate unique meaning for individual words, so his declarations are often amusing.
The dialogue is superlative throughout, hearkening to the Victorian era in ways both eloquent and cunning.
"I must say, it's such a delight to dance with a true artiste, one who hasn't traded in his beautiful blade for the amateur stench of gunpowder." He shook his head mournfully. "Such a shame - we practice a lost art, my friend."
Lyrical passages are evenly distributed and play with one's senses in delightful ways:
The ancient tome that currently rested in his lap was among the most prized in his vast collection, and as he carefully turned a vellum page, he marveled once again at its smooth feel, like the leaf of an orchid, and at the elegant script that covered its surface.
Even with his senses enmeshed in the present - the chill from the door, the hot ceramic mug, the quiet hum of conversation, the rich, acrid smell of burnt coffee, the pleasantly bitter taste - he found his mind slipping away to the past.
While there's no shortage of sword fighting, talk of sexual exploits, or drinking of scotch, The Camelot Shadow is threaded with questions of a more serious nature concerning the moral implications of various acts or deeds that are not listed in this review for fear of spoiling the plot.
With supreme effort, he managed to block out the distracting sounds and imagine the verdant rings of trees that must once have stood here, the gurgling trickle of a rain-swollen stream, perhaps even a mist-covered rainbow arcing between the rounded hills that crested over the horizon. Before long, however, his tranquil flight of fancy was interrupted by the imagined clash of steel and the screams of dying men, doomed to spend the final moments of their too brief lives wondering why they threw their lives away for a cause not worth dying for.
Lives are at stake and no one can be trusted in this rousing adventure based on Arthurian lore.
June 2, 2023
Reviewed by Katelyn Hensel for Readers' Favorite
In The Camelot Shadow: A Novel by Sean Gibson, you'll embark on an epic quest with Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam. Much of his time has been spent in reclusive activities such as caring for his bedridden wife and reading. His world is torn asunder with the mysterious visit from a secret society member, seeking his help to find a lost Arthurian artifact. Much like the proverbial Holy Grail, this artifact is said to grant healing powers, powers that could save his dying lady and allow them precious time together.
This is the kind of historical fiction that gives the genre a good name! It's not just a sensible maid being seduced by a dastardly devil of a lord. No, there is much more to The Camelot Shadow than meets the eye and I believe that it's the sort of fiction that makes you remember it long after you're finished. The characters were great together, whether nefarious or not, and they all had great banter/dialogue and chemistry with one another.
I'm going to be bluntly honest. I LOVED this book. Sean Gibson is a master crafter of plot twists, secrets and mystery. Paired with the austere and iconic imagery of Victorian London, this book thrills from page one to the final close of the cover. I enjoyed the reading experience so much that I immediately went to Goodreads to find out if Sean had any other books, and to my dismay he did not. My final comment is to Sean: Get writing so that I can continue reading your books! The Camelot Shadow is a great read, full of thrills and gritty characters that remind you of folks you know.
Reviews by Michelle Stanley for Readers' Favorite
The Camelot Shadow is a historical novel by Sean Gibson. Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam, an authority on Anglo-Saxon history, receives an unusual request to assist James Nigel in searching for King Arthur’s scabbard that held his sword, Excalibur. He doubts that Camelot really existed, but agrees to help after learning of the scabbard’s healing powers that could save his dying wife. Although the mission is top secret, Lord Alfred confides in his best friend, Will Upton, a rare book dealer who decides to accompany him on the mission. Will has his own hidden motives for joining the search team, but so does the detached Brendan Quinn, who works for James Nigel. His job is to watch and report the activities of the team, and eventually eliminate all witnesses who learn of the scabbard’s existence.
The Camelot Shadow by Sean Gibson is an intriguing historical novel that absorbed my attention. It is well-written, and the author’s spin on the legend of King Arthur is terrific. This is a story with great visuals, enabling readers to see and feel every bit of the action and emotions of these interesting “love me or hate me” characters. I like Lord Alfred, a strong, fair-minded man who has difficult decisions to make regarding the scabbard and his wife. The dialogue is sharp and expressive, with sufficient mirth from some characters. I think the twists are very good, and I gained knowledge of druids and their practices as Sean Gibson elaborated on this through his writing.
In The Camelot Shadow: A Novel by Sean Gibson, you'll embark on an epic quest with Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam. Much of his time has been spent in reclusive activities such as caring for his bedridden wife and reading. His world is torn asunder with the mysterious visit from a secret society member, seeking his help to find a lost Arthurian artifact. Much like the proverbial Holy Grail, this artifact is said to grant healing powers, powers that could save his dying lady and allow them precious time together.
This is the kind of historical fiction that gives the genre a good name! It's not just a sensible maid being seduced by a dastardly devil of a lord. No, there is much more to The Camelot Shadow than meets the eye and I believe that it's the sort of fiction that makes you remember it long after you're finished. The characters were great together, whether nefarious or not, and they all had great banter/dialogue and chemistry with one another.
I'm going to be bluntly honest. I LOVED this book. Sean Gibson is a master crafter of plot twists, secrets and mystery. Paired with the austere and iconic imagery of Victorian London, this book thrills from page one to the final close of the cover. I enjoyed the reading experience so much that I immediately went to Goodreads to find out if Sean had any other books, and to my dismay he did not. My final comment is to Sean: Get writing so that I can continue reading your books! The Camelot Shadow is a great read, full of thrills and gritty characters that remind you of folks you know.
Reviews by Michelle Stanley for Readers' Favorite
The Camelot Shadow is a historical novel by Sean Gibson. Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam, an authority on Anglo-Saxon history, receives an unusual request to assist James Nigel in searching for King Arthur’s scabbard that held his sword, Excalibur. He doubts that Camelot really existed, but agrees to help after learning of the scabbard’s healing powers that could save his dying wife. Although the mission is top secret, Lord Alfred confides in his best friend, Will Upton, a rare book dealer who decides to accompany him on the mission. Will has his own hidden motives for joining the search team, but so does the detached Brendan Quinn, who works for James Nigel. His job is to watch and report the activities of the team, and eventually eliminate all witnesses who learn of the scabbard’s existence.
The Camelot Shadow by Sean Gibson is an intriguing historical novel that absorbed my attention. It is well-written, and the author’s spin on the legend of King Arthur is terrific. This is a story with great visuals, enabling readers to see and feel every bit of the action and emotions of these interesting “love me or hate me” characters. I like Lord Alfred, a strong, fair-minded man who has difficult decisions to make regarding the scabbard and his wife. The dialogue is sharp and expressive, with sufficient mirth from some characters. I think the twists are very good, and I gained knowledge of druids and their practices as Sean Gibson elaborated on this through his writing.
January 21, 2022
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‘’I can either tell you my tale, or I can respond to your feeble witticisms. I cannot, in my mildly inebriated state, do both.’’
This is not your usual story related to King Arthur, Merlin and Camelot. This will, in fact, be quite different story and not only unusual, but one of a kind.
We go back in time when Queen Victoria was ruling over England. In a time when the author really liked to point out the fact that the characters are using trains. It was pointed out so much, that I had to do a bit of research to see if trains existed in that time. They did - apparently England had the oldest rail transport in the world. And Queen Victoria was one of the first royals to use that form of transport too.
Now, I am not even sure why I kept going on about trains… Back to the story…
The Camelot Shadow covers the story of Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam, a man whose wife is ill from an incurable illness. When an opportunity arises, giving him the chance and hope that he might save the life of his lover, he goes on a mission to find an object from the time when King Arthur was the ruler of England, and Merlin was his companion.
With a help from a group of people, Alfred digs the history and the stories of the past, only to discover that not everything he believed in was true, and not everyone that he trusted is his ally.
A story that reminded me of Dan Brown’s work. Quite similar in the sense of clues, history, what is a myth and what is a fact, though also quite distinctive, as it covers people’s characters so well, describing their personalities in a powerful way.
‘’Wealth. Status. Happiness. A perfect life. All built on an ephemeral foundation, an impossibility masking a lie that, if exposed, if openly acknowledged, would bring it all crashing down around our heads.’’
When a great disappointment comes around, and all hope is gone, people change, and people feel things. A person starts to wonder what they did wrong, what could they have done differently, what if… Alfred is one of the people where we will see his change over the chapters. For better or for worse, I’ll let you decide.
‘’It was Guinevere’s infidelity that brought down Arthur’s Camelot’’ – he said, wiping a trickle of Scotch from his chin with the back of his sleeve. ‘’It was God’s cruelty that brought down mine.’’
A book that explains good and evil in the unusual way. I thought I could explain good and evil, but sometimes my evil can do you good, and your good can do harm to everyone. And power… oh what people are capable to do for power…
‘’Power, Arthur had taught him, was not something to covet, but rather something to treat in the same manner one might handle a wild mastiff – with considerable respect, constant vigilance, and a trace of fear. ‘’
If you are a fan of history fiction, and stories about Arthur and Merlin, you would definitely want to dive in into this book and get lost into the world. And that is not the only thing that this book covers… It covers hope, faith, loss, love, good, evil, power, guilt and everything in between. Get ready for an adventure. One full of bravery and magic. And maybe… maybe some hope.
A huge thank you to the author, Sean Gibson, who was kind enough to give me an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
‘’I can either tell you my tale, or I can respond to your feeble witticisms. I cannot, in my mildly inebriated state, do both.’’
This is not your usual story related to King Arthur, Merlin and Camelot. This will, in fact, be quite different story and not only unusual, but one of a kind.
We go back in time when Queen Victoria was ruling over England. In a time when the author really liked to point out the fact that the characters are using trains. It was pointed out so much, that I had to do a bit of research to see if trains existed in that time. They did - apparently England had the oldest rail transport in the world. And Queen Victoria was one of the first royals to use that form of transport too.
Now, I am not even sure why I kept going on about trains… Back to the story…
The Camelot Shadow covers the story of Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam, a man whose wife is ill from an incurable illness. When an opportunity arises, giving him the chance and hope that he might save the life of his lover, he goes on a mission to find an object from the time when King Arthur was the ruler of England, and Merlin was his companion.
With a help from a group of people, Alfred digs the history and the stories of the past, only to discover that not everything he believed in was true, and not everyone that he trusted is his ally.
A story that reminded me of Dan Brown’s work. Quite similar in the sense of clues, history, what is a myth and what is a fact, though also quite distinctive, as it covers people’s characters so well, describing their personalities in a powerful way.
‘’Wealth. Status. Happiness. A perfect life. All built on an ephemeral foundation, an impossibility masking a lie that, if exposed, if openly acknowledged, would bring it all crashing down around our heads.’’
When a great disappointment comes around, and all hope is gone, people change, and people feel things. A person starts to wonder what they did wrong, what could they have done differently, what if… Alfred is one of the people where we will see his change over the chapters. For better or for worse, I’ll let you decide.
‘’It was Guinevere’s infidelity that brought down Arthur’s Camelot’’ – he said, wiping a trickle of Scotch from his chin with the back of his sleeve. ‘’It was God’s cruelty that brought down mine.’’
A book that explains good and evil in the unusual way. I thought I could explain good and evil, but sometimes my evil can do you good, and your good can do harm to everyone. And power… oh what people are capable to do for power…
‘’Power, Arthur had taught him, was not something to covet, but rather something to treat in the same manner one might handle a wild mastiff – with considerable respect, constant vigilance, and a trace of fear. ‘’
If you are a fan of history fiction, and stories about Arthur and Merlin, you would definitely want to dive in into this book and get lost into the world. And that is not the only thing that this book covers… It covers hope, faith, loss, love, good, evil, power, guilt and everything in between. Get ready for an adventure. One full of bravery and magic. And maybe… maybe some hope.
A huge thank you to the author, Sean Gibson, who was kind enough to give me an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
January 20, 2016
Straddling the already blurred line between historical fiction and fantasy, The Camelot Shadow is set in Victorian Britain (apart from the bit that’s set in Italy) and the author makes the setting come alive. You can smell the shit in the gutters and hear the cries of the street hawkers. For an American author, Sean Gibson really gets the feel right for the Britain of this period.
I mean, I’m a complete arse, so I was obviously trying to catch this guy out! There were a number of things in the book that initially struck me as anachronisms (A curry house in Victorian London? I thought. That can’t be right!) but when I researched them myself I was proven wrong every single time!* (There really were curry houses in Victorian London! Who knew?) Every time I researched one of these non-anachronisms, I grew more and more impressed by Gibson’s research (assuming he actually did any and didn’t just get lucky lots of times).
So, given that the setting is good, how was the actual story? Well, I bloody loved it! I’m a complete sucker for a quest (it’s the gamer in me) so I love to feel like I’m setting out with a noble mission with the characters in a book, and I definitely got that feeling here. I also enjoy Arthurian myth and legend, which you get here in spades (although possibly not in the way you might originally think).
The characters themselves were all well-drawn (the important ones anyway; there’s a few Rosencrantzes and Guildensterns that we aren’t given much information about, but I just pictured them as looking like characters from Blackadder and got on with it) with distinct personalities and quirks. Some of the characters are wonderfully eccentric, in fact, and a joy to read about. Billy Connolly’s even in it! (All right, all right… it’s not actually Billy Connolly, it’s one of the characters he’s played in movies… in MY head, though, it was him.)
The plot has several twists and turns, a lot of which I didn’t see coming. It also has a very varied tonal palette, which I like. There are moments of extreme sadness, sections that are very funny, passages that are very dark and sections that are very exciting and action-orientated. You get a lot of bang for your buck, basically!
Overall, I enjoyed the Hell out of this book and do not hesitate to recommend it to anybody who has a liking for anything listed above. I am most relieved to be able to say that this book does not suck!
*OK, I’ll be completely honest: I caught him out once but only once on the anachronism front. One of the characters refers to acquaintances of his as being ‘flakes’ in the slang sense of the word. The word ‘flake’ didn’t gain this connotation until the twentieth century. Sorry, Sean! (Please don’t hurt me!)
Full disclosure: The author provided me with a PDF copy of this book in exchange for aninsulting and comedic honest review. However, I liked the book so much that I bought a copy from Amazon. If that sounds stupid, please note that for every copy sold of The Camelot Shadow, $1 will be donated to Surgicorps (http://surgicorps.org/). Here's why: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...)
I mean, I’m a complete arse, so I was obviously trying to catch this guy out! There were a number of things in the book that initially struck me as anachronisms (A curry house in Victorian London? I thought. That can’t be right!) but when I researched them myself I was proven wrong every single time!* (There really were curry houses in Victorian London! Who knew?) Every time I researched one of these non-anachronisms, I grew more and more impressed by Gibson’s research (assuming he actually did any and didn’t just get lucky lots of times).
So, given that the setting is good, how was the actual story? Well, I bloody loved it! I’m a complete sucker for a quest (it’s the gamer in me) so I love to feel like I’m setting out with a noble mission with the characters in a book, and I definitely got that feeling here. I also enjoy Arthurian myth and legend, which you get here in spades (although possibly not in the way you might originally think).
The characters themselves were all well-drawn (the important ones anyway; there’s a few Rosencrantzes and Guildensterns that we aren’t given much information about, but I just pictured them as looking like characters from Blackadder and got on with it) with distinct personalities and quirks. Some of the characters are wonderfully eccentric, in fact, and a joy to read about. Billy Connolly’s even in it! (All right, all right… it’s not actually Billy Connolly, it’s one of the characters he’s played in movies… in MY head, though, it was him.)
The plot has several twists and turns, a lot of which I didn’t see coming. It also has a very varied tonal palette, which I like. There are moments of extreme sadness, sections that are very funny, passages that are very dark and sections that are very exciting and action-orientated. You get a lot of bang for your buck, basically!
Overall, I enjoyed the Hell out of this book and do not hesitate to recommend it to anybody who has a liking for anything listed above. I am most relieved to be able to say that this book does not suck!
*OK, I’ll be completely honest: I caught him out once but only once on the anachronism front. One of the characters refers to acquaintances of his as being ‘flakes’ in the slang sense of the word. The word ‘flake’ didn’t gain this connotation until the twentieth century. Sorry, Sean! (Please don’t hurt me!)
Full disclosure: The author provided me with a PDF copy of this book in exchange for an
May 8, 2015
(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to author Sean Gibson.)
“You cannot be in search of Excalibur…”
Well, we are not pursuing that particular item for one very simple reason.”
“And why, pray tell, might that be?”
Henry shrugged. “Because we’ve already found it.”
This was a detailed story about a man searching for relics from the time of King Arthur, in order to save the life of his wife.
Alfred went to such lengths in this book to find the scabbard of Excalibur, as he believed that it held the key to curing his wife of the illness from which she suffered. Alfred seemed to be a fairly upstanding sort of man, who really loved to collect rare books.
“Alfred had amassed an impressive collection of Arthurian lore in his library, including some exceedingly rare and coveted tomes.”
The storyline in this delved into the history of Arthur and Excalibur, as well as having its own storyline concerning Alfred. I have to say that I did find the story quite complex at points, and I did have trouble following what was going on a bit, although I think this was more a problem with me than a problem with the book!
“Please explain to me how a sword found in a stone comes to have a scabbard anyway… or do the tales omit that little detail.”
That being said, the writing in this was really quite special, and this read like a classic rather than a modern novel.
“when the sword hit the water, a boat emerged, crewed by a trio of faeries. They took Arthur to Avalon, where he was to remain until he returned to save his people during their hour of greatest need.”
The ending to this was hopeful, although it really was quite sad.
6 out of 10.
“You cannot be in search of Excalibur…”
Well, we are not pursuing that particular item for one very simple reason.”
“And why, pray tell, might that be?”
Henry shrugged. “Because we’ve already found it.”
This was a detailed story about a man searching for relics from the time of King Arthur, in order to save the life of his wife.
Alfred went to such lengths in this book to find the scabbard of Excalibur, as he believed that it held the key to curing his wife of the illness from which she suffered. Alfred seemed to be a fairly upstanding sort of man, who really loved to collect rare books.
“Alfred had amassed an impressive collection of Arthurian lore in his library, including some exceedingly rare and coveted tomes.”
The storyline in this delved into the history of Arthur and Excalibur, as well as having its own storyline concerning Alfred. I have to say that I did find the story quite complex at points, and I did have trouble following what was going on a bit, although I think this was more a problem with me than a problem with the book!
“Please explain to me how a sword found in a stone comes to have a scabbard anyway… or do the tales omit that little detail.”
That being said, the writing in this was really quite special, and this read like a classic rather than a modern novel.
“when the sword hit the water, a boat emerged, crewed by a trio of faeries. They took Arthur to Avalon, where he was to remain until he returned to save his people during their hour of greatest need.”
The ending to this was hopeful, although it really was quite sad.
6 out of 10.
September 27, 2015
Rating: 4 stars
"Tears pricked the corner of Alfred's eyes as he leaned forward in his chair and grasped her hand tightly, squeezing it as hard as he could, as though, in so doing, he might drive the sickness from her.
"Alfred," she whispered, a ghostly rasp that he sensed more than heard.
"I am here." He squeezed her hand again, unsure whether she could feel the pressure. "I am always here."
"The Camelot Shadow" contains many exciting elements throughout, including mystery, intrigue, search for treasure, secret organizations, fantasy, battles, evil villains, and more that I can not mention, as it would definitely spoil the story...but it is very exciting! It is a historical novel that takes place in Britain in the Victorian era. Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam is becoming desperate, as his wife is fast slipping away from him. When he is asked to assist in the search for a rare artifact, used by King Arthur in his last battle, Alfred realizes he has no choice. This may be the key to saving his beloved wife, and it may, in fact, be the key to saving the entire world!
The first thing that struck me is the beautiful writing, contrasted with the comic relief written into the scenes. The detailed descriptions were a bit long in the beginning, and I wanted to jump right into the action, but the tone changed quickly and kept my attention. I cared about the fate of the characters early on, and was not just a casual observer, but a part of the story. The quest to find the sacred artifact is exciting, as I was able to travel to London, Scotland, and Lucca, Italy.
A standout character is "Viviane Lytelle" because her charisma jumps off the page. Will Upton, Alfred's dear friend and rare bookseller describes his fascination with her: "The heady mixture of strong emotion, too much brandy, too little food, and the tantalizingly close scent of Viviane made his head swim, and he found himself grasping the arms of the chair tightly, fingers digging into the leather, as he fought to keep from fainting."
"The Camelot Shadow" continues to build, and I found myself looking forward to the evenings when I could read more. I am hoping for a sequel because I did become very involved with the characters. But if there is no sequel in store for the future, I am still hoping for another unique story by Sean Gibson!
"Alfred," she whispered, a ghostly rasp that he sensed more than heard.
"I am here." He squeezed her hand again, unsure whether she could feel the pressure. "I am always here."
"The Camelot Shadow" contains many exciting elements throughout, including mystery, intrigue, search for treasure, secret organizations, fantasy, battles, evil villains, and more that I can not mention, as it would definitely spoil the story...but it is very exciting! It is a historical novel that takes place in Britain in the Victorian era. Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam is becoming desperate, as his wife is fast slipping away from him. When he is asked to assist in the search for a rare artifact, used by King Arthur in his last battle, Alfred realizes he has no choice. This may be the key to saving his beloved wife, and it may, in fact, be the key to saving the entire world!
The first thing that struck me is the beautiful writing, contrasted with the comic relief written into the scenes. The detailed descriptions were a bit long in the beginning, and I wanted to jump right into the action, but the tone changed quickly and kept my attention. I cared about the fate of the characters early on, and was not just a casual observer, but a part of the story. The quest to find the sacred artifact is exciting, as I was able to travel to London, Scotland, and Lucca, Italy.
A standout character is "Viviane Lytelle" because her charisma jumps off the page. Will Upton, Alfred's dear friend and rare bookseller describes his fascination with her: "The heady mixture of strong emotion, too much brandy, too little food, and the tantalizingly close scent of Viviane made his head swim, and he found himself grasping the arms of the chair tightly, fingers digging into the leather, as he fought to keep from fainting."
"The Camelot Shadow" continues to build, and I found myself looking forward to the evenings when I could read more. I am hoping for a sequel because I did become very involved with the characters. But if there is no sequel in store for the future, I am still hoping for another unique story by Sean Gibson!
June 27, 2015
www.melissa413readsalot.blogspot.com
I was given a copy of this book by the author for an honest review.
OMG! This book was so sad. Hmmm, maybe I shouldn't have started off with that :) The sad things are the people that die and the fact that Alfred is looking to cure his wife Ellen. Poor man almost drinks himself to death.
An evil man named Nigel and somewhat normal people come to Alfred saying his wife can be cured if he helps them find Excalibur. Yep, that's what I said. They say it has the healing abilities to cure his wife, so even though Alfred is skeptical, he is on this crusade like a dog with a bone!
Some of my favorite characters were Trusty John, Will and Stephen.
I loved the atmosphere of the book, all of the background the author put into the book. I felt like I was in Alfred's library at times or outside looking in from the beautiful grounds that I imagined.
There were even some undead in the book :) I thought that was a really good edition to the story. Ok, I have to add a **SPOILER** Especially when Trusty John kills one of the bad guys and remarks he guesses he will have to kill him again when he gets brought back as a zombie and has to fight him all over again. :)
The Epilogue is both comical and sad at the same time. I hope Alfred gets better.
The story is very rich in history of Camelot or more so Arthur, Merlin and the gang. I enjoyed it and I look forward to any more books from this author!
I was given a copy of this book by the author for an honest review.
OMG! This book was so sad. Hmmm, maybe I shouldn't have started off with that :) The sad things are the people that die and the fact that Alfred is looking to cure his wife Ellen. Poor man almost drinks himself to death.
An evil man named Nigel and somewhat normal people come to Alfred saying his wife can be cured if he helps them find Excalibur. Yep, that's what I said. They say it has the healing abilities to cure his wife, so even though Alfred is skeptical, he is on this crusade like a dog with a bone!
Some of my favorite characters were Trusty John, Will and Stephen.
I loved the atmosphere of the book, all of the background the author put into the book. I felt like I was in Alfred's library at times or outside looking in from the beautiful grounds that I imagined.
There were even some undead in the book :) I thought that was a really good edition to the story. Ok, I have to add a **SPOILER** Especially when Trusty John kills one of the bad guys and remarks he guesses he will have to kill him again when he gets brought back as a zombie and has to fight him all over again. :)
The Epilogue is both comical and sad at the same time. I hope Alfred gets better.
The story is very rich in history of Camelot or more so Arthur, Merlin and the gang. I enjoyed it and I look forward to any more books from this author!
December 23, 2015
3.8/5 I FREAKING LOVE ARTHURIAN LEGEND STARS
First of all, let me put it out there. I have a do or die affair with Arthurian tales and anything Arthurian related. It's so serious it's not even funny. I'm crazy about stories surrounding that time. Believe me. I have references, ask any of them
If there's anyone reading this who hates Arthurian history and tales of that time, help yourself. Backtrack. Scroll by and away. Turn your laptop off before I reach my hand through your screen and pull your heart out of your chest.
Just kidddding. I don't mean it, I'm just a bit grouchy.
THE STORE WAS OUT OF CHEESE BALLS AND I'M SO HUNGRY
But let's get on with the review, shall we?
STORY LINE
Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam is a noble intellectual and bibliophile who is greatly acquainted with the subject of Arthurian history and legend. He is grief-stricken and saddened by the grave state of his wife, Ellen, not just because she is sick with consumption but also because of the unfavorable prognosis of her disease.
During a social function, Lord Alfred meets a man by the name of Brendan Quinn. Through Quinn he meets Henry and Nigel who enlist Alfred's help to find an artifact of Arthurian legend. One which may or may not be a fixture of wild stories and speculations. The said artifact is rumored to have great healing powers, and Alfred, skeptical as he is is enticed into helping them with their quest. They claim to be an organization that has pledged duty to the Queen and their country. The artifact they say, is for the general good. They feed him lines like this to convince him of the good of their quest.
All I could say at that point was: You have a very twisted way of thinking my friend. Reeeeally twisted.
But what to do? It's the only hope for Ellen's recovery now. So Alfred gives in. They need his extensive knowledge and skill and he needs his wife back and healthy. There's nothing like symbiosis. Their quest leads them on journeys to different countries and cities, scouring through old and disintegrating journals with encrypted data which will lead them to the aforementioned artifact.
The question is, can Alfred trust the good intentions of the lot?
MY THOUGHTS
Much from the story and scenes came off as twisted- or rather put, reinvented- as they deviated from my own growing but still mediocre knowledge of Arthurian history.They portrayed the character of Merlin as something very different from what I've always believed to be true. And that's the point. The plot twist wasn't a surprise, it was an ambush. When the curtains were drawn open, I just couldn't believe it. Enter my spit take.
I was beguiled by the turn of events. I loved it. What I know of what I know was just irrelevant in this story. I was really enthralled by the storyline shake up.
But at the same time I was also thinking
Do I want to talk about how amazing and poetic the writing is?
I don't think I could say enough. It was just...plainly put-beautiful.
So Why did I give this 3.8 stars?
I'll start off with the very first thing that I noticed.
▶ The setting: This book is of the historical fiction genre. So of course the location is set in past times. But I couldn't really feel it. I didn't get that vibe at all. I read mostly out of tune with the setting, almost ignorant of it because I stopped trying to connect at some point.
▶ Characters : The first character I had a problem with was Ellen, Alfred's wife. I felt no sympathy for her plight, nor did I feel any for Alfred. The story was well way underway before Ellen was ever introduced to us. I was a little bit displeased with this. I wanted to get a bit acquainted with her character, to fully understand Alfred's motive and drive. The scenes where she had presence and/or input were insignificant. I just mostly accepted the story I was given: Alfred loved his wife so much he was ready to believe in the power and existence of a mythical object to secure a longer life for her.
The characters I strongly connected with were Alfred's best friend and successful bookseller, Will Upton and Henry Milner. I fell in love with Henry in a heartbeat. He was such a peculiar and lovely soul. Regardless of his age,(he's in his 50's) I just loved his character so much. He was the most gentle and carefree character in this book to me. And what about Will?
Well, Will brought the comic to the story. And you know I love anything that makes me laugh. Him and Alfred have one of the most adhering bonds I've seen in any friendship between characters I've read about. Gosh it was so inspiring. The great lengths they would go for each other, the brotherly love was just amazing. They were forever looking out for each other.
▶ The slow pacing: This one really didn't bug me much, if I'm to be honest. I was so lost in the story and the adventurousness of the quest that I hardly felt troubled by the slowness of pace. I was so eager to know where the journey was leading our characters. And I just loved the unraveling! I could hardly wait to get to the end and see what end our villain met, and how he met it. I LOVED THE ENDING. It didn't fail to deliver in action and blood-shed at all. What? I love a bloody fight. It's the most thrilling thing to read about, I'll say.
In summary, I loved the second half of the book a lot more than the first half.
This book would be amazing on screen assuming inauspicious details and twisted scenes aren't added in the mix. There were some parts I just would die to see actualized on screen.
And lastly, after reading Tuck Everlasting, I took up a fresh perspective on the concept of immortality and life everlasting. I love how this story presented the topic again to me. The moral questions associated with the subject still presented themselves in a just as imparting fashion.
That's one thing I really loved about this book. Overall this book was a good read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
NOW I LEAVE YOU WITH A LOVELY QUOTE FROM HENRY TO ATTEST HIS ENDEARING CHARACTER:
First of all, let me put it out there. I have a do or die affair with Arthurian tales and anything Arthurian related. It's so serious it's not even funny. I'm crazy about stories surrounding that time. Believe me. I have references, ask any of them
If there's anyone reading this who hates Arthurian history and tales of that time, help yourself. Backtrack. Scroll by and away. Turn your laptop off before I reach my hand through your screen and pull your heart out of your chest.
Just kidddding. I don't mean it, I'm just a bit grouchy.
THE STORE WAS OUT OF CHEESE BALLS AND I'M SO HUNGRY
But let's get on with the review, shall we?
STORY LINE
There is power buried in the sands of time. Power that men cannot comprehend despite so-called scientific advances
Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam is a noble intellectual and bibliophile who is greatly acquainted with the subject of Arthurian history and legend. He is grief-stricken and saddened by the grave state of his wife, Ellen, not just because she is sick with consumption but also because of the unfavorable prognosis of her disease.
During a social function, Lord Alfred meets a man by the name of Brendan Quinn. Through Quinn he meets Henry and Nigel who enlist Alfred's help to find an artifact of Arthurian legend. One which may or may not be a fixture of wild stories and speculations. The said artifact is rumored to have great healing powers, and Alfred, skeptical as he is is enticed into helping them with their quest. They claim to be an organization that has pledged duty to the Queen and their country. The artifact they say, is for the general good. They feed him lines like this to convince him of the good of their quest.
Death cannot be defeated, true, but it may be delayed—the “D” in “death” tells us that-
All I could say at that point was: You have a very twisted way of thinking my friend. Reeeeally twisted.
But what to do? It's the only hope for Ellen's recovery now. So Alfred gives in. They need his extensive knowledge and skill and he needs his wife back and healthy. There's nothing like symbiosis. Their quest leads them on journeys to different countries and cities, scouring through old and disintegrating journals with encrypted data which will lead them to the aforementioned artifact.
The question is, can Alfred trust the good intentions of the lot?
MY THOUGHTS
Much from the story and scenes came off as twisted- or rather put, reinvented- as they deviated from my own growing but still mediocre knowledge of Arthurian history.They portrayed the character of Merlin as something very different from what I've always believed to be true. And that's the point. The plot twist wasn't a surprise, it was an ambush. When the curtains were drawn open, I just couldn't believe it. Enter my spit take.
I was beguiled by the turn of events. I loved it. What I know of what I know was just irrelevant in this story. I was really enthralled by the storyline shake up.
But at the same time I was also thinking
Do I want to talk about how amazing and poetic the writing is?
I don't think I could say enough. It was just...plainly put-beautiful.
So Why did I give this 3.8 stars?
I'll start off with the very first thing that I noticed.
▶ The setting: This book is of the historical fiction genre. So of course the location is set in past times. But I couldn't really feel it. I didn't get that vibe at all. I read mostly out of tune with the setting, almost ignorant of it because I stopped trying to connect at some point.
▶ Characters : The first character I had a problem with was Ellen, Alfred's wife. I felt no sympathy for her plight, nor did I feel any for Alfred. The story was well way underway before Ellen was ever introduced to us. I was a little bit displeased with this. I wanted to get a bit acquainted with her character, to fully understand Alfred's motive and drive. The scenes where she had presence and/or input were insignificant. I just mostly accepted the story I was given: Alfred loved his wife so much he was ready to believe in the power and existence of a mythical object to secure a longer life for her.
The characters I strongly connected with were Alfred's best friend and successful bookseller, Will Upton and Henry Milner. I fell in love with Henry in a heartbeat. He was such a peculiar and lovely soul. Regardless of his age,(he's in his 50's) I just loved his character so much. He was the most gentle and carefree character in this book to me. And what about Will?
Well, Will brought the comic to the story. And you know I love anything that makes me laugh. Him and Alfred have one of the most adhering bonds I've seen in any friendship between characters I've read about. Gosh it was so inspiring. The great lengths they would go for each other, the brotherly love was just amazing. They were forever looking out for each other.
▶ The slow pacing: This one really didn't bug me much, if I'm to be honest. I was so lost in the story and the adventurousness of the quest that I hardly felt troubled by the slowness of pace. I was so eager to know where the journey was leading our characters. And I just loved the unraveling! I could hardly wait to get to the end and see what end our villain met, and how he met it. I LOVED THE ENDING. It didn't fail to deliver in action and blood-shed at all. What? I love a bloody fight. It's the most thrilling thing to read about, I'll say.
In summary, I loved the second half of the book a lot more than the first half.
This book would be amazing on screen assuming inauspicious details and twisted scenes aren't added in the mix. There were some parts I just would die to see actualized on screen.
And lastly, after reading Tuck Everlasting, I took up a fresh perspective on the concept of immortality and life everlasting. I love how this story presented the topic again to me. The moral questions associated with the subject still presented themselves in a just as imparting fashion.
That's one thing I really loved about this book. Overall this book was a good read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
NOW I LEAVE YOU WITH A LOVELY QUOTE FROM HENRY TO ATTEST HIS ENDEARING CHARACTER:
I have always viewed the world…differently. I am in full possession of my faculties, but where others see the lines and shapes that form letters and numbers, I see colors, patterns, personalities. I can infer from it's rounded loop that the letter "p" is a pushover, and I can ascertain from the structure of the word "June" that it is both yellow and serene.
April 29, 2018
Dear Sean,
When I was growing up and my parents would make weird things for dinner (and by weird I mean stuff like red wine stew that my young taste buds could not yet appreciate) I came up with a politically correct way of saying I didn't like it, and that phrase was "It's not my favorite." This, or simply drowning whatever was put in front of me with tomato sauce, was a sure fire way of telling my parents not to make that concoction again.
Since I do not want to douse my e-reader with tomato sauce, I'm going to have to say that much like red wine stew to 10 year old me, this book was not my favorite.
To be brutally honest, for the first 50% of this book, the only thing that kept me reading, was the promise of another Nicolas Cage worthy quote to put in my reading progress. There were so many characters, so many point of views, and yet nothing seemed to be happening. This was me for most of the first half of the book:
I had to set myself little goals to keep reading, and when I got to those goals, my reward was a Nicolas Cage picture. YAY.
At about page 200, things started to ramp up and I was excited to see what would happen. And bloody hell Sean, this is also about the time you turned into George R.R. Martin on us, is no character of yours safe?
While I understand now, that the first half of the book was setting up all the information and drama needed to unfold the epic finale, there were times when I nearly gave up reading, because I was worried that although all of this back story and set up was beautifully written, it wasn't ever going to end up getting us anywhere.
Truth be told, I wanted more Beaumont. I wanted more Trusty John. They were excellent in a creepy and psychopathic way. I loved Henry. What a character! I also enjoyed Alfred and Will's relationship, but Alfred's inability to ever press for answers became rather annoying, I am all for keeping up appearances, but his often quixotic nature was self detrimental most of the time.
This story had a little bit of everything in the end, it had adventure, it had intrigue, it had heartbreak and it really left me reeling at some points at the end there.
The best thing about this book is its writing. Sean, you really do have a way with words. Sure, you sometimes use too many, they are purple as fuck and I often had to google the meaning of some things, but overall this is a well written tale.
I feel like I gained brain cells with every paragraph I read of this, whereas I lost brain cells for every paragraph I read of this alien smut.
What this boils down to is that it's not you, Camelot Shadow, it's me. I like paranormal romance, creepy stalker books and alien smut. And while there are some supernatural elements at play here and the plot was driven by Alfred's desire to cure his ill wife, in the end, it's not my favorite .
While this was not my cup of tea, I'm sure there are many out there who will enjoy this Sherlockian adventure tale with an Arthurian twist.
A lovely addition to my Indie August Challenge.
3 fridays-are-very-agreeable-days Stars
I am friends with Sean here on Goodreads. This in no way affected the rating I have given.
March 3, 2016
Alfred is in sorrow because his wife is sick and only a miracle can save her. This miracle comes in a much unexpected way - he is offered to seek the scabbard, a legendary sword that's supposed to cure diseases and whatnot, kind of like the famous philosopher's stone of the alchemists. He's not very convinced of the existence of this object, but what alternative does he have? His wife can't wait and this seems to be his only hope of saving her, thus he accepts the quest.
I had zero expectations before starting this book. Stories about quests, traveling and searches of precious objects are stories that can bore me easily if they're not done correct. However, they can be epic as well, so it's a double-edged blade, isn't it?. This book was more between both of those extremes, delving a little in the tedious side, sadly.
You see, when I'm almost on finals week I can only read fast-paced or lighter (not fluffy because I hate fluff) books. If I try to read books with a pace slower than a sloth I lose attention very easily, and what with my fantastic trait of being easily annoyed and bored. This book is one of the latter. The pace... it was just soooo goddamn slow. It was slower than I could handle. Nothing seemed to happen for the first 50% of it, and I wanted to abandon it.
Gratefully, though, it picked up.... but I cannot say it got much better.
The main problem this book had was not the pace - it was the characters. If I had loved them, I could have endured 1k pages of just interactions between characters and no plot development. I didn't like them all that much, though. It's not that they were stupid or rage-inducing. It was that they were too cliched and one-dimensional.
Alfred is the typical too-good-to-be-true hero. He has unquestionsble loyalty towards his wife (not complaining about this), pure heart and never has malicious intentions. Please, that's just not realistic. Even the most angelic person has sinful thoughts at times, and you and I perfectly know there's no Jeckyll without a Hyde.
The villain was not of my liking either. He was waaaaaay too predictable and cliched for my taste. He's that kind of guy who wants to take over he world because he has nothing to do and tells his plans to absolutely everybody and then is wondering why they never turn out well. He might as well have looked like this:
The other characters could have been better if the interactions between them hadn't felt so unnatural, forced and robotic. They spoke way too formal for them to sound real. In Victorian novels you could find characters using slang of the time (sidenote: this book is set in the Victorian era, that's why I make the comparison). This fact caused them all to sound exactly the sane at times. The only way you could differentiate was because of their personal traits.
The book was not terrible, though. I actually liked the writing. It was descriptive yet not too wordy or tedious. It was not hard for me to imagine everything. I only point out that sometimes there were overly long descriptions about unnecessary things (such as how Alfred woke up and did all his daily routine) or it could get more telling than showing (for example, we never really feel Alfred's sorrow for his wife because we're told she's ill, and we don't really have the "proof"), but I assure you it's good on the most part.
I have to praise too the research the author made. Here there are myths, legends and historical facts about Merlin, King Arthur, the sword and other things. I, for once, know nothing at all about this, so I can't confirm the accuracy, but if you asked me, it doesn't feel as if the author went to Wikipedia and copy-pasted the first thing he found. Also, writing historical fiction is a hard task, I understand, and I never found any awkward use of language, so this is a point in the book's favour.
The story got quite interesting by the end, especially because the author was not afraid of taking risky decisions that, had they not been made, the book would have been softened down a lot, and I ummm like my books not Disney-sweet.
In the end, I cannot say I loved this book, and despite that, it wasn’t all that bad. Have patience with it if you want to give this a try. If you’re fan of arthurian novels/myths/stories/ quests, I’d say give this a go. If you’re not, as I
am, then… do what you will. Patience is the only key.
January 27, 2016
There’s always an automatic, free-pass-given brownie point bonus when the protagonist is a book lover, because – seriously - as a reader, reading stories about characters who obsess with books makes sense – especially when they have to use books in the adventure at hand.
The Camelot Shadow focuses on Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam, a man who not only loves reading, but who loves collecting valuable tomes (he blows me out of the running with that since I only indulge in cheap books.) The story is a historical Arthurian fantasy adventure type, something I have little experience with. It seems everyone in the world but me knows about King Arthur and tales surrounding, to the point where there is even a fantasy sub-division named about him.
Even though I know little about it, I found the subject interesting as it unraveled; it wasn’t too out there for me to grasp. There are a few hints and jabs in the wrong directions to leave the reader a few surprises, and the historical feel is one that slowly twists and reveals as you go through the motions with the main character. It’s multiple POV, yet thankfully the shift changes only when needed, staying mainly in Lord Alfred’s head.
Alfred was likeable – he was older, enjoyed keeping to himself, a sympathetic friend, intellectual type who remained humble. His best friend was a favorite of mine, the bookseller who had more up his sleeve than he was showing. The villain was creepy, unusual, and made even more interesting because of the other semi-villains he surrounded himself with. And Trusty John was just awesome, really, that’s all there is to say about him.
What made the book so enjoyable wasn’t so much the day old power-struggle of good and evil, but the political machinations that kept popping up in both the good and bad circles. Some people change face later, some hesitate, some follow because they’re misled, and others stay so loyal throughout that they fit the definition of fanaticism.
It’s a slower novel, which works since the plot is directed by scholarly types. Instead of getting an excitable, energetic adventurer, we get a man who can’t resist the lure of this mystery and the potential hope it holds for his wife. I loved Sean Gibson’s writing style - I think it fit the historical time period and this sort of adventure ideally.
The Camelot Shadow has layers of intrigue, some epic battles, intelligent twists, and characters who stand out and stand up. Recommended.
September 5, 2016
First, the requisite disclaimer: I am a friend of the author. It is a friendship born of goodreads. I do not have to worry that he will disinvite me from his next orgy or throw a Molotov cocktail through my window if I say something mean about his book (which I won't).
I enjoyed this story. Don't be misled by the number of months it took me to complete this. If it had been in print format I would have finished it in a day or two. However, I look at text on the computer all day for a living and don't really feel like reading more on the screen in my free time. Also, reading on the screen tends to switch my brain into edit mode, which makes material less enjoyable. Related, I'll mention as an aside that I found only two typos, both extremely minor, which is better than many professionally published works manage.
In terms of language, I would put this somewhere near the middle of the historical fiction spectrum, with one end being authors who attempt (more often than not unsuccessfully) to replicate the formality of historical prose and the other by those who are writing what is essentially a contemporary story and characters in costumes. Gibson avoids anachronistic language but doesn't try to imitate the linguistic formality or convoluted sentences of, say, Dickens or, God forbid, Henry James. I'd compare the prose most closely to that of informal letters exchanged between Victorian friends, if you've ever read any of those. In fact, it reminded me a bit of painter Burne Jones's bantering conversations with his friends, as recorded by his assistant Rooke. Just needs some caricatures in the margins.
Quieter passages of bibliophile research, train travel, and historical conversation alternate with action: sneaking, stabbing, and skullduggery abound. Some of the murders and fights are pretty violent, although not to such an extent that I'd expect them to bother anyone who wasn't particularly squeamish about such things. I myself am not a fan of physical horror, and none of the violence disturbed me, although a couple of deaths did make me go, "ahhh, boo!"
I would say that this would make a fun movie, except they would make all the characters 30 years younger, hot, and kick-ass, and then it would be nothing like the original.
I enjoyed this story. Don't be misled by the number of months it took me to complete this. If it had been in print format I would have finished it in a day or two. However, I look at text on the computer all day for a living and don't really feel like reading more on the screen in my free time. Also, reading on the screen tends to switch my brain into edit mode, which makes material less enjoyable. Related, I'll mention as an aside that I found only two typos, both extremely minor, which is better than many professionally published works manage.
In terms of language, I would put this somewhere near the middle of the historical fiction spectrum, with one end being authors who attempt (more often than not unsuccessfully) to replicate the formality of historical prose and the other by those who are writing what is essentially a contemporary story and characters in costumes. Gibson avoids anachronistic language but doesn't try to imitate the linguistic formality or convoluted sentences of, say, Dickens or, God forbid, Henry James. I'd compare the prose most closely to that of informal letters exchanged between Victorian friends, if you've ever read any of those. In fact, it reminded me a bit of painter Burne Jones's bantering conversations with his friends, as recorded by his assistant Rooke. Just needs some caricatures in the margins.
Quieter passages of bibliophile research, train travel, and historical conversation alternate with action: sneaking, stabbing, and skullduggery abound. Some of the murders and fights are pretty violent, although not to such an extent that I'd expect them to bother anyone who wasn't particularly squeamish about such things. I myself am not a fan of physical horror, and none of the violence disturbed me, although a couple of deaths did make me go, "ahhh, boo!"
I would say that this would make a fun movie, except they would make all the characters 30 years younger, hot, and kick-ass, and then it would be nothing like the original.
July 20, 2015
I am able to review this thanks to Sean's gifting of this novel. Thank you!
That being said, on to the review. I can honestly say that I really enjoyed the novel right after we left the Alzheimer's Saint Scholar, because that's when all the action started revving up. I tore through the rest like I was on a rampage and I enjoyed the as well as the fight scenes. They were very well done fight scenes, with just enough tease and breaks at fantastically annoying places that left me hungry for more. They held my attention, and I'll be honest, fight scenes usually don't do it too well for me. I prefer my movies for that kind of thing. This hit me on the nose, though.
What dragged me down was initial slowness of the novel. Sure, victorian lit often had slow bits, but sometimes, like with Charles Dickens, he can move things along like lightning when he wants to. In this case, I wanted to rev things up for quite some time. There might have been an easier way to get the feel of scholarship without dwelling so long on it. It's not Possession, after all. It had more of a feel of a Victorian Dan Brown mystery for the first half of the novel, which is fine as far as that goes, but I'll be honest... I got a bit bored. Still, I appreciated what it was trying to do and worked harder to keep my focus on the tale, and I'm glad I did.
I enjoyed the conflict of themes and those characters that embodied them. I loved how every single character introduced eventually had the spotlight.
Mr. Gibson never had a qualm about killing his darlings, which I really appreciated, and more so when I got to see how those were reused. Waste not, want not. There was never a wasted character.
I suppose I want to complain about one other thing, though. The prelude was like a D&D story, tempting me to believe that the novel was going to be *that* kind of story, so I was rather jarred when the novel started up and continued to be like nothing like the prelude for most of the novel. Sure, it did get explained, eventually, but I was a bit annoyed, especially because it seemed like a lot of promise that I was told I might never taste. You know, the social contract of writers and readers. In this case, it was a minor thing, because all is right with the world after finishing the novel, but it did boot me out of the illusion several times.
Again, not a deal-breaking issue.
I enjoyed the tale, and I have no qualms about reading more. I had fun!
That being said, on to the review. I can honestly say that I really enjoyed the novel right after we left the Alzheimer's Saint Scholar, because that's when all the action started revving up. I tore through the rest like I was on a rampage and I enjoyed the as well as the fight scenes. They were very well done fight scenes, with just enough tease and breaks at fantastically annoying places that left me hungry for more. They held my attention, and I'll be honest, fight scenes usually don't do it too well for me. I prefer my movies for that kind of thing. This hit me on the nose, though.
What dragged me down was initial slowness of the novel. Sure, victorian lit often had slow bits, but sometimes, like with Charles Dickens, he can move things along like lightning when he wants to. In this case, I wanted to rev things up for quite some time. There might have been an easier way to get the feel of scholarship without dwelling so long on it. It's not Possession, after all. It had more of a feel of a Victorian Dan Brown mystery for the first half of the novel, which is fine as far as that goes, but I'll be honest... I got a bit bored. Still, I appreciated what it was trying to do and worked harder to keep my focus on the tale, and I'm glad I did.
I enjoyed the conflict of themes and those characters that embodied them. I loved how every single character introduced eventually had the spotlight.
Mr. Gibson never had a qualm about killing his darlings, which I really appreciated, and more so when I got to see how those were reused. Waste not, want not. There was never a wasted character.
I suppose I want to complain about one other thing, though. The prelude was like a D&D story, tempting me to believe that the novel was going to be *that* kind of story, so I was rather jarred when the novel started up and continued to be like nothing like the prelude for most of the novel. Sure, it did get explained, eventually, but I was a bit annoyed, especially because it seemed like a lot of promise that I was told I might never taste. You know, the social contract of writers and readers. In this case, it was a minor thing, because all is right with the world after finishing the novel, but it did boot me out of the illusion several times.
Again, not a deal-breaking issue.
I enjoyed the tale, and I have no qualms about reading more. I had fun!
November 21, 2018
How do I rate a book I must abandon? (*see below)
I really enjoyed the first 70% of the book until it turned from historical fiction into too far out for this old lady. I don't think I have read any book where I encountered the word "undead" before, and I have no intention of going down that path.
It was a wonderful beginning. Doggone it!
*Had to think about this star thing...why ding a book just because I will not read (or watch) undead stuff. I was surprised at this feature at the 70% mark of the book, and I just won't go there.
Anyway...the important thing is that this is very well written and the characters are wonderfully "fleshed out"...yes, I do have a sense of humor. Fair is fair, and Sean Gibson is a talented writer. I just had to abandon the book for my own "sour old lady" reasons.
I really enjoyed the first 70% of the book until it turned from historical fiction into too far out for this old lady. I don't think I have read any book where I encountered the word "undead" before, and I have no intention of going down that path.
It was a wonderful beginning. Doggone it!
*Had to think about this star thing...why ding a book just because I will not read (or watch) undead stuff. I was surprised at this feature at the 70% mark of the book, and I just won't go there.
Anyway...the important thing is that this is very well written and the characters are wonderfully "fleshed out"...yes, I do have a sense of humor. Fair is fair, and Sean Gibson is a talented writer. I just had to abandon the book for my own "sour old lady" reasons.
Want to read
August 7, 2015
Karly's Authors Who Rock Challenge
Buddy-read with my girl, Jess, for sometime in August.
(Oh wait, he's already done that..... by choice.)
Buddy-read with my girl, Jess, for sometime in August.
(Oh wait, he's already done that..... by choice.)
March 27, 2020
Some intelligent choices and subtle subversions of expectation take a plot that could have been good but unremarkable and kick it up a notch into a solidly fun read.
The main thrust of the story is fairly straight forward: a respected Arthurian scholar is approached by a mysterious group who believe that the legend of King Arthur holds many truths, and offer potentially compelling evidence that some of the relics from the old stories might actually exist...and maybe even hold some of their fabled magic. Lord Alfred certainly knows how unbelievable these claims are, but his beloved wife lies near death. If there is the smallest chance that a powerful item could be found to save her, then he is willing to help the Organization at all costs.
Good things of note:
**The Victorian time frame sets a nice tableau. Even better, the author does NOT exploit the typical wordy narrative of Victoriana to get all showy with his research.
**In the same vein as the above point, there is no grand retelling of the Arthurian legend, nor great expounding on the studies of our main character Alfred. We readers are presumed to have a passing awareness and everything else we need to know is doled out fairly organically.
**A good number of our questing characters are on the saggier side of the prime of their lives. That's delightful. It comes with its own set of strengths and challenges and I loved the approach Gibson took here. I appreciated that physical infirmities mattered but weren't heavily caricatured, and could feel the respect for experience and wisdom that helped shape the way the characters approach their situation.
**If you follow Sean Gibson's reviews (and you should), you might assume that his books would be of the 'always-quippy-and-often-adolescently-humorous' type; I was genuinely surprised at how well he played the straight-man with his narrative tone. He successfully treats the storyline seriously, while still managing to include some warm humour in his character interactions...
**...which are great, as it happens. I think most of my favourite moments occured in conversational character building and camaraderie.
I do suppose I might have appreciated if the only important female characters weren't either already dead or mostly dead when the story starts.
I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to read The Camelot Shadow (thanks, Sean!). It is a well written book that, while smart, doesn't make the reader do much of the heavy lifting. This makes it clip along fairly steadily. It occasionally pokes you in the feels, but the sentiment enhances rather than weights the quest, and the characters are an interesting group to tag along with. The plot itself is familiar, but its twists and reveals are inventive enough to keep it fresh. I'd recommend it as a widely approachable and fun read.
The main thrust of the story is fairly straight forward: a respected Arthurian scholar is approached by a mysterious group who believe that the legend of King Arthur holds many truths, and offer potentially compelling evidence that some of the relics from the old stories might actually exist...and maybe even hold some of their fabled magic. Lord Alfred certainly knows how unbelievable these claims are, but his beloved wife lies near death. If there is the smallest chance that a powerful item could be found to save her, then he is willing to help the Organization at all costs.
Good things of note:
**The Victorian time frame sets a nice tableau. Even better, the author does NOT exploit the typical wordy narrative of Victoriana to get all showy with his research.
**In the same vein as the above point, there is no grand retelling of the Arthurian legend, nor great expounding on the studies of our main character Alfred. We readers are presumed to have a passing awareness and everything else we need to know is doled out fairly organically.
**A good number of our questing characters are on the saggier side of the prime of their lives. That's delightful. It comes with its own set of strengths and challenges and I loved the approach Gibson took here. I appreciated that physical infirmities mattered but weren't heavily caricatured, and could feel the respect for experience and wisdom that helped shape the way the characters approach their situation.
**If you follow Sean Gibson's reviews (and you should), you might assume that his books would be of the 'always-quippy-and-often-adolescently-humorous' type; I was genuinely surprised at how well he played the straight-man with his narrative tone. He successfully treats the storyline seriously, while still managing to include some warm humour in his character interactions...
**...which are great, as it happens. I think most of my favourite moments occured in conversational character building and camaraderie.
I do suppose I might have appreciated if the only important female characters weren't either already dead or mostly dead when the story starts.
I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to read The Camelot Shadow (thanks, Sean!). It is a well written book that, while smart, doesn't make the reader do much of the heavy lifting. This makes it clip along fairly steadily. It occasionally pokes you in the feels, but the sentiment enhances rather than weights the quest, and the characters are an interesting group to tag along with. The plot itself is familiar, but its twists and reveals are inventive enough to keep it fresh. I'd recommend it as a widely approachable and fun read.
September 1, 2015
Let's try again!
Sean, I promised you a good humorous review whether or not your book had grabbed me but it doesn't look like it's happening *leaves pen and paper*
...
...
...
*following day*
*looks at the paper --- still nothing*
...
...
...
*3rd day*
Ok, for those of you who know me, this is not my cuppa tea. Not a genre I would typically pick and read.
But read I did.
I had two companions on the first half of the book and I'd like you to meet them:
Companion one is Sean's fetish on BIG words (aka BW)
First time I encountered BW I was like
The second time
The third time and thereafter
And each time BW reared its ugly but very smart arse head, this scene flashes in my head
But hey, as they always say, it's just a matter of getting used to...anything really and BW and I became close eventually and I was really glad I made it's acquaintance coz I've learnt many an awesome word.
Companion # 2 is slow pace or I'd like to call it Theo.
Why Theo? Check the image below:
The story took a while to get up to speed but once it has started, goodness I was....Ok, I'll stop right here and show you another image.
One would ask why Sean's picture is gracing my review. To explain: one too many times, I have seen goodreads peeps (of Sean's) mentioned not only once, not twice but countless remarks about his nose. Heck, Sean himself brags about it!
A nose that makes even Fassbender’s package look pedestrian
I AM OFFERING HAMMER TOES AND DORKINESS AND A MASSIVE PROBOSCIS, PEOPLE!
So when I looked closely on his goodreads profile picture, I was like: Daaamn! Yup, it is SO there!
*nods head at the same time*
And for some unknown reasons, he reminded me of the man in the bowler hat.
Ok to explain further, when you look at their images
You see nose and apple straight away obscuring their faces -- not that I have met Sean in person, I'm merely going by comments and remarks here. But looking at them closely, you will find FACES. YES, THEIR FACES!
You see, the parallel to this is, when I was reading, BW and Theo stole the show. They prevented me from discovering the story right away. They also acted like a speed bump on a road making the pace slower but once you get past 'em, the story, THE STORY. I WAS BLOWN AWAY (in good way).
The story and the characters are unique and offered too many riddles and puzzles. And as a reader, I enjoyed that immensely.
You have started something good here, bloke and I would be sorely disappointed if I don't read a sequel of Alfred's and Will's bromance. But pls lay low on BW and get rid of slow Theo completely.
Rating this 4-I-am-really-glad-I-dipped-my-toes-in-to-this-stars
Buddy read with
Jess, Brynne
March 3, 2020
Well thanks for making my review of this disappear BTW, GR... Now I have to remember everything I thought about this book back in 2017?! o.O GAH!
So, I guess all that's left is for me to share my 2-and-some-years-later thoughts on this book - and I read *a lot* so I'll be completely honest and say I don't remember details.
What I do remember is, this book kept me engaged (hello, read it in 2 days!), it was funny, and exciting, and creepy, and sad, and a buncha awesome things wrapped up into a neat little package. I loved it! I feel like I need more of this awesome duo of friends in insanely mystical Arthurian adventures. I love that they weren't teens or early 20s - I mean, LIFE KEEPS GOING AFTER YOU'RE 30 PEOPLE.
So, def recommend - it's a great read.
So, I guess all that's left is for me to share my 2-and-some-years-later thoughts on this book - and I read *a lot* so I'll be completely honest and say I don't remember details.
What I do remember is, this book kept me engaged (hello, read it in 2 days!), it was funny, and exciting, and creepy, and sad, and a buncha awesome things wrapped up into a neat little package. I loved it! I feel like I need more of this awesome duo of friends in insanely mystical Arthurian adventures. I love that they weren't teens or early 20s - I mean, LIFE KEEPS GOING AFTER YOU'RE 30 PEOPLE.
So, def recommend - it's a great read.
July 26, 2017
I have to admit that I thought long and hard about how I could express the way I felt about this book, things like :
‘Dear Sean,
Thank you.’
Or something like :
‘Dear Sean,
WHAT THE ACTUAL FUDGE??????’
I admit I was tempted by the last one, but it was too short and, even though it summarize rather well how I felt, it is not enough.
I loved this book, the atmosphere and the characters. There were twists and re-twists in place I wasn’t expecting them. And some characters that you thought departed, then reappeard and you thought ‘oh, phew!’ with relief. But then, they were departed and you thought it was mean... *Hear that Mr. Gibson?*
Then the character is back but not really…. *Come on, man, that was mean!*
I loved it. I wanted to have all the books described in this story, I wanted to know as much and discuss the topic with Alfred and Will. Some of the ‘mysterious characters’ were not so mysterious but I loved the way it was subtle. I suppose my main problem, and mind you, it’s not a critic, was the way one of the many iconic personages of the Arthurian literature was in this book.
Of course, you’ll say, it’s only a story. A story among many others, another thread in this gigantic tapestry that is the Arthurian world. But I love some characters more than others and, in some way I hoped it wouldn’t end this way. That, in the end, it would have been a misunderstanding.
But you have to understand, I loved this book. And even though it had taken me a while to finish it, it wasn’t because I didn’t relish reading it, but because life has a tendency to invite itself in my reading schedule.
I ended the book in tears, and laughing, and angry, and in tears. But mostly happy, if not totally in acceptance with the choices made by those in this book.
So, to the point, go get this book, and have fun.
**Disclaimer: I received this book from the author, who was kind enough to send one to curious and strange people like me. And as I really love the prose of Mr. Gibson, even before reading his books, I am not objective. You’ve been warned**
‘Dear Sean,
Thank you.’
Or something like :
‘Dear Sean,
WHAT THE ACTUAL FUDGE??????’
I admit I was tempted by the last one, but it was too short and, even though it summarize rather well how I felt, it is not enough.
I loved this book, the atmosphere and the characters. There were twists and re-twists in place I wasn’t expecting them. And some characters that you thought departed, then reappeard and you thought ‘oh, phew!’ with relief. But then, they were departed and you thought it was mean... *Hear that Mr. Gibson?*
Then the character is back but not really…. *Come on, man, that was mean!*
I loved it. I wanted to have all the books described in this story, I wanted to know as much and discuss the topic with Alfred and Will. Some of the ‘mysterious characters’ were not so mysterious but I loved the way it was subtle. I suppose my main problem, and mind you, it’s not a critic, was the way one of the many iconic personages of the Arthurian literature was in this book.
Of course, you’ll say, it’s only a story. A story among many others, another thread in this gigantic tapestry that is the Arthurian world. But I love some characters more than others and, in some way I hoped it wouldn’t end this way. That, in the end, it would have been a misunderstanding.
But you have to understand, I loved this book. And even though it had taken me a while to finish it, it wasn’t because I didn’t relish reading it, but because life has a tendency to invite itself in my reading schedule.
I ended the book in tears, and laughing, and angry, and in tears. But mostly happy, if not totally in acceptance with the choices made by those in this book.
So, to the point, go get this book, and have fun.
**Disclaimer: I received this book from the author, who was kind enough to send one to curious and strange people like me. And as I really love the prose of Mr. Gibson, even before reading his books, I am not objective. You’ve been warned**
Shelved as 'eventually'
June 7, 2016First of all, I'm pretty sure there's a GR glitch somewhere because prior to this moment I was utterly POSITIVE this was on my tbr already. Secondly, Seanish, darling... I require a physical copy. Or an audiobook. :P
April 17, 2018
Got the ebook for free from the author, which was mighty nice. Thank you! (He is also absolutely hilarious. Read his Goodreads stuff, it's a joy.)
If you read books, especially nowadays and you are an alien who never saw real life you will assume only young people ever go on adventures. If they take an older person it is just so someone can die so the young hero can magically, quickly become the coolest, most powerful and knowledgeable one left.
Not here. Here we have older men having to find the sheath of Excalibur, which can heal the protagonist's wife, while multiple secret groups try to get there sooner, for various reasons.
The first thing I noticed about this one was the prose being so freaking smooth. It's like butter, I have no idea how it happened, but it's just so readable. Don't scoff, it is a big thing, especially in a book with an old-timey vocabulary and such. Also, it is something that many authors (not even always novices) fail at big time and it can really kill the momentum and the fun of reading. I mean in some way it's a bit sad that this is a big deal, because hey, books are meant to be read, but whatever.
Now I know I took a long time reading this, but it's not at all the book's fault, but freaking real life is getting in the way.
The whole Arthut-myth is not something that's super well-known here. Of course it is part of the universal European culture and all, we know about it, but the details are murky for the borderline Slavs, but that doesn't get in the way. It doesn't necessitate crazy in depth expertise in the stuff, which is how I prefer my books connecting to history. There are merits in the 100% history buff stuff, but it's not for me. So again, a win for this book.
(When I was younger the Sam Neill Merlin series freaked me out low key. They aired it on TV a lot here at some point, I don't even know why. But yeah, that, along with The Labyrinth and Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves probably left a mark on my soul big time. )
As I said before, this is a book of old dudes, which... again, I love. I have no idea what's going on with me and someone would probably tell me I'm crazy in some way, but I relate to old men a lot. I'm neither, but older men are my absolute favourite protagonist stock. These ones are awesome, freaking great and fun. They are not always super wise, not always the Gandalf or Yoda. Nothing wrong with that at all, because people aren't necessarily super wise just because they are older. In this case you could actually see the young people who have grown old, not just old people who were born as old men. You know what I mean.
The story is good in itself, as a one book thing, but it can be more than that, longer and I want it to happen. I find it's different enough, I feel there is a need for this, a market for something like this. I want it to succeed. I want it to go on, because there is a lot of potential for telling us more about the world of it.
I would also recommend it to people around me. I will. It's an incredible pleasant read that just makes you feel good about things at the end of the day.
Have a nice day and read indies!
If you read books, especially nowadays and you are an alien who never saw real life you will assume only young people ever go on adventures. If they take an older person it is just so someone can die so the young hero can magically, quickly become the coolest, most powerful and knowledgeable one left.
Not here. Here we have older men having to find the sheath of Excalibur, which can heal the protagonist's wife, while multiple secret groups try to get there sooner, for various reasons.
The first thing I noticed about this one was the prose being so freaking smooth. It's like butter, I have no idea how it happened, but it's just so readable. Don't scoff, it is a big thing, especially in a book with an old-timey vocabulary and such. Also, it is something that many authors (not even always novices) fail at big time and it can really kill the momentum and the fun of reading. I mean in some way it's a bit sad that this is a big deal, because hey, books are meant to be read, but whatever.
Now I know I took a long time reading this, but it's not at all the book's fault, but freaking real life is getting in the way.
The whole Arthut-myth is not something that's super well-known here. Of course it is part of the universal European culture and all, we know about it, but the details are murky for the borderline Slavs, but that doesn't get in the way. It doesn't necessitate crazy in depth expertise in the stuff, which is how I prefer my books connecting to history. There are merits in the 100% history buff stuff, but it's not for me. So again, a win for this book.
(When I was younger the Sam Neill Merlin series freaked me out low key. They aired it on TV a lot here at some point, I don't even know why. But yeah, that, along with The Labyrinth and Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves probably left a mark on my soul big time. )
As I said before, this is a book of old dudes, which... again, I love. I have no idea what's going on with me and someone would probably tell me I'm crazy in some way, but I relate to old men a lot. I'm neither, but older men are my absolute favourite protagonist stock. These ones are awesome, freaking great and fun. They are not always super wise, not always the Gandalf or Yoda. Nothing wrong with that at all, because people aren't necessarily super wise just because they are older. In this case you could actually see the young people who have grown old, not just old people who were born as old men. You know what I mean.
The story is good in itself, as a one book thing, but it can be more than that, longer and I want it to happen. I find it's different enough, I feel there is a need for this, a market for something like this. I want it to succeed. I want it to go on, because there is a lot of potential for telling us more about the world of it.
I would also recommend it to people around me. I will. It's an incredible pleasant read that just makes you feel good about things at the end of the day.
Have a nice day and read indies!
December 2, 2015
The Camelot Shadow was a perfect mix of all the elements I want in a fantasy novel. The book follows a varied cast of characters as they search for an item from Arthurian myth. As a former scholar of Arthurian mythology, I enjoyed especially that the author focused on the non-Disney/ Mallory version of these stories. The novel contains all sorts of entertaining elements like mystery, foreign travel, suspicious characters, evil plots, action, and scary creatures. I love an author that is willing to kill off characters and this book did not disappoint.
I confess that I have trouble enjoying many fantasy books because I find the prose disappointing. This book had perfect pacing for my taste and very good prose. My favorite part of this novel was the over-arching philosophical question of ethics – If you had a device that could end all pain and disease but could also be used for great evil, would you destroy it?
I absolutely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy or literature. It’s a balance of both styles, which is what makes it so successful.
I confess that I have trouble enjoying many fantasy books because I find the prose disappointing. This book had perfect pacing for my taste and very good prose. My favorite part of this novel was the over-arching philosophical question of ethics – If you had a device that could end all pain and disease but could also be used for great evil, would you destroy it?
I absolutely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy or literature. It’s a balance of both styles, which is what makes it so successful.
July 21, 2016
*A free copy was given by the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my final thoughts and opinions.*
If there's one thing that stood out in The Camelot Shadow, it's the writing style. It's poetical at best - coupled with flowery descriptive proses and with the use of archaic language here I'd describe the writing as classical too because reading this reminded me to all the classic books I've read.
Quite beautiful, isn't it? *jabs eyes with napkin*
I have a secret wish to duplicate the writing but that would get my arse sued into oblivion, for sure.
Then there is the matter of characterization. Oh, this is a good one. In The Camelot Shadow, I have a handful of people I adore and root for. One of my favourites is Will, a certified book seller and dearest friend to Lord Fitzwilliam. He's loyal to a fault and his snarky banters with other people were hi-la-ri-ous. I find it impossible not to be charmed by him. I struggle the most to connect with Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam on a deeper level but there are moments when I adored and looked up to him. He is a wise, compassionate man but there is a barrier around him that seems impenetrable.
In every book, there's almost always the bad guys. So I'm not surprised there's a potential mad man here. While every characters I've came across in the story are all unique and has their own voices - the villain fall very short (for me). Let it be known that I'm a sucker for baaaaad people. I like them complex, I like them mad, I like them psychotic, I like them to especially have a great, legitimate reason behind their evil doings.
Nigel however is the usual type of villain. All he wants to do is to take over the entire world and to achieve that he must obtain a powerful object. Sounds waaaaay too familiar for me to be impressed.
Another one of the biggest problem I find is the pacing. It is also one of the main reasons why I had to knock off some stars from my rating.
The story moves...so... damn... slow. Too slow for my liking.
I'm not a fan of snail-paced books especially not when the book is written in the most word-y way possible. It just makes you want to nod off and fall dead asleep.
I feel that the author focuses too much on pointless descriptions that when he finally get to the peak of the actions (!), I've lost all the care in the world. Yes, there are lots of actions and fightings. Yes, there is bloodshed. Yes, some characters were killed off but did I care? Not that much in the end. I've lost some of my interest in what's happening because the story dragged too much.
At best, I can only give this a solid 3 star. It's not a bad book in any way. It just... lacked. I feel like I could get something much more satisfying from the way the story goes but that expectation was not met.
The Camelot Shadow may not be so original plotline-wise but if I overlook that and the slow paced writing, I was still hugely entertained by the story & was also enlightened by the Arthurian lores which I'm ashamed to admit that I don't know much about.
With all that said, I'm ending this review with a favourite quote from Will.
We should only worry about that which we can control; all else is irrelevant.
If there's one thing that stood out in The Camelot Shadow, it's the writing style. It's poetical at best - coupled with flowery descriptive proses and with the use of archaic language here I'd describe the writing as classical too because reading this reminded me to all the classic books I've read.
He raised his eyes to the window to watch as snowflakes fell from the sky with a nonchalance that seemed defiantly at odds with their short lifespans. The blowing wind made him grateful for the warm glow that emanated from the library’s fireplace, an antique structure surrounded by a bronze relief that depicted a parade of ancient gods.
Quite beautiful, isn't it? *jabs eyes with napkin*
I have a secret wish to duplicate the writing but that would get my arse sued into oblivion, for sure.
Then there is the matter of characterization. Oh, this is a good one. In The Camelot Shadow, I have a handful of people I adore and root for. One of my favourites is Will, a certified book seller and dearest friend to Lord Fitzwilliam. He's loyal to a fault and his snarky banters with other people were hi-la-ri-ous. I find it impossible not to be charmed by him. I struggle the most to connect with Lord Alfred Fitzwilliam on a deeper level but there are moments when I adored and looked up to him. He is a wise, compassionate man but there is a barrier around him that seems impenetrable.
In every book, there's almost always the bad guys. So I'm not surprised there's a potential mad man here. While every characters I've came across in the story are all unique and has their own voices - the villain fall very short (for me). Let it be known that I'm a sucker for baaaaad people. I like them complex, I like them mad, I like them psychotic, I like them to especially have a great, legitimate reason behind their evil doings.
Nigel however is the usual type of villain. All he wants to do is to take over the entire world and to achieve that he must obtain a powerful object. Sounds waaaaay too familiar for me to be impressed.
Another one of the biggest problem I find is the pacing. It is also one of the main reasons why I had to knock off some stars from my rating.
The story moves...so... damn... slow. Too slow for my liking.
I'm not a fan of snail-paced books especially not when the book is written in the most word-y way possible. It just makes you want to nod off and fall dead asleep.
I feel that the author focuses too much on pointless descriptions that when he finally get to the peak of the actions (!), I've lost all the care in the world. Yes, there are lots of actions and fightings. Yes, there is bloodshed. Yes, some characters were killed off but did I care? Not that much in the end. I've lost some of my interest in what's happening because the story dragged too much.
At best, I can only give this a solid 3 star. It's not a bad book in any way. It just... lacked. I feel like I could get something much more satisfying from the way the story goes but that expectation was not met.
The Camelot Shadow may not be so original plotline-wise but if I overlook that and the slow paced writing, I was still hugely entertained by the story & was also enlightened by the Arthurian lores which I'm ashamed to admit that I don't know much about.
With all that said, I'm ending this review with a favourite quote from Will.
There is no higher purpose, no mystical world beyond this one to strive for—there is only this. Here. Now. Everyday struggles, the highs and the lows. Nothing more, nothing less. We can try to make the world better, but we cannot do what the world will not allow. You must come to understand that.
March 20, 2017
**Disclosure: I was given a copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review.
I was really excited about the idea for this book. I love King Arthur, Merlin, Camelot, and all that; plus, it sounded like a mystery-thriller about the past a la Dan Brown. Unfortunately it reads more Victorian novel than I was hoping for although it makes sense given the author stating at the end of the book that he really loves those sorts of novels. Perfectly legit. They’re just not my cup of tea typically.
I did like the mystery we did get in the book. I love medieval history and I always wonder what is still around from those times but currently lost. The mystery fit together logically, but there just wasn’t the intensity behind it I was hoping for. Lots of here’s a clue, slow days pass, here’s a clue, days pass. It definitely threw off the pacing of the book for me. I would get excited by a clue only to have the book slow back down as the characters hunted around for the next one. I’m all for not solving the mystery instantly, but I thought those pages lacked drama or tension to keep them intriguing.
The characters were decent. I liked the middle-age historian approach. Definitely is feasible to explain all their knowledge and added a sort of humor when people wondered what older men were hunting for in the middle of the night. My biggest complaint is how much time spent on Lord Alfred’s sick wife. She’s his reason for the treasure hunt and yet she only actually in a couple of pages. I had no sense of who she was in order to be pulling for Alfred and feeling sympathetic towards him.
There’s also a rather large info-dump at the end of the book to sort of wrap the rest of the mystery up. I definitely would have wished that had been teased out throughout the book or handled in a more convincing way at the end. I think it had a lot of interesting nuggets in it that are just sort of left but were never really developed well enough to make their impact known.
I think there’s something really wonderful here. Mostly I was expecting more mystery-thriller and got more slow-paced Victorian novel. I wasn’t ready for that and it may be pulling my rating down a tad. If a King Arthur-Victorian-mystery sounds good to you than I would say give this book a chance.
I was really excited about the idea for this book. I love King Arthur, Merlin, Camelot, and all that; plus, it sounded like a mystery-thriller about the past a la Dan Brown. Unfortunately it reads more Victorian novel than I was hoping for although it makes sense given the author stating at the end of the book that he really loves those sorts of novels. Perfectly legit. They’re just not my cup of tea typically.
I did like the mystery we did get in the book. I love medieval history and I always wonder what is still around from those times but currently lost. The mystery fit together logically, but there just wasn’t the intensity behind it I was hoping for. Lots of here’s a clue, slow days pass, here’s a clue, days pass. It definitely threw off the pacing of the book for me. I would get excited by a clue only to have the book slow back down as the characters hunted around for the next one. I’m all for not solving the mystery instantly, but I thought those pages lacked drama or tension to keep them intriguing.
The characters were decent. I liked the middle-age historian approach. Definitely is feasible to explain all their knowledge and added a sort of humor when people wondered what older men were hunting for in the middle of the night. My biggest complaint is how much time spent on Lord Alfred’s sick wife. She’s his reason for the treasure hunt and yet she only actually in a couple of pages. I had no sense of who she was in order to be pulling for Alfred and feeling sympathetic towards him.
There’s also a rather large info-dump at the end of the book to sort of wrap the rest of the mystery up. I definitely would have wished that had been teased out throughout the book or handled in a more convincing way at the end. I think it had a lot of interesting nuggets in it that are just sort of left but were never really developed well enough to make their impact known.
I think there’s something really wonderful here. Mostly I was expecting more mystery-thriller and got more slow-paced Victorian novel. I wasn’t ready for that and it may be pulling my rating down a tad. If a King Arthur-Victorian-mystery sounds good to you than I would say give this book a chance.
April 20, 2016
Published: 31/10/2014
Author: Sean Gibson
Edition: Ebook
I received this book thanks to the wonderful author Sean Gibson :). Well what can I say....I could not stop reading this novel at all! Everytime I had a spare moment I was back reading it. It has great characters, a great storyline, a great pace, it is extremely well written. The author has a writting style that can draw the readers attention in and captures it, the word's that he uses creates a picture in the readers mind so that they can see what is happening in the book. Alot of people have compared this book to Da Vinci Code...however I think this book is actually better.
The author has a way with words that manages to transport you into the scene that he is creating, the characters are really good and it has an even pace throughout which means that there isn't a dull part to read. This book is both heartwarming/beautiful and heartbreaking, the emotions that this book creates are powerful, it is definately the kind of book that you would be happy to have paid for as an Ebook. I feel very honoured to have being given the chance to read this book and I would definately recommend to other people to give it a true. Sean Gibson is an amazing person and amazing author. I could read this book over and over again without getting bored of it.
If you enjoy reading novels about historical fiction, mystery and Arthurian legend you should definately give this book a read!.
Author: Sean Gibson
Edition: Ebook
I received this book thanks to the wonderful author Sean Gibson :). Well what can I say....I could not stop reading this novel at all! Everytime I had a spare moment I was back reading it. It has great characters, a great storyline, a great pace, it is extremely well written. The author has a writting style that can draw the readers attention in and captures it, the word's that he uses creates a picture in the readers mind so that they can see what is happening in the book. Alot of people have compared this book to Da Vinci Code...however I think this book is actually better.
The author has a way with words that manages to transport you into the scene that he is creating, the characters are really good and it has an even pace throughout which means that there isn't a dull part to read. This book is both heartwarming/beautiful and heartbreaking, the emotions that this book creates are powerful, it is definately the kind of book that you would be happy to have paid for as an Ebook. I feel very honoured to have being given the chance to read this book and I would definately recommend to other people to give it a true. Sean Gibson is an amazing person and amazing author. I could read this book over and over again without getting bored of it.
If you enjoy reading novels about historical fiction, mystery and Arthurian legend you should definately give this book a read!.
August 26, 2020
I will say, right up front, that I am not a history major. I can't speak to the historic aspects of this book. I can only tell you what a pleasure it was to read. The characters were deep, brilliant, likeable, flawed... all the good things that make up us humans. The book does start out a bit slower, but once it picks up in the middle, it's go time. I will highly recommend it to those who like historic fiction and fantasy.
Read
April 15, 2024Knowing how jocular Sean is, I wasn't expecting much going into this. I was fearing that the book would become a joke fest, laughing at its own cleverness and trying to force others to laugh along with him with a gag-a-minute schtick. I've also never been really fond of the King Arthur mythos, as it's much too romantic and 'standard' for my tastes, but I respect it as an important piece of English folklore. So there was a lot going against me enjoying this book.
How surprised I was when I found how much I came to enjoy it. The Camelot Shadow is a charming, evocative reimagining of the Arthurian mythos, from an author who has a mastery of tone and atmosphere, while the book certainly has its moments of humor, Sean never sacrifices character depth or dramatic intrigue for a punchline, few authors can pull such a feat as successfully. But I find what makes this book truly intriguing is the way that Sean plays with Arthurian mythology, making it accessible for the more novice reader, while also caving in his little pokes and prods at the mythos for Arthurian junkies. Sean's playing with the mythos is comparable with Mignola and Gaiman in its inventiveness, playing with archetypes and characters who we're already familiar with, and managing to do something unusual and new with it, a rare feat for many authors.
Sean's pace and tone is moody and evocative, quite different from the silly, wisecracking guy that I know. The pace is deliberate, yet hardly dull or boring, Sean crafts a world that is full of possibility and wonder, yet also brooding and at times melancholic, while Sean makes Arthurian myths accessible to his audience, he never talks down to or insults the intelligence of his audience. He allows his characters to grow and change throughout the story, defining the plot by the actions and desires of the characters rather than letting the plot define the characters actions. Sean managed to get so much right, and I was impressed by how much Sean kept me guessing throughout the book, and it's rare for a book to do that for me nowadays.
For a novel about Arthurian scholars, it hardly feels dull, moving like an Indiana Jones film yet relying more on intrigue and following two sophisticated gentlemen rather than a rugged adventurer. It's like a Dan Brown novel, yet with the wit of Dickens and the sense of wonder of Gaiman. I might even go as far as to say that Gibson is far more intriguing and imaginative than Brown, but I won't go there...I'm not in the ruffling feathers business. Gibson certainly exceeds Brown in the way that he can lay out plot twists without making the story convoluted or worse nonsensical.
Sean's reinvention of the Arthurian mythos is nothing short of clever, unusual, and imaginative and it's a book that makes me curious to see what Sean will do next. I have seen that he's put a few more books out since this one and it makes me even more excited to see what he does next, which is rare for me nowadays. It's also rare to read a fantasy that goes against the grain as much, few books earn such comparisons: American Gods, The Stand, Hellboy, Oryx and Crake.
I hate being wrong a lot of the time, but there are times like this where I'm grateful that I was.
How surprised I was when I found how much I came to enjoy it. The Camelot Shadow is a charming, evocative reimagining of the Arthurian mythos, from an author who has a mastery of tone and atmosphere, while the book certainly has its moments of humor, Sean never sacrifices character depth or dramatic intrigue for a punchline, few authors can pull such a feat as successfully. But I find what makes this book truly intriguing is the way that Sean plays with Arthurian mythology, making it accessible for the more novice reader, while also caving in his little pokes and prods at the mythos for Arthurian junkies. Sean's playing with the mythos is comparable with Mignola and Gaiman in its inventiveness, playing with archetypes and characters who we're already familiar with, and managing to do something unusual and new with it, a rare feat for many authors.
Sean's pace and tone is moody and evocative, quite different from the silly, wisecracking guy that I know. The pace is deliberate, yet hardly dull or boring, Sean crafts a world that is full of possibility and wonder, yet also brooding and at times melancholic, while Sean makes Arthurian myths accessible to his audience, he never talks down to or insults the intelligence of his audience. He allows his characters to grow and change throughout the story, defining the plot by the actions and desires of the characters rather than letting the plot define the characters actions. Sean managed to get so much right, and I was impressed by how much Sean kept me guessing throughout the book, and it's rare for a book to do that for me nowadays.
For a novel about Arthurian scholars, it hardly feels dull, moving like an Indiana Jones film yet relying more on intrigue and following two sophisticated gentlemen rather than a rugged adventurer. It's like a Dan Brown novel, yet with the wit of Dickens and the sense of wonder of Gaiman. I might even go as far as to say that Gibson is far more intriguing and imaginative than Brown, but I won't go there...I'm not in the ruffling feathers business. Gibson certainly exceeds Brown in the way that he can lay out plot twists without making the story convoluted or worse nonsensical.
Sean's reinvention of the Arthurian mythos is nothing short of clever, unusual, and imaginative and it's a book that makes me curious to see what Sean will do next. I have seen that he's put a few more books out since this one and it makes me even more excited to see what he does next, which is rare for me nowadays. It's also rare to read a fantasy that goes against the grain as much, few books earn such comparisons: American Gods, The Stand, Hellboy, Oryx and Crake.
I hate being wrong a lot of the time, but there are times like this where I'm grateful that I was.
May 14, 2015
4.6 Astounding Stars
Never in my life... has it ever taken me so long to read a book. Let me assure you, it was NOT because it was boring. It's just... the grammar in this book made my head...
I knew that if I REALLY wanted to enjoy it, I'd have to take it slow. I didn't read it if I wasn't 100% focused. You have to understand, I've never read a book like this before. Just because I had this problem does not mean YOU will. I don't read historical fiction, ever. History just isn't my thing. But the summary was so intriguing... I couldn't help myself this time. The more I got into it, the easier it was. I really really really enjoyed this book.
I immediately got sucked in. Sean captures your attention within the first few pages. ANNDDD he knows how to write. It's so refreshing. My mind was blown away. I don't think I've ever read something so well written before, which is probably why I wasn't prepared for it. Authors ask me to read their books all the time, but this was different.
This was like...
I guess I'll start with my thoughts on the story line. One word, ORIGINAL. I love reading new things. It takes a special kind of author to write something like this. I kid you not... it was suspenseful, compelling, and down right captivating. I found myself laughing aloud, or wincing from events that take place. If I had been more focused, I know I would of breezed through this book with ease. It is a definite page turner.
The imagery in this book was intense. Like, really intense. I love it when the writer is able to show me a movie, rather than having me read words on a piece of paper. It's seriously a breath of fresh air.
The characters were incredible. We are allowed to see things from their points of view multiple times. Sean lets us feel what they feel, and we get to fall in love, (or hate), their personalities. And WOW did he throw me off!!! I seriously didn't see SEVERAL things coming. I was definitely kept on my toes the entire time. I didn't know who or what to trust while reading.
When I have more time I'll probably add more to this review. For now, my frazzled brain needs a nap.
Bottom line, this book is awesome. Seriously.
Oh, and this cover is gorgeous.
Never in my life... has it ever taken me so long to read a book. Let me assure you, it was NOT because it was boring. It's just... the grammar in this book made my head...
I knew that if I REALLY wanted to enjoy it, I'd have to take it slow. I didn't read it if I wasn't 100% focused. You have to understand, I've never read a book like this before. Just because I had this problem does not mean YOU will. I don't read historical fiction, ever. History just isn't my thing. But the summary was so intriguing... I couldn't help myself this time. The more I got into it, the easier it was. I really really really enjoyed this book.
I immediately got sucked in. Sean captures your attention within the first few pages. ANNDDD he knows how to write. It's so refreshing. My mind was blown away. I don't think I've ever read something so well written before, which is probably why I wasn't prepared for it. Authors ask me to read their books all the time, but this was different.
This was like...
I guess I'll start with my thoughts on the story line. One word, ORIGINAL. I love reading new things. It takes a special kind of author to write something like this. I kid you not... it was suspenseful, compelling, and down right captivating. I found myself laughing aloud, or wincing from events that take place. If I had been more focused, I know I would of breezed through this book with ease. It is a definite page turner.
The imagery in this book was intense. Like, really intense. I love it when the writer is able to show me a movie, rather than having me read words on a piece of paper. It's seriously a breath of fresh air.
The characters were incredible. We are allowed to see things from their points of view multiple times. Sean lets us feel what they feel, and we get to fall in love, (or hate), their personalities. And WOW did he throw me off!!! I seriously didn't see SEVERAL things coming. I was definitely kept on my toes the entire time. I didn't know who or what to trust while reading.
When I have more time I'll probably add more to this review. For now, my frazzled brain needs a nap.
Bottom line, this book is awesome. Seriously.
Oh, and this cover is gorgeous.
October 15, 2015
What a refreshing interpretation of the story of Camelot! It is the story of two (somewhat) elderly friends of long standing, who have reached a time in their lives when they are content to sit quietly by the fire with their books--or have they? Alfred is a nobleman with a reputation as an Arthurian scholar, but his wife is dying and he is desperate to save her--so desperate that he's willing to try anything. Will is a confirmed bachelor (and a bit of a player!) who enjoys running his bookstore and making snarky comments to his friend, but there's more to him than meets the eye. They find themselves swept up into a frantic search for a magical relict that promises immeasurable power to whomever holds it. Their search is complicated by the knowledge that the one man closest to unearthing it will use it to do irreparable harm to the world.
I have to admit--I was a bit perturbed at the way Merlin is portrayed. Ever since I read The Crystal Cave series as a teenager, I totally identified with that Merlin. That Merlin has a touch of unearthly power about him, an inexplicable ability to manipulate events, with a whiff of magic thrown in. He is, however, definitely benevolent, while this Merlin is most decidedly not! That being said, I found this presentation of Merlin to be fascinating--and believable. Sean took this beloved character, turned him inside out, and made it all sound perfectly logical. Now, I'm not that well-versed in Arthurian lore, so I don't know if this is a widely-accepted version of the Merlin legend or if it is purely a Gibson creation, but I enjoyed this fresh take on an old tale.
Will and Alfred are very likable. Their bantering is natural and humorous, and their conflicts only add depth to the relationship. Their difference of opinion at the end is intriguing and raises some interesting philosophical questions. I really liked the way it was handled and the avoidance of the I appreciated the epilogue for the same reason, and it really resonated with me. Alas! If only Will could make this same speech to some of our leaders--that "being nice" and "having good intentions" are pitifully inadequate policies against the ruthless evil some people are willing to resort to to achieve their own ends.
I must mention that somehow, some way, Sean managed to work into a story about Camelot! That, my friends, is talent! I know not everyone will agree, but personally, I feel there are few stories that are not improved by the presence of I was genuinely excited when I saw it, and feel that it was yet another testament to the uniqueness of this story.
Last, but certainly not least, the story was told with an effortless fluidity that was a joy to read. I've read enough of Sean's postings to have learned that he is an excellent writer, one to whom the words come naturally. I'm not saying that he doesn't have to do his share of revising and editing--all writers do. But I would be very surprised to learn that he often has recourse to the thesaurus. I know some people (Anne!) prefer a story that moves along at a good clip right from the start, but me--I have a weakness for a well-turned sentence, and am quite content with a slower pace if I am being fed lines that flow as smoothly as satin. Once the story gets going, it goes! Even at its most rollicking, it is still a syntactical delight.
On one point, however, I do agree with Anne--I would love to read another adventure about these two!
I have to admit--I was a bit perturbed at the way Merlin is portrayed. Ever since I read The Crystal Cave series as a teenager, I totally identified with that Merlin. That Merlin has a touch of unearthly power about him, an inexplicable ability to manipulate events, with a whiff of magic thrown in. He is, however, definitely benevolent, while this Merlin is most decidedly not! That being said, I found this presentation of Merlin to be fascinating--and believable. Sean took this beloved character, turned him inside out, and made it all sound perfectly logical. Now, I'm not that well-versed in Arthurian lore, so I don't know if this is a widely-accepted version of the Merlin legend or if it is purely a Gibson creation, but I enjoyed this fresh take on an old tale.
Will and Alfred are very likable. Their bantering is natural and humorous, and their conflicts only add depth to the relationship. Their difference of opinion at the end is intriguing and raises some interesting philosophical questions. I really liked the way it was handled and the avoidance of the I appreciated the epilogue for the same reason, and it really resonated with me. Alas! If only Will could make this same speech to some of our leaders--that "being nice" and "having good intentions" are pitifully inadequate policies against the ruthless evil some people are willing to resort to to achieve their own ends.
I must mention that somehow, some way, Sean managed to work into a story about Camelot! That, my friends, is talent! I know not everyone will agree, but personally, I feel there are few stories that are not improved by the presence of I was genuinely excited when I saw it, and feel that it was yet another testament to the uniqueness of this story.
Last, but certainly not least, the story was told with an effortless fluidity that was a joy to read. I've read enough of Sean's postings to have learned that he is an excellent writer, one to whom the words come naturally. I'm not saying that he doesn't have to do his share of revising and editing--all writers do. But I would be very surprised to learn that he often has recourse to the thesaurus. I know some people (Anne!) prefer a story that moves along at a good clip right from the start, but me--I have a weakness for a well-turned sentence, and am quite content with a slower pace if I am being fed lines that flow as smoothly as satin. Once the story gets going, it goes! Even at its most rollicking, it is still a syntactical delight.
On one point, however, I do agree with Anne--I would love to read another adventure about these two!
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