Another recommendation from a former student. Curiously enough, he showed up at my office this morning with his copy of this, returned to him by a friend, for me to read. Having him drop by is never a waste of time, at least I think so, I hope he does. There aren't many with whom I can talk fantasy genre at depth. We don't always agree, but that makes the discussions far more interesting. On this one we agree.
This is a saga of the fall of the Roman Empire, focused specifically on Britain, and the birth of Arthurian legend. Not the full-blown "knights of the table round" but of barbaric Celtic tribesmen who style themselves "Pendragon" - the current leader is a fellow named Ullic, it's easy to imagine him having a son or grandson named Uther - and their interactions with the Romans who realize that they are actually of Britain not Rome and build a new life as the Empire collapses. After all, the Roman occupation of Britain lasted for about three hundred years, that's time for lots of generations to grow up and develop a new perspective.
The story is loaded with hints toward classic Arthurian bits. The central character is an upper class Roman born in Britain who served as an officer in the Legions, even did a tour in North Africa. Sounds kind of like WWII British army. Uncharacteristically, he is also a smith, taught by his grandfather who acquired a metallic meteorite (skystone) and smelted and worked it. I've been trying to figure what alloy we are talking about, but I'm no metallurgist, and not quite curious enough to spend an evening Googling the subject. Our hero, Publius Varrus, has acquired meteorites of his own and has finally managed to work it to the point of making a somewhat crude statue which he has named "The Lady of the Lake" after the site where the stone was found. His friend is bugging him about making a sword -- do you suppose we are talking about Excalibur??
It's a bit predictable, but that is the nature of the beast. If you are dealing with Arthurian legend, you are rather bound by the classical elements. The rest is about, perhaps, pointing the light in a different direction. The truly great stories can support it.
An intriguing element is the formation of a semi-communal colony modelled after some unpronounceable group in Gaul. Gaul, of course, became France, and I suspect that the tribe who provided the model evolved into the Basques, but that will call for another trip to Google.
Bottom line: I really enjoyed it - I hope the next volume holds up to the standard set by the first.
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