The Other Merlin
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR! - Publishers Weekly
"Simultaneously heart-pounding and hilarious, Robyn Schneider gives us a veritable romp through Camelot fueled by adventure and romance."
—Kerri Maniscalco, #1 NYT bestselling author of The Kingdom of the Wicked and Stalking Jack the Ripper
Channeling the modern humor of The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, bestselling author Robyn Schneider creates a Camelot that becomes the ultimate teen rom-com hotspot in this ultra-fresh take on the Arthurian legend.
Welcome to the great kingdom of Camelot! Prince Arthur’s a depressed botanist who would rather marry a library than a princess, Lancelot’s been demoted to castle guard after a terrible lie, and Emry Merlin has arrived at the castle disguised as her twin brother since girls can’t practice magic.
Life at court is full of scandals, lies, and backstabbing courtiers, so what’s a casually bisexual teen wizard masquerading as a boy to do? Other than fall for the handsome prince, stir up trouble with the foppish Lord Gawain, and offend the prissy Princess Guinevere.
When the truth comes out with disastrous consequences, Emry has to decide whether she'll risk everything for the boy she loves, or give up her potential to become the greatest wizard Camelot has ever known.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Schneider's (You Don't Live Here) first foray into fantasy, a clever trilogy starter based in the King Arthur mythos, changes most of the canonical facts but gets everything that matters right in this funny, sharp, romantic, magic-filled book. In this telling, Merlin is neither revered nor an old male wizard, but a bisexual 18-year-old girl, Emry. Though their famous, long-absent father gave more magic training to Emry's twin brother, she's the one with the magic chops. So when the king summons the next generation of the Merlin family, off she goes—disguised as her sibling. At court (a multiracial group, though Emry and the other protagonists are cued as white), she apprentices to the castle magician and befriends Arthur—the kind of prince who's easily mistaken for a librarian—as well as his best friend Lancelot, depicted here as gay and unfairly demoted to castle guard. The bawdy jokes land, the magic flies, the court politics feel high-stakes, and Emry and Arthur's characters, including their mutual attraction and growing ability to fulfill their destined roles, are believable and fully drawn. A highly satisfying, renegade reboot of an old story for fans of Once & Future and The Left-Handed Booksellers of London. Ages 14–up.
