The Bright Sword
A Novel of King Arthur
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4.3 • 219 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A New York Times Editors’ Choice • The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Magicians Trilogy and “master storyteller” (New York Times) returns with a triumphant reimagining of the King Arthur legend for the new millennium
Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist • Locus Award Finalist
NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES, NPR, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, VANITY FAIR, TIME, OPRAH DAILY, TOWN & COUNTRY, ELLE, VOX, PASTE, LIT HUB, POLYGON, KIRKUS REVIEWS
“Lev Grossman’s The Bright Sword stands out as the best fantasy of the year.” —The Wall Street Journal
“Grossman, who is best known for his The Magicians series, is at the top of his game with The Bright Sword.” —The New York Times Book Review
“A thrilling new take on Arthurian legend. . . . Marvelous.” —The Washington Post
“If you love King Arthur as much as I do, you’ll love Lev Grossman’s The Bright Sword, a fresh and engrossing take on the Matter of Britain featuring a colorful cast of Round Table knights who don’t often get as much story time as they deserve. The creator of The Magicians has woven another spell.” —George R. R. Martin, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Game of Thrones
A gifted young knight named Collum arrives at Camelot to compete for a place at the Round Table, only to find that he’s too late. King Arthur died two weeks ago at the Battle of Camlann, and only a handful of the knights of the Round Table are left.
The survivors aren’t the heroes of legend like Lancelot or Gawain. They’re the oddballs of the Round Table, like Sir Palomides, the Saracen Knight, and Sir Dagonet, Arthur’s fool, who was knighted as a joke. They’re joined by Nimue, who was Merlin’s apprentice until she turned on him and buried him under a hill.
But it's up to them to rebuild Camelot in a world that has lost its balance, even as God abandons Britain and the fairies and old gods return, led by Morgan le Fay. They must reclaim Excalibur and make this ruined world whole again—but first they'll have to solve the mystery of why the lonely, brilliant King Arthur fell.
The first major Arthurian epic of the new millennium, The Bright Sword is steeped in tradition, complete with duels and quests, battles and tournaments, magic swords and Fisher Kings. It's also a story about imperfect men and women, full of strength and pain, trying to reforge a broken land in spite of being broken themselves.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Lev Grossman redefines the Arthurian legend in The Bright Sword, a spellbinding epic that begins where many tales end: after the fall of Camelot. When young Collum arrives in Camelot with dreams of knighthood, he instead finds King Arthur dead, the realm fractured, and the surviving knights in need of a new leader. Alongside sorceress Nimue and this band of lesser-known knights, Collum must battle against time, inner demons, and the powerful Morgan le Fay to restore peace. Grossman’s brilliant reimagining peels back layers of myth to reveal the complex, flawed humans beneath. His diverse cast—including a transgender knight, a prince from Baghdad, and Arthur’s jester, who is grappling with mental illness—brings fresh perspectives to age-old archetypes. Blending meticulous historical detail with bold anachronisms, The Bright Sword’s lyrical prose and intricate plotting will whisk you away on a quest through fairy realms and war-torn kingdoms alike. Mesmerizing, profound, and utterly unforgettable, this is Arthurian fiction reborn for a new millennium.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bestseller Grossman (the Magicians trilogy) turns his hand to Arthurian legends, delivering a breathtaking tale that honors past iterations while producing something entirely unexpected. Young Collum escapes the lordly household where he's been raised, liberating a suit of armor and a steed in the process, and travels to Camelot, where he hopes to serve King Arthur. He arrives too late—Arthur has already fallen at the Battle of Camlann. The few knights left at Camelot know that others will come seeking the throne but aren't sure what to do. Grossman interweaves stories of each knight's past with the ongoing quest to find a worthy heir to Arthur's crown, which takes them and Collum into the Otherworld in search of a holy lance. In his historical note, Grossman acknowledges that he is among the camp of Arthurian writers "who pick and choose what they like," producing a work "full of a lot of authentic historical detail but also a lot of anachronisms and contradictions." Indeed, Grossman has his own take on beloved characters: Sir Bedivere is in unrequited love with Arthur, witty Sir Dinadan is trans and learned swordcraft from a fairy, and Sir Palomides is secretly a prince of Baghdad. There's even a hint that Collum may be something more than he first appears. Grossman does a remarkable job of pulling together these disparate strands while providing enough combat and magic to keep the pages turning. Epic fantasy fans will hang on every word.
Customer Reviews
Great Storytelling : Long Book
Such a thoughtful book and a labor of love. I loved the author’s cadence and pace, and the characters he formed. That being said, for me, reading this book was like trying to fit all the greatest hits in one day - it should have been broken into two. I was fatigued and was waiting for it to end, and when it did, I immediately missed the world the author created. Overall, wonderful story telling and I enjoyed it.
His best work.
Absolute master of the genre. What a phenomenal read.
A wonderful adventure
A wonderful and inventive retelling, which lost me towards the end. There were innumerable endings, none of which quite delivered. That being said, well written, engaging, and well worth the read.