The Coming of the King by Nikolai Tolstoy
Reviews n nMerlin's world in all its complexities is memorably depicted in nthis first of three fictional studies by the author of the nnonfiction The Quest for Merlin . The legendary figure tells his nown story from his birth, including some mystical episodes. This nbook culminates in the battle of Dineirth, where Merlin has naccompanied King Maelgun the Tall. Although there are references to nArthur, that story is not told here. A generation later, the nnorthern and western British lords with their medley of Christian nand pagan practices are uniting to drive out the heathen Saxons. nNames, terms, and places are generally in old Celtic. A list of ncharacters and places assists; a map would have been helpful. Those nwell versed in Merlin lore, as well as those who enjoy similar nfantasies, will welcome Tolstoy's contribution. Readers who lack nthis background can still appreciate the rich, evocative prose and nthe musings of Merlin et al.-- Ellen Kaye Stoppel, Drake Univ. Law nLib., Des Moines n nTolstoy (a British descendant of the famous writer) has named his nvolume aptly: this first book of a trilogy is also the first to ndraw the complex, mysterious Merlin from the mists of Britain's nCeltic past in terms poetic, fantastic and true. This is no ngarishly covered blockbuster to be quickly read and lugged around nin commuter handbags: instead, it should be kept for reading nalone--and telling aloud, as the Iliad , Beowulf and the Mabinogion nwere told. In a brief prologue, a king rides out with his warband nand sees a vision of a man rising from a great mound to address nhim: ``You awaken me, that am departed from the world of men.'' And nMerlin mab Morfryn proceeds to tell how, in fulfillment of legend nand prophecy, he was born in a castle and consigned as a baby to nthe depth of the sea for 40 years. Once again on dry land, there nwere battles, duels with the supernatural, visions of past and nfuture and wonderful riddles: ``What is swifter than the nwind?--Thought.'' ``What is sharper than the sword?--Truth.'' In nclassic, heroic style, and with wit, tragic sensibility and poetry nin the bardic tradition, Merlin's story--which includes Arthur's nand tells of the coming of the priests of Iesu Crist to save the nsoul of Britain in the Dark Ages--is gathered up in masterly nfashion from scattered references in chronicle, fable, myth and npoem into an epic with the complex quality of nectar: not easily ndescribed, nor for every taste, but once tasted, never forgotten. n(Apr.)
Publication Details
Title:
Author(s):
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Binding: Paperback
Published by: Corgi: , 1989
Edition:
ISBN: 9780552132213 | 0552132217
847 pages.
Book Condition: Good
Cover worn
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