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Title: Taliesin: Book One of the Pendragon Cycle |
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Review of Taliesin: Book One of the Pendragon Cycle
It was a time of legend, when the last shadows of the mighty Roman conqueror faded from the captured Isle of Britain. While across a vast sea, bloody war shattered a peace that had flourished for two thousand years in the doomed kingdom of Atlantis.
Taliesin is the remarkable adventure of Charis, the Atlantean princess who escaped the terrible devastation of her homeland, and of the fabled seer and druid prince Taliesin, singer at the dawn of the age. It is the story of an incomparable love that joined two worlds amid the fires of chaos, and spawned the miracles of Merlin...and Arthur the king.
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Comments for Taliesin: Book One of the Pendragon Cycle
- Posted on 2008-07-02
I got bored
Stephen Lawhead has written two genre-spanning series which are fantastical retellings of historical legends: The Pendragon Cycle (King Arthur) and The King Raven Trilogy (Robin Hood). I didn't like The Pendragon Cycle as well as I liked The Song of Albion, and King Raven which were later and better works. The story was too slow for me and the writing was not nearly as polished.
However, there are a lot of fans of this rendering of Arthur, I think because Lawhead does a lot of research, which makes his worlds believable. He is particularly good with Celtic lore. ~FanLit.net
Score: 3
- Posted on 2008-04-15
Beautiful Beginning to Arthurian Legend
I love the entire Pendragon Cycle because of this first book, Taliesin. It's beautiful: The history of Atlantis, the early prophecies, the life of Charis and the baby boy Taliesin wrapped in seal fur. The characters are deep and rich; Lawhead creates the perfect foundation to this legend.
Score: 5
- Posted on 2007-09-25
Starts off wonderfully and sadly goes flop
I won't give a synopsis of the story; you can scroll down to find several of these. If you're a die-heard Christian and like pot-boilers you might find the last third of the novel delightful. Lawhead does an excellent job of giving the reader two story lines- sub-plots - and then merging them. Up to the merging chapter, the novel is rich in scope. But then the two main characters meet and oops, Lawson wallows in the romance between the two and all else is botched, forgotten, ignored. Talieson, a Druid, bard, seer who's supposed to change the world and be remembered through the ages... becomes a love-sick puppy strumming silly songs and gawking at Charis.
Charis' father is against the match because his line has been 'pure' through the ages.... although, after suffering a battle wound in Atlantis he married his nursemaid... a woman with a very dubious pedigree. Charis never thinks to mention this the entire time dad is waxing furious about racial 'purity'. She and Talieson run away to a small town where he strums his harp and they make google-eyes until their child- Merlin- is born. (Charris must remain in bed for her pregnancy and Talieson never leaves her side.)
Forget about Talieson's father, back home with the tribe, all struggling desperately to build homes and find enough food to make it through the winter...along with fighting invaders. (Although Charis' father and brothers now insist they are not warriors and do not fight, they left Atlantis in the middle of a war... go figure.) Forget about the fate of Britian.
Add to this Talieson's conversion to Christianity and Lawson's second wallow- the reader gets numerous sermons via the sweet Christian priests and Talieson- and the novel just takes a huge nose-dive in ill-logic, non-sequitors, maudlin smoochings, and sermonizing.
Before Talieson's Christian conversion, the novel showed seemingly marvelous insight and acceptance of numerous beliefs and practices. But once Talieson becomes a Christian, he does nothing but preach about the One God, and sigh over Charis.
If all this isn't enough to have you grinding your teeth, the book ends with Talieson given an ignoble death as he and Charis head home after the birth. Ah well... so much for a seer/singer who was going to change the world and be remembered forever. Merlin is born and poor Talieson is no longer needed, since he's performed his function.
Score: 3 - Posted on 2007-09-03
Not Free SF Reader
Lawhead here takes the figure of Taliesin the bard, and throws him together with a young priestess of Atlantis.
As far as that goes, it doesn't seem too incongruous, so points for that. Throw in some prophecy, impending doom, and a creepy young girl and you have an ok story.
Score: 3 - Posted on 2007-08-30
Not for Me
A decent read, one that I was enjoying, until it got REALLY preachy about 2/3 of the way through the book. I picked the book up knowing the the author was a Christian, and it didn't stop me: I'd be a fool and a biggot to choose not to read a book based solely on the author's beliefs...but then he started to cram those beliefs down my throat. And THAT'S when I put the book down, unfinished, never to pick it up again. To quote Homer Simpson:
"Awwww...this isn't about *Jesus* is it?"
Sorry Homer, I'm afraid it is.
Score: 1