The King Arthur Trilogy Book Two: Warrior of the West
Hume resumes her Arthurian trilogy with a bang in Warrior of the West. Twelve years have passed since the conclusion of Dragon’s Child and Artor’s reign continues to be characterized by great accomplishment and uneasy danger. Though he successfully unites Celtic Britain, unification is achieved at a brutally high cost. Ousting the Saxons serves as a temporary and bloody distraction, but enemies lurk within and without the fortress of Cadbury Tor (Camelot). When Artor takes the scheming, dissatisfied beauty Wenhaver as his wife, she drives a wedge between the king and one of his most trusted men. The BloodyCup resumes this stellar trilogy with an originally wrought quest for the Holy Grail. As Artor ages and his kingdom shows signs of fracture, the significance of symbolic objects increases dramatically. As Pagans vie with Christians and Celts square off against Picts, it becomes clear that Artor’s glory days are on the wane. Proving that he still has some fight left in him, the beleaguered High King takes to the battlefield for one final, bloody, and ultimately tragic showdown against his nephew, Mordred. Fantastical elements abound in this earthy and historically grounded retelling of a beloved legend. --Margaret Flanagan