In the Shadow of the Oak King

by Courtway Jones

Book Overview

From the building of Camelot to the tempering of Arthur's allies Gawaine, King Ban, and Lancelot, this tale of love, loyalty, and war reveals a fascinating world where battles are won by faith as well... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671734032
• ISBN13: 9780671734039
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Atria Books
• Length: 290 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

A Pictish take on King Arthur

This is the first in the series and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone who wants a new slant on the King Arthur saga. This book is told from the viewpoint of Peleas, a Pictish blacksmith. The other two books are told from the perspectives of Morgan, Arthur's half-sister, and Mordred, who turns out to be not so evil a fellow. Together they will leave you with a very well researched and compelling look back into a time that might have been.

You have no choice, you must read this book.

This is how the Arthurian legend should have gone. The story fills in the gaps that a typical King Arthur story fails to address. By the end of this epic tail you will have come to love these characters through crying, laughing and cheering for them.

A great retelling of the Arthurian legends

Young Pelleas is a Pictish boy, one who has earned the ire of the Druids, and does not expect to survive the next Samhain. When a smith named Myrddin rescues Pelleas, he begins an adventure that introduces him to his half-brother Arthur, makes him instrumental in the founding of the Knights of the Round Table, and crowns him as High King of the Picts.In this book, Professor Courtway Jones takes the Arthurian legend back towards its Dark Age roots. Many of the original characters are recast as Britons, Picts and Gaels, and many of the old customs (including those of a sexual nature) are reflected in the story. Christianity is merely a patina on this multi-ethnic society, as both religions and races fight for dominance. Magic is downplayed in this book, with telepathy and magical healing potions being about the extent of it.This is a great retelling of the Arthurian legends. Though Professor Jones' inclusion of knights and tournaments in the Dark Ages represents an anomaly, his Dark Age story is fascinating and informative about the era. The storyline is fascinating, and becomes positively gripping once Pelleas is knighted. Indeed, I found myself unable to go to sleep before I read the final few chapters.By the way, though this is the first book in a trilogy, it is an entirely self-contained story, and can be read on its own.

What a book!

Author Courtway Jones takes you into the magic of Camelot with characters who are seen with all of their human foibles. Rather than the hocus pocus of Merlin, and the heroic Arthur, Jones gives us more reasonable characterizations of these mythical figures. You are drawn in because first and foremost, these are flesh and blood men and women, who do ordinary things, have reasonable explainations for the actions they take, and act like you would expect could really have been the way things were in medieval Britain. The reader, rather than feeling like they are reading a fantasy novel, feel like they are reading about real peoples lives. This made this reader feel much more involved in the storyline and characters. This is a fabulous book. I, for one, will be reading the next books in this fabulous series.

This is one of the best books I have ever Read!!!

This story is by far the best I have read. simply because it goes more into depth of king arthur. I love books with some kind of magic/fantasy stuff in it and this book covers it all. Every part of the story keeps you interested and wanting to know what's going to happen next. Most stories or other versions of King Arthur do not go as far as this book, despite what you have read before in other books about King Arthur and his legend, this book is the best one to read. The story not only keeps you interested but it makes you think about it. It is very good and I definetally recommend reading it. You will see the story of King Arthur and everything that happened in a whole different way.