Cori McCarthy

Amy Rose Capetta

A new King Arthur has risen and she's got a universe to save Coming to terms with your identity is always difficult. But for Ari, the 42nd reincarnation of King Arthur, it just got a whole lot more complicated. Gender-bending royalty, caustic wit and a galaxy-wide fight for peace and equality all collide in this epic adventure. With an awkward adolescent Merlin and a rusty spaceship, this is the Arthurian legend as you have never before seen it.

Once & Future #1

Once & Future

Jasper

The good: an excellent queer found family, witty dialogue, & a decent main character. The bad: looolllll literally everything else. The world building was heavy-handed & fully ridiculous. With the exception of Gwen, all of the other characters were basically straw figures — yes, even Merlin, whose pov was half the book. On top of all of this silly, flat characterization, we got 

 2/3rds of the way through? Really? That was definitely the nail in the coffin on any investment I’d had in these characters. Like, first you skimp out on backstory by giving me a romance that is 90% established…and then you skimp out on actual story-story?

Sharanya Sharma

The good: an excellent queer found family, witty dialogue, & a decent main character. The bad: looolllll literally everything else. The world building was heavy-handed & fully ridiculous. With the exception of Gwen, all of the other characters were basically straw figures — yes, even Merlin, whose pov was half the book. On top of all of this silly, flat characterization, we got established romance? And then this plot…a one year time jump 2/3rds of the way through? Really? That was definitely the nail in the coffin on any investment I’d had in these characters. Like, first you skimp out on backstory by giving me a romance that is 90% established…and then you skimp out on actual story-story?

Yeah it’s a no from me.

It took me a while to get into this, and for the first few chapters was really disappointed/considered DNF’ing, but it got better as it went on and in the end I somewhat enjoyed it. Probably won’t read it again though. 

Steph Dwyer

Kirsten Simkiss

Tremendously inclusive but I could not stay focused on this book. The story skips around so randomly and explains so little that I kept getting lost and I couldn't enjoy it. The characters were also a little disjointed as a result. I also felt like I needed a refresher on Arthurian legend before reading this book that I didn't have. This is not the book for me, but I'm sure it's a great book for others.

Carrington Kinslow

So, Ari’s wife, Gwen, cheats on her with her BROTHER, Kay. Then gets PREGNANT. And Kay and Gwen excuse it because they were lonely? And they missed Ari? And then Ari forgives them? I wish I could erase this stupid shit from my brain.

King Arthur as you've never imagined! This bold, sizzling YA retells the popular legend with the Once and Future King as a teenage girl -- and she has a universe to save. I've been chased my whole life. As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I've always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur. Now I'm done hiding. My name is Ari Helix. I have a magic sword, a cranky wizard, and a revolution to start. When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind. No pressure. *STARRED REVIEW* "All hail this worthier-than-ever, fresh, and affirming reincarnation of the legendary king and her round table of knights which dazzles with heroic flair, humor, and suspense." --Kirkus

Nicole Dykeman

2.5 stars. There was so much I loved about this book, but it just didn’t do it for me. Maybe I went in with my hopes too high, but I was mostly disappointed by this book. 

First of all, I should say, 10/5 stars for diversity!! The cast is a wonderful collection of queer & POC characters, and their existence is totally normalized within the context of the futuristic setting. That kind of positive representation is sooo important for people to see, which is why I’m encouraging people to still pick this up and give it a try. It might not have been great for me, but I know a lot of other people that have loved it, and it deserves that chance. The message in general is also really great—there were lots of moments that were quote-worthy. I also thought it was funny at times, particularly the sections when Merlin takes the spotlight. I found myself smiling a lot. 

Unfortunately, plot and development wise, this was a let down. It was just a bit messy—the transitions between scenes were choppy and nonsensical most of the time. At any given point during the novel, it was difficult to tell where in the universe the action was taking place and what the characters’ relationships to one another were at the time. The writing itself was also to juvenile for my tastes. Half the time, I felt like I was reading a middle-grade like Percy Jackson, and the other half of the time, I was shocked out of that mindset by a character saying “fuck” or two characters having (non-explicit) sex. It just didn’t sit right. 

I also just didn’t connect with the characters the way I had hoped I would. I wasn’t rooting for Ari and Gwen or Merlin and Val, because I just didn’t care enough. The relationships were rushed, and I feel like the authors completely skipped the foundation-building and rushed right into the attraction/marriage. Even when there was a history between characters, they didn’t give me a big enough glimpse of that past for me to accept the instant camaraderie or romantic relationships that occurred. When something that was meant to be exciting or gut-wrenching happened, I didn’t feel anything. The book as a whole felt rushed as well, blending into one mess of planet-hopping, until I couldn’t remember many distinct moments in the plot.

l.h.

A. R. Capetta

King Arthur as you've never seen her! This bold, sizzling YA novel reimagines the Once and Future King as a teenage girl determined to save the universe from an evil curse. My name is Ari Helix. I have a magic sword, a cranky wizard, and a revolution to start. I've been chased my whole life. As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I've always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur. Now I'm done hiding. When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind. No pressure. "All hail this worthier-than-ever, fresh, and affirming reincarnation of the legendary king and her round table of knights which dazzles with heroic flair, humor, and suspense." -- Kirkus, Starred Review

Fraser Simons

This book was a lot of fun. While I didn’t care too much for the meta knowledge and jokes, including the actual King Arthur tale. There is great representation for PoC and genders, including an ace character (whom I really enjoyed!). But I’m generally not into stories that don’t take things seriously, which is probably the majority of the book. Luckily though, there are emotional beats and subversions of the original story that land very well. By the end I quite enjoyed it and will continue to the next book.

Nicole Lambert

I gave one extra star for the diversity aspect alone, but the sad truth is this book was not enjoyable for me. Too much was happening to the point where it was overwhelming, and as someone who is unfamiliar with the story of King Arthor, you can see why that is problematic. Also, the humor was not my thing. I didn't feel invested in any of the characters. I feel like I'm missing something because of how hyped this book was.

Also, this book shows a perfect, prejudice-free utopia, and I'm sorry, but that's not how the world works or will ever work due to humanity's need to hate.

luli

the story is complex and compelling. it’s characters are charismatic and likable in a way that provoques reflection about the interpersonal relationships within the book itself. it ends in a cliffhanger that makes you earn for more of this story to read, which is given to us in the story’s sequel “sword in the stars” 

Grace O'Callaghan

How can you not be intrigued by this kind of premise? A genderbent queer retelling of King Arthur in space? This is all I didn’t know I needed.

We follow Ari, the 42nd reincarnation of King Arthur, and Merlin, the magician who’s been aging backwards and is now a teenage boy. To stop this from happening a 43red time? Merlin must complete these steps:
1. Find Ari
2. Train Ari
3. Nudge Ari onto the nearest throne
4. Defeat the greatest evil in the world
5. Unite all of mankind
Shouldn’t be too hard.

My main gripe with this book was the pacing and the logic. I feel like some of the actions that the characters made didn’t make sense. It’s like the authors needed characters to meet up, but couldn’t think of a good enough reason so they just made them meet up for the plot to progress, not because it made logical sense.

I also found the first part to be extremely fast paced. We went to so many planets and got introduced to so many characters all at once that I couldn’t keep up. I think it would’ve been better if Ari acquired her knights a bit more slowly so we could get to know them and care about them before going off on a quest. I think this would’ve also sorted out the lull in the middle.

There are a lot of characters in this book so here’s a general overview of them:

Ari - reincarnation of King Arthur. She’s impulsive, queer and of Arab descent.
Kay - Ari’s older (adopted) brother
Merlin - gay young teenage magician with an old soul. Here to help Ari.
Gwen - an actual queen of a planet, also queer.
Lam - The best at one liners. Uses they/them pronouns, has one hand and is black.
Val - Lam’s brother, also queer.
Jordan - Incredible knight, loyal and asexual.

Ari and Gwen were my favourite characters. Separately, Ari is impulsive and righteous while Gwen will do anything for her people and is extremely stubborn. Together they are so angsty and have so much sexual tension, you can’t help but want them to be together. I do wish their romance was a bit more dragged out though. Again, the beginning being too quick.

Merlin was also so precious. Despite aging backwards, we really get to see him mature from the grumpy old man he once was. He’s just an awkward bean that wants to do the right thing and I love him for it.

The dynamics of these group of misfits is what really made me fall in love with this book. I think the authors did an absolutely perfect job of letting us know how all the characters knew and acted around each other without actually explaining all of their history, you could just sense it. They’re just one big found family trying to save the universe.

I found the tone to be a little muddled. At some points it was trying to be this fun romp of a quest through space, and on the other hand it was trying to be about a revolution and finding hope in the darkest of times. I do think these could’ve worked well together, but I don’t think it transitioned between them very well.

 This book also touched on some really important topics such as colonisation and how a monopoly will always end badly.

Basically if you’re looking for a queer retelling set in space, this is perfect for that. I also think that if you’re someone that likes the ‘overthrowing the government’ storyline but are fed up with the repetition of the dystopian genre, this has that feeling but with more magic and sci-fi elements.

Toni Turner

This took me an insane amount of time to pick up but what I just read was a super fun ride!

Kerry Gibbons

Oooooh this book was SO good and my timing was perfect coincidentally because the second book in the series came out today! I’ve already purchased and downloaded the audiobook and I think I’ll start it right away.

Jessica Williamson

3.5 Stars

Characters **** I dug the characters. It was sorta weird at the very beginning how most of the MC's only had 3 letter names but that changed at about 50 pages in so that was good. I love how diverse this cast of characters are (even though at some points their diversities seemed highly convenient), and I had an easy time telling them all apart. That being said, I did feel like there was just something missing from this group. 

Cover **** The cover is so pretty. My only complaint is the weird armor is not very aesthetically pleasing to me. 

Pace *** The pacing in this was WEIRD. It was full action at the beginning and then it kinda died off and then it picked up again and I don't know. I'm just not sure how I feel about it. 

Plot *** Ok. I'm not the only one who thought the plot was weird right? I liked the world-building and I was into the mythos and you know, the first 3/4 of the book was actually really good. It was the end that made me just stare off into space blankly. I have NO IDEA what the hell was going on in the last couple of chapters.

Writing *** It was good. I didn't love it, didn't hate it. I did struggle with the differences in the POV's a little. There just wasn't enough of a separation between them for me. Again the end just really threw me for a loop.

Enjoyment **** I did enjoy the book. It was a decent read. I am planning on picking up the sequel, I want to see where things go and that's always a good sign of enjoyment.

Cry Bonus - None

Overall - I don't dislike this as much as a lot of other people did but I definitely understand what they mean when they say it's missing something. I read through a bunch of reviews seeing if anyone could point out what it was that I felt like this book needed and I never really found anything that pinpointed what made me not just love this.

Justine Rose

Alexis 

I have very mixed feelings about this book. The entire reason I picked up this book was because it was pitched to me as a gender bent retelling of King Arthur. I’ll admit that the book fell flat for me. While I really enjoyed the entire King Arthur aspect I felt like it didn’t focus enough on it. I wasn’t a major fan of the writing and it felt all very rushed and convenient. I also learned that there is a lot of LGBTQ+ Rep in this book. Now while didn’t mind this being an aspect of the book, I felt like it was continuously brought up. My first thought while reading specific passages is ” why is this even here” or ” why is this important in anyway” there was no need for it to be part of the story. From what I understand there is going to be a sequel so maybe it’s setting up for that.

Overall I was let down, I just wanted much more from this book that was provided. I haven’t decided if I will read the sequel. I would still recommend the book, it was really fun and a fast read.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this book from Little, Brown and Company/Jimmy Patterson Presents. Thanks! All opinions are my own.



Book Series: Book 1 of Once & Future



Rating: 5/5



Publication Date: March 26, 2019



Genre: YA Fantasy



Recommended Age: 16+ (sex, language, magic, sassy swords, and sarcastic main characters)



Publisher: Jimmy Patterson Presents



Pages: 336



Amazon Link



Synopsis: I’ve been chased my whole life. As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I’ve always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur.

Now I’m done hiding.

My name is Ari Helix. I have a magic sword, a cranky wizard, and a revolution to start.

When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind.

No pressure.



Review: I really enjoyed this book! I’ve never read a King Arthur retelling and I loved the girl power take on the classic tale. The book was highly imaginative and amazing. The cast was diverse (non-binary, lesbian, bi, ace, gay, and the main character is Arab). The book was well written and the world building was amazingly well done. The plot was intriguing and entertaining throughout the novel. I could just go on and on about how amazing this book was. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!



However, I do feel that the book focused a bit too much on the romance and I wish the magic was a bit more explained. I also feel that the book was a bit confusing towards the end and it felt a bit ex machina. Still can’t wait to read the next book though!



Verdict: Queer and loving it!

Michelle Boyea

** spoiler alert **
           This was an....interesting.....book.

I honestly struggled through this book. While I enjoy the story of King Arthur, I did not enjoy this adaptation. I think it was so far from the original that it was hard for me to accept. I also wasn't expecting it to be as dystopian of a book as it was. 

There were definitely parts that captivated my attention and caused me to not want to put the book down. However, they were few and far between. I found myself checking my phone every couple pages and being very easily distracted while reading. This does not happen when I am truly engaged in a book. 

I do like the idea of King Arthur reincarnations, I also like that Merlin is aging backwards, ie getting younger with reincarnation. But that is where my enjoyment ended.

Ari and Kay's moms being imprisoned, Kay dying, Ari being named a ceremonial king, Gwen becoming pregnant with her wife's nephew, and on and on. My eyes were rolling so much during this book that I'm surprised I can still see straight. Maybe it's been too many years since I read the story of King Arthur, but I do not remember it being that over the top.

Elise

This is the best queer sci-fi/fantasy novel that I have read this far, I loved everything about it and it's a very original King Arthur retelling. Can't wait to read the next one

Leelynn Brady

Laura Springall

Before I start this review, I would just like to point out how beautiful those acknowledgements were. I never thought reading the acknowledgments of a book would make me cry but here we are.

Ok so. I don't even know where to possibly begin with this book. I don't really have much to say other than Once & Future is everything I could ever possibly want in a book, which is exactly what I said about the last Amy Rose Capetta book I read. Amy Rose Capetta, you are officially one of my top three favourite authors in the whole world, right up there with Maggie Stiefvater and Emily Skrutskie. And I'm now also forever in love with Cori McCarthy, I need to start reading their other books immediately. A huge, massive thank you to these two for giving me such wonderful queer characters that don't end in tragedy, found families, sci-fi AND fantasy mixed into the same book, the kind of humour that I love the most, a story about a universe of people revolting against capitalism, and so much more. I would very much like to find Excalibur and use it to blast my way to the future so I can read the sequel to this right now. Seriously though 2020 can't come fast enough.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go sob into a pillow thinking about this beautiful world and the magical characters who inhabit it for the rest of my life.

Christina 

Great book with many diverse people. I really really loved the book. But MILD SPOILER: someone got pregnant and I definetly don't like reading about that. So I won't be picking up the sequel 

Lucille

I loved this book and it totally ripped my heart out in the end.... I cant wait to read the next one!

Chelsea Breher

I picked up this book to fit a bookbattle requirement a couple months ago, I had no idea what I as getting into when I picked it up. Overall, I really enjoyed this version of "Arthur" and the round table, it was a spectacularly modernized version that dealt with relevant issues within society today. It was a great, quick, easy read that left you wanting more.

Billie Yankulova

A gripping new take on the Arthurian legend complemented by witty characters each bringing something unique to the story. And, oh my, the diversity in race, sexuality, and gender is a breath of fresh air in fantasy storytelling! And most importantly, 'diverse' wasn't used as the characters' only personality traits. 
The writing style is effortless and gripping and while sometimes character development happened "off-page" it is never too far fetched. Teenage Merlin was a joy to read and Ari is quickly climbing up to the top of my favourite characters list. 
Even with all the futuristic technology, reading this I yearned to hold a sword every time Excalibur was mentioned. I can't wait for the next book!!

Once & Future Once & Future #1

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