Name: Knight of the Sacred Lake
ISBN: 9780609606230

Rosalind Miles

The kingdom of Camelot is threatened by the dark machinations of King Arthur's devious half-sister, Morgan, and by the love affair between Guenevere and the young knight Lancelot, as Guenevere is forced to choose between her heart and her duty to her husb

Knight of the Sacred Lake

The Knight of the Sacred Lake is almost as good as the first book in the series. While these books are supposed to be the Guenevere Trilogy, she kind of takes a step back in this novel. With so much jumping around between characters, story lines and POVs, this book was a fast paced read (thank you, short chapters), but I would prefer one or two POVs. 

It seemed like so much build up happened for a few key plot points, and I thought it wasn't necessary. Having Merlin on the trail of Mordred for literal years only to finally find him within a few pages just felt like a waste. And the same goes for the monks on Avalon; we wasted chapters about them only for them to be transferred somewhere else and for new monks to take their place. I would much rather have focused on Guenevere, Lancelot and even Arthur.

This is the fourth book I've read by Rosalind Miles, and I've noticed she never lets her characters be happy. To the point where it gets predictable and frustrating and tiring for the reader. Or, they're at least never happy for long. It's not always fun to read about characters (Guenevere especially) wallowing in their misery. Guenevere is also always very quick to turn on Lancelot, which can come across as almost cringe-worthy. This is supposed to be one of the greatest love stories of all time, and without Lancelot's clear head and gallantry, it would fall flat. Speaking of Lancelot, he is a very well written character, as is Arthur, and to an extent, Guenevere. Miles is skilled at crafting compelling characters.

Overall, I wish the plot would have been stronger and more consolidated. Miles is a master at writing beautifully with beautiful language, though. That does feel like a treat. I think this book could have been stronger, a more worthy follow up to the first novel in this series. I will be reading the final book whenever I am able. 

Amanda

The Knight of the Sacred Lake is almost as good as the first book in the series. While these books are supposed to be the Guenevere Trilogy, she kind of takes a step back in this novel. With so much jumping around between characters, story lines and POVs, this book was a fast paced read (thank you, short chapters), but I would prefer one or two POVs. 

It seemed like so much build up happened for a few key plot points, and I thought it wasn't necessary. Having Merlin on the trail of Mordred for literal years only to finally find him within a few pages just felt like a waste. And the same goes for the monks on Avalon; we wasted chapters about them only for them to be transferred somewhere else and for new monks to take their place. I would much rather have focused on Guenevere, Lancelot and even Arthur.

This is the fourth book I've read by Rosalind Miles, and I've noticed she never lets her characters be happy. To the point where it gets predictable and frustrating and tiring for the reader. Or, they're at least never happy for long. It's not always fun to read about characters (Guenevere especially) wallowing in their misery. Guenevere is also always very quick to turn on Lancelot, which can come across as almost cringe-worthy. This is supposed to be one of the greatest love stories of all time, and without Lancelot's clear head and gallantry, it would fall flat. Speaking of Lancelot, he is a very well written character, as is Arthur, and to an extent, Guenevere. Miles is skilled at crafting compelling characters.

Overall, I wish the plot would have been stronger and more consolidated. Miles is a master at writing beautifully with beautiful language, though. That does feel like a treat. I think this book could have been stronger, a more worthy follow up to the first novel in this series. I will be reading the final book whenever I am able. 

The kingdom of Camelot is threatened by the dark machinations of King Arthur's devious half-sister, Morgan, and by the love affair between Guenevere and the young knight Lancelot, as Guenevere is forced to choose between her heart and her duty to her husband and her people.