Slow burn reimagining of a real-ish backstory for Merlin and the conception of Arthur. The Crystal Cave is an historical fiction take (even though I categorized this as fantasy), bringing to life the wild period of Great Britain after the Romans left and during the early Saxon invasions. The treatment of these mythical characters as historical people (and most are real people) is engrossing and magical, even minus real magic. I first read this book during a car trip through mountains and the images of the Welsh landscape have stayed with me ever since. This book took me down my Welsh mythology rabbit hole in my late teens/early 20s.

Some day, I’ll visit Wales and hike the mountains that will make me think of this book.

THE CRYSTAL CAVE by Mary Stewart: A historical fantasy about the early years of Merlin that spends more time on cultural, religious, and political upheaval than, like, cool wizard shit. And it's good!

I first read this version of the Merlin origin story as a young teen, having run through all the YA iterations I could get my hands on. This one really felt different then, and while it's not as novel to my adult palate I still had a good time.

Grounded by its 5th-century setting, CAVE is a story about the evolution of the British people and national identity—a combination of Welsh, Briton, and Saxon with some leftover Roman. But Stewart has some fun with it, giving us druids and mystery cults, knights and hermits.

This Merlin's power comes largely from his intellect and ability to read people. He's an engineer of both the physical and social kinds, cultivating his wizardly image for its symbolic value. But he's also a lonely kid trying to find his way through a violent world.

This is a story with a lot of mysteries. Stewart doesn't avoid the supernatural elements of the story, but also doesn't feel the need to explain them. There's an epic scope to this story, but Stewart's direct, evocative writing keeps it personal.

Love this book! It's a very cool take on Merlin.