Princess Guinevere has come to Camelot to wed a stranger: the charismatic King Arthur. With magic clawing at the kingdom's borders, the great wizard Merlin conjured a solution -- send in Guinevere to be Arthur's wife... and his protector from those who want to see the young king's idyllic city fail. The catch? Guinevere's real name -- and her true identity -- is a secret. She is a changeling, a girl who has given up everything to protect Camelot.
To keep Arthur safe, Guinevere must navigate a court in which the old -- including Arthur's own family -- demand things continue as they have been, and the new -- those drawn by the dream of Camelot -- fight for a better way to live. And always, in the green hearts of forests and the black depths of lakes, magic lies in wait to reclaim the land. Arthur's knights believe they are strong enough to face any threat, but Guinevere knows it will take more than swords to keep Camelot free.
Deadly jousts, duplicitous knights, and forbidden romances are nothing compared to the greatest threat of all: the girl with the long black hair, riding on horseback through the dark woods toward Arthur. Because when your whole existence is a lie, how can you trust even yourself?
From the New York Times, bestselling author Kiersten White comes a new fantasy series reimagining the Arthurian legend, set in the magical world of Camelot.
Hardcover, Owlcrate Exclusive Edition, 337 pages
Published November 5th 2019
by Delacorte Press
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One of my goals for 2020 is going outside my comfort zone and trying different genres with the hope of adding variety to my reading life. Not knowing exactly where to start in the YA fantasy genre I opted to try the OwlCrate YA monthly box. Have you tried any of these monthly boxes? I have and they are addicting. This basically means the YA Owlcrate is a monthly subscription for me and this book, The Guinevere Deception came in my December box (and it's signed to boot!!)
I'll confess to being totally confused over the whole Arthur/Merlin/Guinevere story, is it real and based on history, is it a fairy tale gone bad or what? Letting my brain let go of all my questions I sat back and took in this story. This was my first time reading Kiersten White and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Told from the perspective of Guinevere and while the beginning was a tad slow it didn't take long to let go of my preconceived notions of fantasy being confusing and too outlandish that I was caught up in this story. It was intriguing, kept me on my toes and there were a few twists and turns I didn't see coming.
The characters fit the story nicely, it was hard for me to decide whom to trust, some I liked and others not so much.
So I first (of 2020) foray into YA fantasy was a success. This is the 1st book in The Camelot Rising Series with book #2 due out sometime in 2020 - it's untitled but added to my TBR pile.
This book is part of my 2020 Reading Off My Shelf Challenge.
I’m glad you enjoyed it, I think it’s important to move out of your comfort zone occasionally
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