Customer Reviews

Damosel: In Which the Lady of the Lake Renders a Frank and Often Startling Account of her Wondrous Life and Times

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's not often that I just don't know what to make of a book, that I just don't get it. But that is how I feel about Damosel. It is a story of Arthur, Guenivere, Lancelot, etc. told from the perspective of Damosel - the Lady of the Lake, and Twixt - a court dwarf and jester.

The writing is excellent. At two hundered pages, my original thought was that it is intended for a younger audience, but the word craft seemed geared toward older.

The story of Arthur is told from a distance. Other people relay his doings back to Damosel, or Twixt tells of things he saw, but didn't really participate in. Neither Damosel or Twixt themselves had a true story of their own. Things happened to them, but there was no sense of a character ARC or character journey.

The author's notes at the end explains the author's inspiration as: "A story about her (Damosel) began to form in my mind, one that gave interesting (if not plausible) reasons for her stranger behavior." And this is possibly why I had such a hard time loving this. The book is a bunch of vignette, loosely tied together, to give a background to Damosel's behavior. However, as a novel, this just didn't work for me. I end up with lots of information, but very little `story.'

DAMOSEL (IN WHICH THE LADY OF THE LAKE RENDERS A FRANK AND OFTEN STARTLING ACCOUNT OF HER WONDROUD LIFE AND TIMES)
STEPHANIE SPINNER
Fantasy YA

Rating: 4 Enchantments

DAMOSEL, is the Lady of the Lake and is approached by Merlin to make a beautiful sword for the future King Arthur, a task that will take years. But she makes the wonderful Excalibur and presents it to the young King almost nine years later, setting off a chain of events that will change things forever.

DAMOSEL wasn't quite what I pictured when I read the jacket blurb. I expected more interaction between Damosel herself and Arthur and the rest of the characters anyone familiar with Arthurian legend would expect, but that wasn't quite the way things were. However, DAMOSEL was a very well written, easily engaging story with a novel twist on things. Most of the story is told through stories told to Damosel or things that happen to Twixt. I have to say I really enjoyed the character of Twixt, the dwarf who Sir Tor rescues from his two evil masters most out of all the characters. Damosel herself was also enjoyable, especially in the early part of the book as she bartered to get the gemstones to make Excalibur and as she shared the Rules that the Lady of the Lake must live by and which Damosel strictly adheres to, which added a nice bit of humor to the story as well.

All in all, DAMOSEL is a very unique read, capturing a side of Camelot I hadn't read before.

Stephanie Spinner is the acclaimed author of many books for young readers. After a distinguished career in children's book publishing, she is now a full-time writer. She lives in Sherman, Connecticut.

Lisa
Enchanting Reviews
March 2009

DAMOSEL, like Stephanie Spinner's other books, offers unusual and illuminating perspectives on a long-ago time. Although her narrators range from the dwarf Twixt to the Damosel herself, the total effect is of absolute authenticity. She makes the marvelous seem real. Even my mother-in-law loved this book!

With two very different narrators alternating -- one, the lady of the lake, can hardly get her head out of the misty clouds, and the other, the unfortunate dwarf Twixt, can hardly pick himself out of the dust -- Spinner weaves an unusual take on Arthurian legend. There are no perfect archetypes here, not even in the magical realm. Every character is terribly flawed, but most are trying their best.

I especially like the specific and believable structure of magic and magical culture in the world Spinner creates. From the seemingly infinite number of "rules" governing the ladies of the lake to the elaborate courtesies exchanged between different magical creatures, the world of the fantastic is as detailed and relatable as the "real" world sequences in the book. Spinner also doesn't shy away from some of the stranger episodes in Arthurian legend, incorporating them into the story on their own terms instead of trying to explain away their strangeness or whitewash them.

Arthur's story has a tragic trajectory, but the road to the inevitable is peppered with charming, funny, and moving episodes in the life of both the lady of the lake and Twixt. Highly recommended, especially for fans of Arthurian legend who are looking for a new take on the world.

Damosel is a retelling of the legends of King Arthur, from the perspectives of the Lady of the Lake, Damosel, and a dwarf named Twixt, who serves at Camelot as court jester. Damosel follows all the rules required of Ladies and lives a fairly quiet life in her Lake. When Merlin seeks her out to craft Exaclibur, it begins a series of events that will lead to Arthur's rule, Merlin's entrapment, and plots to overthrow the king.

I've never been all that into reading Arthurian legend. I just don't get the appeal. I do like retold fairy tales and myths, though, so this story intrigued me. Hearing Damosel's perspective on Arthur, Merlin, and Camelot is interesting and may appeal to others who have had trouble latching onto stories of King Arthur. That said, the book seems to assume you already have some familiarity with the stories, giving readers a very minimal explanation of characters and events.

I enjoyed the first half of the book, where Damosel is trading for materials and crafting Excalibur, or speaking with her cousin Nimue about Camelot and Merlin. Stephanie Spinner spends this time developing Damosel and presents us with that alternative point of view we expect in this premise. However, the moment that she meets and falls for the knight Pelleas, the plot becomes painfully slow. All of the action that's been built up, the promised conflicts, they either evaporate or take place off the page. The ending felt sudden - but I feel that way about all version of King Arthur's story... except perhaps the King Arthur and the Knights of Justice comics!

Twixt's parts are enjoyable and do indeed give you a unique perspective. Who doesn't love to hear from the court's fool? I was disappointed that in the summary of the many characters, we didn't hear anything about what happened to Sir Tor... did I just miss if he was killed?

Damosel plays by the rules.

The Lady of the Lake creates the sword Excalibur for Merlin's new champion. Damosel doesn't like crowds, so when she receives an invitation to Camelot, she sends her cousin, Nimue, instead.

Nimue craves power and she finds herself drawn to Merlin. When Merlin teaches her a powerful spell, she traps him in a cave with magic.

With Merlin out of the picture, Camelot could be in serious danger. Damosel finds Merlin and promises him to watch over Arthur and guide his decisions. Unfortunately, she finds Pelleas, a heartbroken knight. When she heals him, she falls in love with him. All other thoughts, including her promise to Merlin, fly out of her head. She doesn't realize that while they become content in their lives together, Camelot's falling.

Can she stop the fall of a kingdom?

With DAMOSEL, Stephanie Spinner pens a unique tale of the Arthurian Legend from the Lady of the Lake's point of view.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Rummel