Customer Reviews

Kingdom of the Grail

Kingdom of the Grail is a large novel which attempts to give a realistic look at medieval life while maintaining a sense of fantasy through the romance of love realized but never attained. The book paints a vivid, though internally inconsistent, picture of life in a medieval castle in Wales. The conflicts between church and state and glorified and glamorized by the author, but reflect the turmoil of the times.

In a tale of plot and counter-plot the author spins a story which keeps the reader interested in the next move. Rachel Tibbon, the heroin, is portrayed as a richly developed character who undergoes dramatic changes in life and lifestyle over the course of the book. Her foil, Guy Lanfranc, emphasizes both her character flaws and character stengths as both vie with one another for control of the castle and lands in the barrony.

Traditional concepts of chivalry are invoked throughout the book and the concept of loyalty is examined from many angles. Honesty is exemplified and voided by the very character of the Heroin creating a constantly shifting background for the story. Chastity is both flaunted and upheld by characters in the book for a variety of reasons all well presented and well thought out. In general, the book provides new and interesting insights into the trials and tribulations of attempting to live out the chivalric code.

This book is a fun read and is occasionally engaging enough to make it hard to put the book down. Internal inconsistencies in the way medieval life is presented and character motivations are flaws which make the read seem to occasionally stutter despite the beautiful images evoked by the author. The prose is pleasant and the imagry is frequently poetic which rescue the book more than once.

I would recommend this book for a fun read, sort of a beach book, but without the dramatic literary impact claimed on the dustjacket. <BR

The author's research is impeccable, his writing style is more than competent, and as an artist, his message is quite clear. I suppose it is the latter that I have a problem with. He is clearly a cynical atheist at heart, and I'm not. I suppose that's a matter of opinion, so I gave the book a four-star rating as opposed to the lower one I had originally intended to give.

The book left me feeling bereft, as was, no doubt, the author's intention. ;-) It doesn't make me want to run out, though, and buy more of same.