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chartsh's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
ryner's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
With this fourth installment, Stewart concludes her well-respected and exquisitely-detailed Arthurian Saga. The conclusion was satisfying, if somewhat excruciating in the way knowing impending disaster cannot be avoided can be. I recommended the series as a whole for fans of light fantasy and Arthurian legend.
mbs1236's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I had first some qualms about this book but as soon as I began reading it, I realized I was wrong. Among all the Mary Stewart Arthur Books, this is the one that is most in vein of the classic Arthurian tale as it focuses mainly on Arthur’s Knights through Mordred.
Mordred was a great character and as Stewart herself says in the end, she wrote him as a human whose actions and character make sense as to how he becomes the legendary traitor of the tales.
Morgase and all of the King Lot sons I really hated (except Gareth) and I hated Gawain especially his urgings to Arthur to consider Mordred a traitor.
Finally, the ending and as to how the final battles came just so sad and just left me morose and emotionally spent. An excellent Arthurian book and a great companion piece to the Merlin trilogy as this wraps up the story of Arthur and his kingdom.
Mordred was a great character and as Stewart herself says in the end, she wrote him as a human whose actions and character make sense as to how he becomes the legendary traitor of the tales.
Morgase and all of the King Lot sons I really hated (except Gareth) and I hated Gawain especially his urgings to Arthur to consider Mordred a traitor.
Finally, the ending and as to how the final battles came just so sad and just left me morose and emotionally spent. An excellent Arthurian book and a great companion piece to the Merlin trilogy as this wraps up the story of Arthur and his kingdom.
sepptb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
stranger_song's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
x0pherl's review against another edition
4.0
Given the idea of reconstructing the "real" story from the legends of Arthur, I find it curious that magic played an important part in this series - I wonder what it would have been like if she had taken it one step further and made it a more realistic series.
Of all of the books in the series, this one comes closest to doing that, and was also my favorite of the books. It also stepped away from being told in the voice of Merlin, which probably helped.
Of all of the books in the series, this one comes closest to doing that, and was also my favorite of the books. It also stepped away from being told in the voice of Merlin, which probably helped.
topdragon's review against another edition
5.0
The Wicked Day is the fourth and final book in Mary Stewart's "Arthurian Saga". It's sort of interesting that the first three books are referred to as "The Merlin Trilogy" but when the fourth book is added it becomes "The Arthurian Saga". This time, Ms Stewart applies her considerable talents to the story of Mordred, telling the entire story from his birth, through his growing up, and to its inevitable conclusion.
This has to be one of the most difficult things to do in fiction writing. Take a well established character in one of the most well-known and oft-written epic stories in history, forever acknowledged as the villain of the piece, and craft a story with him as the protagonist. Marion Zimmer Bradley did something very similar in The Mists of Avalon but even then, the character of Morgan isn't, I believe, as universally hated as is Mordred. But I must say, Ms Stewart pulls it off in fine style.
As the protagonist, Mordred's story is told from his point of view and is thus sympathetic towards that point of view. He comes across as a very sympathetic character; I kept pulling for him even as I knew what the ending had to be. In fact, Mordred is well liked, even loved by most of the other characters, and it isn't until near the end that his point of view starts to diverge from Arthur's. There is no "evil" nature to this man; what might be construed as ambition seems very naturally to have arisen from his mother, Morgause, Arthur's half sister and most definitely the real villain in Mary Stewart's saga. And even in the end, it is a mistake, a misunderstanding of what is really happening that leads to Mordred's and Arthur's final battle. I found it very interesting to read the appendix and the Author's note at the end of the book where the "real" legend is briefly retold from the actual text of both Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the King's of England and Sir Thomas Mallory's Le Morte D'Arthur. Apparently, Mordred was not originally presented as a villainous person; that arose later as countless retellings diffused the original versions.
I am very pleased to have read this set of four books. I had always heard that they were among the very best of the modern versions of the Arthurian/Merlin tales and am happy to add my agreement.
This has to be one of the most difficult things to do in fiction writing. Take a well established character in one of the most well-known and oft-written epic stories in history, forever acknowledged as the villain of the piece, and craft a story with him as the protagonist. Marion Zimmer Bradley did something very similar in The Mists of Avalon but even then, the character of Morgan isn't, I believe, as universally hated as is Mordred. But I must say, Ms Stewart pulls it off in fine style.
As the protagonist, Mordred's story is told from his point of view and is thus sympathetic towards that point of view. He comes across as a very sympathetic character; I kept pulling for him even as I knew what the ending had to be. In fact, Mordred is well liked, even loved by most of the other characters, and it isn't until near the end that his point of view starts to diverge from Arthur's. There is no "evil" nature to this man; what might be construed as ambition seems very naturally to have arisen from his mother, Morgause, Arthur's half sister and most definitely the real villain in Mary Stewart's saga. And even in the end, it is a mistake, a misunderstanding of what is really happening that leads to Mordred's and Arthur's final battle. I found it very interesting to read the appendix and the Author's note at the end of the book where the "real" legend is briefly retold from the actual text of both Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the King's of England and Sir Thomas Mallory's Le Morte D'Arthur. Apparently, Mordred was not originally presented as a villainous person; that arose later as countless retellings diffused the original versions.
I am very pleased to have read this set of four books. I had always heard that they were among the very best of the modern versions of the Arthurian/Merlin tales and am happy to add my agreement.
coco_lolo's review against another edition
2.0
I already knew The Wicked Day wouldn't have the same magic as the original trilogy. So why am I disappointed? Because the first half of the book was really enjoyable. I liked seeing Mordred in his youth as he navigated different courts and powers and tried to keep hidden his ambitions for greatness. Stewart did something incredible with him: her Mordred isn't a villain but a human man who's doing the best he can. Where the book lost me was the amount of time it covered, because there's so much we don't see, whether that be regarding aspects of the myths or character development. The Orkney princes had little depth, as did the few female characters (honestly, Stewart's depiction of women here was the worst in the series). The quest for the Holy Grail, which was built up in the previous book, never came to fruition, and some of the conflicts that took place (such as the abduction of Elen) I could have done without; instead, why not use the space to further explore Arthur and Mordred's relationship?
octophile's review against another edition
4.0
Extremely well-written, detailed, and realistic. It's clear that Stewart has a lot of love for and knowledge of the setting and legend. But like with the Merlin trilogy, this one kind of dragged in places. My biggest issue with this saga is that there's a lot of anticipation, with characters, and issues, and events, but the payoff is minimal.
I was going to give this three stars until I came to the last twenty pages or so. Great stuff.
I was going to give this three stars until I came to the last twenty pages or so. Great stuff.
heather_boo's review against another edition
5.0
What an epic series! Start to finish it read so consistently and beautifully. What I love the most about the series (in addition to the writing) is the rendering of Merlin not as a fire throwing wizard in a pointy velvet hat, but rather a fragile man, and an introvert with many flaws. Book four is more focused on Arthur and Mordred, but one can’t help always feeling Merlin in the background, and of course we must see if his prophecy comes to fruition.