A review by swordsandsapphics
Spear by Nicola Griffith
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Retellings are my bread and butter, but I’m usually wary of Arthurian retellings. They seem notoriously difficult to get right, because most authors I see basically write bland Merlin (the show) fanfiction with magic people being oppressed or something. But Spear goes back to what makes the legend of King Arthur so great in the first place, tapping into its timelessness while also breathing fresh life into it.
It helps that the protagonist isn’t Arthur or Guinevere or Merlin. It’s Peretur, aka Sir Percival reimagined as a woman who disguises herself as a man, receives renown for her heroics, and wins over quite a few ladies in the process. She felt a lot like a classic fantasy hero setting off into the unknown, but she also felt human. And I have to say, I like what Griffith did with the other Arthurian characters:
On the classic fantasy vibes: that’s definitely what this book felt like. Classic fantasy. The writing is gorgeous and I almost wish I picked up a library book to savor it more, but in the end I think listening to it on audio was the best choice because it felt like the author was telling me an old folk tale. (Literally — the author narrates it. Love it when that shit happens.)
Also, the depth of Griffith’s research is impressive. I love it when fantasy is somewhat grounded in historical settings and she did an excellent job bringing early medieval Britain to life. Her author’s note, man — was she showboating? Yeah. But as far as I’m concerned, she earned the right to showboat, damn it.
This was solid. Quite solid, in my opinion. It’s a novella — or a very, very short novel, it straddles the line between those categories tbh — but I’d still recommend taking your time with it because the experience is pretty magical.
It helps that the protagonist isn’t Arthur or Guinevere or Merlin. It’s Peretur, aka Sir Percival reimagined as a woman who disguises herself as a man, receives renown for her heroics, and wins over quite a few ladies in the process. She felt a lot like a classic fantasy hero setting off into the unknown, but she also felt human. And I have to say, I like what Griffith did with the other Arthurian characters:
Spoiler
casting Nimue as Peretur’s endgame love interest was, frankly, an inspired choice. And Artos, Lance, and Gwen being a poly triad? THAT IS GENIUS!On the classic fantasy vibes: that’s definitely what this book felt like. Classic fantasy. The writing is gorgeous and I almost wish I picked up a library book to savor it more, but in the end I think listening to it on audio was the best choice because it felt like the author was telling me an old folk tale. (Literally — the author narrates it. Love it when that shit happens.)
Also, the depth of Griffith’s research is impressive. I love it when fantasy is somewhat grounded in historical settings and she did an excellent job bringing early medieval Britain to life. Her author’s note, man — was she showboating? Yeah. But as far as I’m concerned, she earned the right to showboat, damn it.
This was solid. Quite solid, in my opinion. It’s a novella — or a very, very short novel, it straddles the line between those categories tbh — but I’d still recommend taking your time with it because the experience is pretty magical.