A review by coco_lolo
The Wicked Day by Mary Stewart

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?