Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Driven apart by merciless currents of fate, Arthur and Lance soon find out how much colder the world is to each of them without the other’s love. And Arthur has a fight for the kingdom on his hands, not to mention his struggle to make sense of his marriage to Queen Guenyvre.

For Lance, the loss of his king is too much. On the journey to Camelet, his inner demons overtake him – demons that flourish in the lonely moorland nights, and drive him into the trackless wastes of the Forest Wild.

But the Forest is a place of healing as well as madness and grief. After a battle that costs him his dearest blood, Arthur too takes refuge there.

Can the ancient magic of the Greenwood restore Lance and Arthur to their rightful companionship? With Lance at his side, will Arthur begin to understand his destiny as Britannia’s once and future king?

Book Review

“... There's a place for us. A time and place for us. Hold my hand and we're halfway there. Hold my hand and I'll take you there. Somehow Someday Somewhere.” ~ Westside Story (Somewhere)

Although it breaks both of their hearts, Arthur, of 'The Greenwood and the Grail' by Harper Fox, sends Lance away to quell the rumors of him and Guinyvere. Arthur sends Lance to Camelet to wait for his arrival. Lance resents the “escorts” who are in truth, guards, making sure he goes to Camelet and not anywhere else. Lance puts up with it for a while, but cannot bear the thought of being treated like a prisoner especially by his beloved king. When Lance sees an opportunity to escape, he does; he doesn't know where he will go or what he will do.

As Lance rides along to Camelet, he tries to make sense of recent events. Being apart from Arthur, particularly being sent away by his beloved, is so gut-wrenching, that Lance can hardly breathe. He tries his best to understand the situation, but his heart refuses to accept it. At one moment, Lance sees that Arthur had no other choice; he did what he had to do to preserve his reputation and Guen's. Arthur could not afford any appearance of weakness, particularly when his negotiations to forge alliances is at a critical point. At others, Lance wakes up from vivid dreams of Arthur that make his heart ache and curses his fate. Lance's mind is so tortured, no longer able to bear losing Arthur, that he begins to lose his sanity.

Lance continues to ride with his escort, but becomes more agitated each day. He decides that he has to get away. At his first opportunity, Lance escapes, leaving almost everything behind and begins to wander aimlessly, as he slips deeper into madness; he agonizes about how he has failed not only himself, but to love and support Arthur. When they were younger, Arthur told Lance tales about a wonderful place he imagined where there were endless fields, tall trees, and green meadows where one could luxuriate in peace and love. Lance needs to be in such a place. He takes off his clothes, leaves his horse by a river and dives off a cliff, into what he hopes is freedom from his unrelenting anguish.

Harper has created a masterpiece of legend matched with a surrealistic world, a utopia in which nothing matters but happiness and love that is almost impossible to encapsulate in this review. It's as much the magic of Harper's descriptions of both emotions and sights and sounds as it is the storyline itself.  Since a great deal of the story is told in dream sequences, it is sometimes difficult to decide what was a dream or wasn't. The dreams provided me with information I needed to know about what the other characters were experiencing, either in real life or through the magical sequences. It's a beautifully written story, rich with color, prose, and the universal theme of searching for happiness. Thank you, Harper, for the painfully beautiful continuation of Arthur and Lance's tale.

 

 

 

 

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Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Novel, 160 pages
Heat Level
Publication Date	31-August-2018
Price	$4.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.amazon.com/Greenwood-Grail-Arthur-Quartet-Book-ebook/dp/B07H1BYTY8