Taliesin by Stephen R. Lawhead
Genre – Fantasy, Science fiction, Historical fiction
Series – First book in The Pendragon Cycle
Rating – PG-13 for mild violence & innuendo, peril
Synopsis –
This is the tale of Merlin’s parents. First we meet Charis a daughter of one of the nine kings of Atlantis. Avallach, her father, is a wise and noble king, yet he faces a dilemma with one of the neighboring kings. This king issues a threat to Avallach. Charis is ignorant of the politics going on behind her father’s doors, and she is surprised when this enemy takes away something very important to her. Charis tries to overcome her grieve by becoming a bull dancer. Her troubles still follow her. Until she is faced with a choice: does she leave or stay? Meanwhile in other kingdom we find another king grooming his son, Elphin, to eventually take over. The clan member disagree as Elphin seems to walk into trouble wherever he goes. Until one day Elphin discovers an abandoned baby who brings joy to everyone around him. The baby is called Taliesin.
My Thoughts –
To start I wanted to say I have been so busy lately it has been a bit hard to post as much as I wanted to. I am hoping to do more soon.
And now back to the book 🙂 I really enjoyed this one. While it took me awhile to get through it, (not the books fault) I loved the way the author engages the reader. He writes in a way that draws you in and brings this story to life. I know I have talked a lot about the Arthurian legend, but this one is one of the best versions I have read. Its much better then the Once and Future king which was a bit disjointed. This flowed much smoother. Review for that book here: http://www.pagestoremember.com/2020/06/19/review-for-the-once-and-future-king/
I have to mention the characters who were amazing!! Now in the first section, I cannot say that I liked Charis. She was pretty childish and naive, but she changes and grows up a bit. By the second section, I liked her a lot better! However, the two characters who I loved were Elphin and Taliesin. Elphin starts out an outcast to become a great leader among his people. I totally connected with this character. Taliesin was unique; he grows up too, but even when he is little, he has wisdom beyond his years. There was a side character who I also thought added to the story named Dyfed. He is one of the few believers in the book and brings some much needed changes.
I do want to mention that many of the characters follow a variety of gods/goddesses. The Britons follow the druids with their host of gods while the Atlanteans follow a multitude with Bel being the foremost god. The author depicts what they believe, but not in way that supports it. He shows how these false gods will get you nowhere. Later on he introduces Christians who spread the Gospel. We see how the one true God can bring light to the darkness and peace to someone who is distressed.
For the most part the plot had a pace to it and the climax did not feel rushed. I do have to say that I had an inkling to how it would end, but the author did it in a colorful and fresh way. The way Lawhead writes is lyrical almost. I always wanted to have the next chapter be continue with the same person’s story instead of jumping to the other person. However, I got used to it and just allowed myself to sit back and see where it led.
Language – None, except for one use of the word for donkey (used in that context not as expletive)
Violence – There was a minor amount. A few people are killed with maybe a handful of mentions related to blood. Mostly people who are wounded. A king is stabbed and dies. Reference to wars and battles with Irish/Pict. For the most part all battles are off the page. So we really only see the effects of the battles. Many people die when Atlantis sinks. A boat runs over small fishing boats which kills many people. A character dies from an arrow. A baby is born blue and almost dies, but it brought to life. Also, a women goes into early labor; she bleeds almost passes out. Later on once she has the baby mentions of blood on sheets. Most of this not detailed, just told that it happened in a very matter of fact way.
Innuendo – We have several couples get married. Two references to consummating a marriage. Several kisses, all after the couples are married. A married couple falls asleep together. Also, mentions of a mother nursing her baby or being placed on her breast to feed. (Again just Lawhead mentions it happened, but leaves it at that).
Conclusion –
I truly loved this book!! It has a defined plot line unlike King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. I have read many of Lawhead’s other books and knew I enjoyed his writing style, and was not disappointed. There were so many beautiful sections! Also, we get to see a character’s redemption which was wonderful as we see how utterly lost this character is. I love it when author pull off a convicting and believable conversion. So many times it seems to just be out of the blue. Anyway, I highly recommend this book!! Especially if you enjoy a good fantasy or are looking to step foot in the Arthurian legend. I would probably say teen on up as I can see a middle schooler getting pretty bored. 😉