The tales of King Arthur and Camelot have been told for almost 1,500 years, with almost as many variations as authors and stories. Most, however, have dealt with Arthur's modest upbringing and rise to the throne (a la The Sword and the Stone), the heyday of the Round Table and the feats of its knights (Gawain and the Green Knight), and/or the quest for the Holy Grail (for example, Monty Python and the Holy Grail). Grossman's book, however, focuses on the days after Arthur's downfall, after Lancelot and Guinevere have brought disgrace to Camelot, and after Arthur and his illegitimate son Mordred have killed each other.
The Bright Sword finds would-be knight Collum arriving at Camelot just in time to learn of the death of Arthur from the ragtag handful of Round Table knights who remain alive. These are not the particularly great, godly, or even good knights, but the ones who survived. Without a leader or structure, they have no idea what to do to find a new king, and it's only after a lot of faffing about (albeit entertaining faffing about) that they figure out what their aim should be.
There are a few whiplash moments in this book (brought on by a chapter suddenly being set years before the previous chapter), but altogether, this story of the leftovers is an excellent modern addition to Arthuriana. Highly recommended.
*This book will be published July 16, 2024.
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