I have probably forgotten more Arthurian novels than I can count, so while I know there are dozens if not hundreds out there, and I’ve read a fair number of them, I’ve tried to pick the novels that have remained in my head for years, and those I see as extremely significant in shaping the legend in new ways even if I didn’t particularly enjoy them. Placing them in an appropriate order was also difficult. I’d be interested in hearing from readers whether they feel I left any significant books off the list or if they feel I should have placed them in a different order since I spent many hours debating this list and most I think could be considered classics of modern Arthurian fiction today, or at least of significant influence.
10. The Coming of the King (1988) by Nikolai Tolstoy. This book was supposed to be the first in a trilogy of books about Merlin, but Tolstoy never published the rest of the series, or wrote it perhaps. And admittedly, it was not a well-written or engaging novel, but Tolstoy did a superb job at trying to recreate the Welsh world that Merlin and Arthur would have lived within. He was obviously influenced by The Mabinogion, and is one of the few novelists who has used those most ancient of Arthurian legends as his primary source. It is worth a read for that reason alone and hopefully future novelists will come along to give us authentic feeling Welsh Arthurian worlds in the future.
9. The Once and Future King (1958) by T.H. White. I’ve always felt this novel was highly overrated and its writing style less than engaging, but it’s influence on the great musical Camelot which in turn inspired John F. Kennedy and is my all-time favorite film and musical makes it worth mentioning. Its merits lie in its humor, its fantasy, and its presentation of Arthur as a child, which also inspired Disney’s The Sword in the Stone. White is also the first novelist to suggest homosexual attraction as having a role in the legend, particularly in the Arthur/Guinevere/Lancelot triangle.
8. King Arthur’s Daughter (1978) by Vera Chapman. I believe this was the first novel where a child of Arthur, and a girl at that, plays a significant role in the storyline. Many other novels of Arthur’s children, and especially daughters, would follow and other novels suggesting that Arthur’s descendants live to the present day. This young adult novel is engaging and fun for all ages.
7. The Road to Avalon (1989) by Joan Wolf. Contains a love story between Arthur and Morgan, but also, it contains an interesting twist on the Fall of Camelot. Overall, this was one I couldn’t put down and thoroughly enjoyed. It’s historical and fast-paced and has an interesting take on Mordred and Constantine.
6. Merlin Novels (1970-1983) by Mary Stewart. More than any other novelist, Mary Stewart brought Arthurian fiction into fashion. Her three Merlin novels (The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills, and The Last Enchantment) and The Wicked Day about Camelot’s Fall were a wonderful historical rendering of Arthurian times told from Merlin’s point of view. I read these books as a teenager twenty-five years ago, and there are scenes from them that are still vivid in my head. I reread very few books, but these would definitely be books to read time and again. (But avoid Stewart’s later pseudo-Arthurian novel The Prince and the Pilgrim (1995)—boring.)
5. The Pendragon Cycle (1987-1989) by Stephen Lawhead. The first three novels of this series Taliesin, Merlin, and Arthur are phenomenal books—I read all three in a week. Lawhead’s other three novels are a bit disappointing but don’t miss the beginning of the series. They begin in Atlantis and then follow characters to Britain and build toward the reign of King Arthur. The story is engaging and captivating throughout. Other novelists have also linked the Arthurian legend to Avalon, but none in such an entertaining and complete way.
4. The Camulod Chronicles (1992-2000) by Jack Whyte. Whyte went farther than any other novelist in trying to recreate the Roman world in the decades before King Arthur. He depicts how Camelot was founded by Arthur’s ancestors in the time when the Romans were departing and brings the story up to Arthur’s birth. I could not put these books down and read each one—they’re all around 500 or more pages, within a few days. There are six novels altogether, but Whyte also wrote Uther, and the two Golden Eagle novels about Lancelot, which were disappointing by comparison.
3. Sword at Sunset (1963) by Rosemary Sutcliff. This book is the grandmother of modern Arthurian fiction. It is the first historical treatment of the Arthurian legend depicting King Arthur not as a fantasy figure but trying to place him in his historical context as a war leader. I found the book rather boring, actually, but many people have enjoyed it and its importance cannot be denied. Sutcliff was also the first novelist to create a child other than Mordred for Arthur (a daughter actually, even predating King Arthur’s Daughter, although the daughter dies as an infant).
2. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889) by Mark Twain. I’m not a huge Mark Twain fan, but this book is brilliantly written. In my opinion it leaves Huckleberry Finn in the dust. It is one of the first “time travel” novels in literature while also serving as a social commentary on nineteenth century America. More than any other Arthurian work, it has been retold in plays and films and spinoffs. But while many of the versions of it, ranging from Spacemen to baseball playing boys in King Arthur’s court are silly, the book itself is fascinating. Hank Morgan is truly one of the great characters of literature.
1. The Mists of Avalon (1982) by Marion Zimmer Bradley. No doubt, The Mists of Avalon is the best known modern Arthurian novel but it is fully deserving of that designation. Bradley took the legend to new lengths by retelling the story from the woman’s point of view and introducing the Celtic religion and its aspects into the novel to an extent not previously done in Arthurian fiction. As a novelist myself, this book had a huge impact on me, both in my writing and my spiritual beliefs. It’s one of those books that stays with you for life, and it may well be my all-time favorite novel.
Remember, I would love to hear about your favorite Arthurian novels!
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Tyler R. Tichelaar, Ph.D. is the author of King Arthur’s Children: A Study in Fiction and Tradition, available at www.ChildrenofArthur.com
Nice to finally find a fellow lover of Arthurian legend!
The Mists of Avalon is certainly my favorite Arthurian legend novel and it’s in my top 10 (#10 to be exact) of my all-time favorite books. And I also had a profound spiritual awakening because of it. Avalon will be forever part of my heart and soul thanks to the world Bradley opened up for me.
It’s also the book that inspired me to write my own Arthurian trilogy, focusing on the one character notably absent from your summaries (and little paid attention in Arthurian legend overall), Guinevere. I really disliked Bradley’s treatment of her and so aim to give her a chance to tell her own story through my work. If it was already published, I’d suggest you read it, but since I’m not quite there yet, all I can do is recommend my site: nicolealexanderauthor.com.
I also kind of liked Parke Godwin’s Beloved Exile. The storyline was hard to swallow, but it got me thinking about what happened to Guinevere after the fall of Camelot, something you don’t hear much about.
Hi Nicole,
Thank you for the comment and best of luck with your own trilogy. Please let me know when it becomes available. If I had made a top twenty list, then “Beloved Exile” would have been on it. I definitely like that Godwin strayed from the usual story of Guinevere going to a nunnery and instead offered a very interesting alternative for her. There are a lot of other Guinevere novels out there, so in a top twenty list, I might also have included Nancy McKenzie’s The Child Queen and the High Queen.
Your description of how The Mists of Avalon affected you describes my own response to it.
Thanks for reading!
Tyler
I’m very surprised that The Once and Future King is so high on the the list. And where is Le Morte D’Arthur?
Hi Christie,
I’m not a big fan of “The Once and Future King” myself. I think it rather silly, personally, but in making a top ten list, I had to consider a work’s popularity and influence and since everyone seems to have read it and it resulted in some films and plays, I felt the need to include it.
As for Le Morte D’Arthur, that’s not really a “novel.” Dates are arguable, but the first novel is generally considered to be Samuel Richardson’s “Pamela” published in 1740 which the Le Morte D’Arthur precedes by centuries. That said, it is a fabulous book, reads like a novel in many ways, and might well be the greatest Arthurian work ever written. It is definitely my favorite of the medieval works.
Thanks for the reply. I see what you mean about Le Morte. But I love how T.H. White elbow-pokes anyone who has read Malory in “The Once and Future King”! Anyway, I’m even more surprised that Bradley’s “Mists of Avalon” is number one – is that also judged on popularity and influence?
Well, it is my list and Mists is my favorite novel. It had the biggest influence on me, and it has had a huge influence on all that novels that have followed it. That said, I also think it’s a wonderful novel, and it has been very popular besides. I think if we polled all the people in the world on which Arthurian novels they read, Mists would most likely be the most read, although The Once and Future King might be close.
This just confirms my growing knowledge that I have to read Mists of Avalon, though I have been avoiding it for a long time because I suspect it is feminist.
It is feminist, but I wouldn’t hold that against it Christie. It was a huge influence on many Arthurian novels that have followed. I think it really opened up the possibilities for seeing the story from various angles.
Have you read The Dragon and the Unicorn by A.A Attanasio? It’s more of a reconstruction of Arthur’s life as he lived it than anything. The best thing about this book is that it’s captivating. It really takes you away from earth. The characters are vividly realized, the writing style is simply awesome, and the story itself is fantastic. It’s a quadrology and I recommend reading at least the first one.
Thanks for the comment, Rob. No, I haven’t read that one. I’ll have to add it to my list. Thanks for the recommendation.
I love Mary Stewart’s Merlin trilogy, and The Mists of Avalon, but one of my favorite Arthurian novels is The Winter Prince, by Elizabeth E. Wein. It gives Arthur two sons (and a daughter), the illegitimate Medraut and the legitimate Lleu, and puts them on a crash course, spurred on, naturally, by Morgause. It’s a fascinating, claustrophobic novel – not long, but intense.
Thanks for the post, Maggie. The Winter Prince is a fabulous and intense novel and the sequels that take the story to Africa are fascinating to me – I talk about all of them in my book King Arthur’s Children. If I had a top 20 list The Winter Prince would have been included.
Enjoyed your list – I’ve read many of the books on it (I think “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court” is brilliant, and I agree with the assessment that “The Once and Future King” is overrated). Another Arthur series you may enjoy is Bernard Cornwell’s – “The Winter King” is the first in the trilogy.
Thanks for the comment, Charlie. Bernard Cornwell’s books are very good and I did discuss them in my book “King Arthur’s Children.” They would have been on my top 20 list for sure.
The Mists of Avalon was without a doubt one of the influential of novels in the Arthurian ‘stable’ well written, absorbing, controversially feminist and one of two writers that changed my life and how I view the world of paganism. It led me down a path that once trod – no going back. To Marion Zimmer Bradley I owe my fealty as a woman of vision and a woman that gave me a new life that it well – full!
Thanks for the comment, Stephanie. I imagine The Mists of Avalon changed a lot of people’s ways of thinking about both the Arthurian legend and religion. I know it did for me. Glad you shared your story.
Wonderful opinions going on here. Glad to stumble upon this site! I was wondering if you had an opinion on Deepak Chopra’s “The Return of Merlin”. I picked it up on a whim but haven’t had a chance to read it yet. Thanks
Hi Rob,
Thanks for the comment. It’s been I think 18 years since I read Deepak Chopra’s The Return to Merlin. I was not crazy about it. If his reputation rested on that book, well, he wouldn’t have a reputation. The part in the back explaining what we were to learn from the characters were a stretch in my opinion. I’d give the book a C – it’s kind of humdrum and forgettable I’m afraid, but you might like it. Everyone’s opinions are different.
Thanks for reading my blog.
Tyler
Good to know. At least I only paid 50 cents for it. I have just started The Mists of Avalon today (partly due to your recommendation) and I can’t believe I’m just now getting to it. Your comments were several needles that finally broke the camels back. I also just noticed a recent release of Tolkien’s called “The Fall of Arthur” which was an abandoned long narrative poem that I assume Christopher Tolkien brought to surface. I’m looking forward to checking that out since I have his version of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
I’m glad I could be of help, Rob. I plan to read the Tolkien poem too when I get a chance. Too many books! Too little time!
I know this is an old post! Just wondering if you had read Idylls of the Queen too?
My favourite novels are 😀
01. Idylls of the Queen (Phyllis Ann Karr)
02. The Winter Prince (Elizabeth Wein)
03. Exiled from Camelot (Cherith Baldry)
04. Corbenic (Catherine Fisher)
05. Sword at Sunset (Rosemary Sutcliff)
06. Road to Avalon (Joan Wolf)
07. Squire’s Tales (Gerald Morris)
08. Persia Wolley’s Guinevere trilogy
09. I am Morgan le Fay (Nancy Springer)
10. Here Lies Arthur (Philip Reeve)
Also I can’t wait to manage to buy your new book! I love Arthur’s children, all of them!
Thanks for the comment. No, I haven’t read Idylls of the Queen. I’ll have to check it out since you recommend it so highly. I’ve read most of the others. I really did love The Winter Prince and also Road to Avalon. Wish I had time to read them all but I don’t think I’ll ever catch up!
Idylls of the Queen is truly good!
Haha, I know what you mean. I am on a mission to try to read as many arthurian novels as possible. I listed on tumblr more than 400 titles so it’ll be hard!
I’ve noticed this thread gaining some recent attention and wanted to insert a query. I haven’t read too many Arthurian novels but I am presently enjoying Mists of Avalon as well as The Once and Future King very much.
I would like to know if anyone could recommend a solid novel with a strong supernatural tone. I’m just curious if there is anything worth reading that would fall between Bram Stoker and J.R. Tolkien in the long line of Arthurian novels. I am a big Clive Barker fan as well, but I don’t expect for him to be turning out such a thing anytime soon. I have also tried to read Game of Thrones but was turned off by the depravity and violence, go figure. Any comments are greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Thanks for the comment, Rob. I’m sure there must be some with a supernatural bent, although none come to mind at the moment. Stay tuned for my novel Lilith’s Love: The Children of Arthur, Book Four, which should be out in a couple of years – it ties Dracula to the Arthurian legend. But I have to get books 2 and 3 out first I’m afraid.
I’m intrigued! That sounds very interesting and even fitting since Bram Stoker was deeply interested in the legend of Arthur. He supposedly based the hero and supporting characters of Dracula on the knights of the round table and hosted many Arthurian dramas at his Lyceum theater. It seems as if he thought of Dracula and his immortality as a shadow aspect of the holy grail. Anyway, I will definitely put your novels on my reading list and look forward to what’s in store. Thanks again.
Thanks, Rob. Yes, I know a lot about Stoker and his interests and origins for Dracula. If you like the supernatural, you might also check out my book The Gothic Wanderer: From Transgression to Redemption about the Gothic literary tradition. More info at my other website http://www.GothicWanderer.com
If you come across any good supernatural Arthurian novels, please report back.
Thanks for the interesting, informative and easy to read list! I have been reading Arthurian fiction(s) for years and am always on the look out for new reads and reviews.
This link is to a lengthy Arthurian reading list. It includes historical fiction, sci-fi, fantasy, romance, graphic, YA, collections. Several sections are also divided by series vs singles. I’m happy to share it in hopes it introduces a treasure trove of more new reading.
http://1mpages.com/ArthurianLiterature.html
Thanks for the link. I’m always looking for more Arthurian books to read and it’s hard to keep up to date on them all. I’ll add a link to it on my website at http://www.ChildrenofArthur.com too when I get a chance. And I’m honored to see you included my novels on the list. Watch for the second in my series, “Melusine’s Gift,” this coming spring.
YOU’RE MISSING NANCY MACKENZIE! ONE OF THE GREATEST AUTHORS OF ARTHURIAN FICTION OF ALL TIME!
You’re right. I loved her books. If I had a top 20 list, she’d definitely have made it.
I am on the hunt for a book I probably read 15 or 20 years ago and loved it. It is set in NYC–20th C. There is a time travel portal and a bunch of round table knights come through the portal and a bad guy is chasing them. I think the portal is in a young woman’s apartment. ??? I have sifted through every website that is remotely related to the Knights of the Round Table and cannot come up with a title. Can you help me?
Hi Patty,
I wish I could help but I’m afraid that one doesn’t ring any bells for me, and there are so many Arthurian novels it’s impossible to read them all. If you haven’t already, try the list of 20th century Arthurian lit at wikpedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibliography_of_King_Arthur#21st_century – let me know what book it is if you do find it. Some of my other readers might be interested.
Thanks,
Tyler