Raised in the tranquil beauty of the Summer Country, Princess Guenevere has had a charmed and contented life until the sudden, violent death of her mother, Queen Maire, leaves the Summer Country teetering on the brink of anarchy.
Only the miraculous arrival of Arthur, heir to the Pendragon dynasty, allows Guenevere to claim her mother's throne. Smitten by the bold, sensuous princess, Arthur offers to marry her and unite their territories, while still allowing her to rule in her own right. Their love match creates the largest and most powerful kingdom in the isles.
Arthur's glorious rule begins to crumble, however, when he is reunited with his mother and his long-lost half-sisters, Morgause and Morgan. Before Arthur's birth, his father - the savage and unscrupulous King Uther - banished his wife's young daughters, selling Morgause into a cruel marriage and imprisoning Morgan in a far-off convent. Both daughters have reason to avenge their suffering, but only one will strike the deadliest blows against the King and Queen, using her evil enchantments to destroy all Guenevere holds dear.
When the Queen flees to Avalon, even her marriage with Arthur comes under threat.
In the chaos that follows, a new young knight comes to Arthur's court to offer his services to the Queen. Her loyalty to Arthur betrayed, Guenevere falls in love with Lancelot, a love that may spell ruin for Camelot.
Passionate, wise, courageous, Guenevere is a true heroine for past times and our own.
Reviews
'A vivid tale from an acclaimed novelist and historian that brings to life a legendary woman's most glorious time' - Publishers' News.
'Has it been done before? And if not, why not? The sheer inspiration of telling the Arthurian legend from Guenevere's point of view could of course have come a cropper in the wrong hands. But Miles, an acclaimed historian and author of The Women's History of the World, is the perfect custodian for this most resonant of tales.
This first entry in a highly promising trilogy is packed with fascinating, unfamiliar detail. Such is Miles's skill in foregrounding her heroine as a fully-rounded, compelling protagonist, that the reader is already anticipating the next volume in this heroic venture' - Publishing News.
'A marvellous story, which until now, has focused almost entirely on the king' - The Scotsman.
'Should appeal to the book-buying army of Arthurian fans. We've all seen Camelot, all read the childhood versions, but there's so much more to it than that. There is, Miles says, a kind of melancholy wisdom in the story of how Arthur and Guenevere fused their life and love, their aspirations and their kingdoms... a great story, full of political and romantic passion' - Booksellers' Choice.
'A celebration of womanhood... in the older Celtic version of the tale, women were seen as powerful. The Queen chose her King, who would become the father of her children, but every year she had the right to choose a champion too. This page-turning reassessment has produced a provocative novel which overturns popular preconceptions about Camelot' - The Sunday Express.