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I, Morgana
You know my name, but you don’t know my story …
After being schooled in magic by Merlin and promised a kingdom, Morgana is robbed of her birthright and betrayed by everyone she has ever trusted. Risking everything for revenge, Morgana uses her magical arts to trap Merlin, threaten her half-brother King Arthur, and turn away the only man she will ever love. In destroying King Arthur and Camelot, Morgana sets into motion a catastrophe that can only be reversed if she can learn from the past in time to protect our future … and so fulfill an ancient prophecy.
In the tradition of The Mists of Avalon comes a new story of Morgan le Fay, one of the most enigmatic and reviled characters in Arthurian legend.
After being schooled in magic by Merlin and promised a kingdom, Morgana is robbed of her birthright and betrayed by everyone she has ever trusted. Risking everything for revenge, Morgana uses her magical arts to trap Merlin, threaten her half-brother King Arthur, and turn away the only man she will ever love. In destroying King Arthur and Camelot, Morgana sets into motion a catastrophe that can only be reversed if she can learn from the past in time to protect our future … and so fulfill an ancient prophecy.
In the tradition of The Mists of Avalon comes a new story of Morgan le Fay, one of the most enigmatic and reviled characters in Arthurian legend.
174 pages, ebook
First published June 26, 2014
About the author
Felicity Pulman
37 books71 followersI grew up (a long time ago!) in a small bush town in Africa. No TV, iPods, computer games and surfing the internet – you could say I had a very deprived childhood! Not so. Instead, for entertainment I learned to read. Books became my windows to the world: they told me about dragons and fairies and magic. They told me about other countries and other cultures. They told me about myself. And I have never stopped reading, because I love stories.
I guess I always did things back to front – the hard way! In Africa, when I ran out of books to read, I wrote my own. I love writing stories, but I never thought about it as a grownup occupation. As a grownup, I had to go back to school to find out that I really was a writer. After doing the HSC at the age of 40, I went on to do a BA (Communications) degree at UTS. My major was creative writing, and suddenly I found myself experimenting with all sorts of genres and, in particular, writing the sorts of stories that I love to read – crime and timeslip fantasy back into the past.
I guess I always did things back to front – the hard way! In Africa, when I ran out of books to read, I wrote my own. I love writing stories, but I never thought about it as a grownup occupation. As a grownup, I had to go back to school to find out that I really was a writer. After doing the HSC at the age of 40, I went on to do a BA (Communications) degree at UTS. My major was creative writing, and suddenly I found myself experimenting with all sorts of genres and, in particular, writing the sorts of stories that I love to read – crime and timeslip fantasy back into the past.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
June 7, 2014
Arthurian myth has always fascinated me. I took a lit class a few years ago dedicated to all things Arthur. It was a great class, but by the time we had finished we had read nearly 50 different re-tellings of the Arthurian legends. This book is my first foray back to the land of Camelot, and it did not disappoint. It took some of the most interesting stories about Arthur and Morgana and wove them into a wonderfully complex and intricate story. Morgana is always seen as a disruptive character, but in this book I felt like I knew her more intimately than before. This Morgana has feelings and motivations of a real person. The more I read, the more she came alive. I know I have read a good book when I am sad to leave behind the world and characters that I have been reading about. This book left such an impression on me that I am anxious to read more, but know that there is no more. I will definitely be looking up this author's YA books.
September 5, 2020
First of all, the book is written in present tense, which I feel always puts a book at a disadvantage as few writers can pull off writing present tense without slipping tenses and it's very difficult, at least for me, to engage with a story written in present tense. There is good reason why novels are traditionally written in past tense with very few exceptions.
Moving past that, the book starts out well in the Prologue with Morgana speaking in first person in her old age, making references to events of the past. She proceeds to tell her story, starting in childhood in the first chapter as Merlin teaches her basic shapeshifting and other magic.
Various accepted points of Arthurian legend are recapped through the story, but in this version Morgana is to rule Cornwall and she has the support of Merlin himself.
As we get to know Morgana, we learn of her strengths and resentments. There is rather a lot of resentment for her brother, Arthur, in particular. She has a maternal sort of love for her baby brother until he gets a little older and begins to join in her lessons with Merlin.
Morgan feels that she is better and brighter than Arthur and just about everybody else, and she has a strong sense of entitlement. Merlin teaches her about tree lore and herbs and early on in the story it already seems unrealistic in that Morgana doesn't seem to accept the role of a girl, which in that time would be more than unusual.
Morgause comes into play as a younger sister. I've only seen her before in the Mary Stewart books, which seem to split the role of the legendary Morgan LeFay between Morgause and a younger sister called Morgian. There were also several characters which had been initited into the body of Arthurian literature by other modern writers, though Pullman does add two of her own.
I, Morgana paints Arthur as ambitious and resentful towards Morgana. As he grows into older childhood, he seems bratty and determined to take Morgana's birthright from her. He is not like the legendary benevolent Arthur of legend at all. The story depicts the famous incident of the sword in the stone, using the classical sequence of events, but as a trick of Merlin to get the petty kings to accept Arthur as king of all Britain.
I found it difficult to like Morgana. She travels the country raising support for her claim and feels herself continually belittled for being a woman, but overall she seems to be bitter and resentful all the time with no redeeming value to make her an attractive choice for ruler of Cornwall, never mind all of Britain. I found her disappointing, considering that Morgan LeFay is a character that I've found very interesting in the context of Arthurian legends for most of my reading life.
The story is written with a style of telling that is mostly Morgan's internal thoughts. There is no real action and limited dialogue.
To her credit she does show maternal love for her child, Mordred, but was cold about his conception and much of what she does is motivated by hate and resentment. The biggest problem that I had with this book is that *all* of the characters seem to be self-serving and resentful. Even Lancelot is a cad and displays some very unchivilrous behavior. Mordred, of course, is a complete monster. Guenevere is quite the harpy too.
Apart from being written in present tense, the writing is generally good. There is one fairly graphic sex scene, which I felt was unnecessary in a book that is not erotica. The plot meandered a lot in the second half and seemed to be trying to get all the characters that have ever been written into Arthurian stories in for a mention. Overall it was a fairly disappointing treatment of a character from the Arthurian legends that I thought could have been done much better.
Moving past that, the book starts out well in the Prologue with Morgana speaking in first person in her old age, making references to events of the past. She proceeds to tell her story, starting in childhood in the first chapter as Merlin teaches her basic shapeshifting and other magic.
Various accepted points of Arthurian legend are recapped through the story, but in this version Morgana is to rule Cornwall and she has the support of Merlin himself.
As we get to know Morgana, we learn of her strengths and resentments. There is rather a lot of resentment for her brother, Arthur, in particular. She has a maternal sort of love for her baby brother until he gets a little older and begins to join in her lessons with Merlin.
Morgan feels that she is better and brighter than Arthur and just about everybody else, and she has a strong sense of entitlement. Merlin teaches her about tree lore and herbs and early on in the story it already seems unrealistic in that Morgana doesn't seem to accept the role of a girl, which in that time would be more than unusual.
Morgause comes into play as a younger sister. I've only seen her before in the Mary Stewart books, which seem to split the role of the legendary Morgan LeFay between Morgause and a younger sister called Morgian. There were also several characters which had been initited into the body of Arthurian literature by other modern writers, though Pullman does add two of her own.
I, Morgana paints Arthur as ambitious and resentful towards Morgana. As he grows into older childhood, he seems bratty and determined to take Morgana's birthright from her. He is not like the legendary benevolent Arthur of legend at all. The story depicts the famous incident of the sword in the stone, using the classical sequence of events, but as a trick of Merlin to get the petty kings to accept Arthur as king of all Britain.
I found it difficult to like Morgana. She travels the country raising support for her claim and feels herself continually belittled for being a woman, but overall she seems to be bitter and resentful all the time with no redeeming value to make her an attractive choice for ruler of Cornwall, never mind all of Britain. I found her disappointing, considering that Morgan LeFay is a character that I've found very interesting in the context of Arthurian legends for most of my reading life.
The story is written with a style of telling that is mostly Morgan's internal thoughts. There is no real action and limited dialogue.
To her credit she does show maternal love for her child, Mordred, but was cold about his conception and much of what she does is motivated by hate and resentment. The biggest problem that I had with this book is that *all* of the characters seem to be self-serving and resentful. Even Lancelot is a cad and displays some very unchivilrous behavior. Mordred, of course, is a complete monster. Guenevere is quite the harpy too.
Apart from being written in present tense, the writing is generally good. There is one fairly graphic sex scene, which I felt was unnecessary in a book that is not erotica. The plot meandered a lot in the second half and seemed to be trying to get all the characters that have ever been written into Arthurian stories in for a mention. Overall it was a fairly disappointing treatment of a character from the Arthurian legends that I thought could have been done much better.
June 27, 2014
I'm a huge fan of the Legend of King Arthur, I've read more than one book, and I'm a history nerd, so it will be no surprise that I picked this book to review. I recently reviewed another story, on a different track than this, but still in the same Arthurian world, and it wasn't the best shall we say, so I was hoping for this to really blow me away. Unfortunately it did not. I'm beginning to get the feeling authors struggle with Arthur books.
I'm not gonna beat around the bush, the book has no depth at all. I've stepped in rain puddles that had more depth than this story and I was hugely disappointed. The tale of Arthur is a hugely well known legend, it's a larger than life story, and it's one of the best known romances, and the legend is so rich, this book was just.....ugh.
I disliked all the characters. It was the awkward moment when you where really looking forward to reading from Morgana's perspective, but you actually hate her and continuing to read is a chore and a challenge. After that....well, well known and well loved characters are totally destroyed. If I didn't know any better I'd think the author knew nothing about Arthur.
I really disliked the fact that Arthur. The Once and Future King. The bloke who saves a divided Britain, is written as ridiculously weak and kind of pathetic. I just. No. How can you know the legend and write him like that? Yeah it's from Morgana's perspective but I just couldn't get down with this whole character destruction. Not to mention who oblivious he was to the whole Gwen and Lancelot shebang.
While I can see why Guinevere would be portrayed as being horrible to Morgana, I didn't buy, or like the portrayal of her as cruel to Arthur, her husband and King, and Lancelot, and practically green with jealousy. "Greatest love story of all time" well, maybe Pulman didn't get the memo. I wasn't loving the whole "Lancelot was enchanted to love his Queen" thing. Again. Greatest love story totally destroyed.
Merlin is the same old Merlin. No effort to make him have any depth or appear any different to everyone else's portrayal, although perhaps Merlin is the one character the author didn't destroy. I seriously could not find a fuck to give about any of these characters. There was no connection to any of them, just a lot of disgust at the way they where portrayed.
Now, we've already established Pulman didn't get the "Greatest Love Story Ever" memo, but apparently she didn't pay too much attention in her history lessons. London didn't exist back in Arthur's day, therefor neither did the Tower, so it's pretty impossible for Morgana to go for a stroll with her mates. Could it be explained by the confusing mess of a parallel world scenario the author threw in, seemingly for the LOLz? I don't know. There was no proper explanation.
All in all, I,Morgana is pretty much an incredibly dragging story, with a litter of errors, and a huge dose of confusion as nothing is explained satisfactorily. The shitty portrayal, and lack of depth to hugely well known and famous literary characters will be enough to put off, and enrage anyone who has more than a passing interest in the Legend.
I, Morgana is the most half-assed book I've ever read, its like the author couldn't be bothered.
I'm not gonna beat around the bush, the book has no depth at all. I've stepped in rain puddles that had more depth than this story and I was hugely disappointed. The tale of Arthur is a hugely well known legend, it's a larger than life story, and it's one of the best known romances, and the legend is so rich, this book was just.....ugh.
I disliked all the characters. It was the awkward moment when you where really looking forward to reading from Morgana's perspective, but you actually hate her and continuing to read is a chore and a challenge. After that....well, well known and well loved characters are totally destroyed. If I didn't know any better I'd think the author knew nothing about Arthur.
I really disliked the fact that Arthur. The Once and Future King. The bloke who saves a divided Britain, is written as ridiculously weak and kind of pathetic. I just. No. How can you know the legend and write him like that? Yeah it's from Morgana's perspective but I just couldn't get down with this whole character destruction. Not to mention who oblivious he was to the whole Gwen and Lancelot shebang.
While I can see why Guinevere would be portrayed as being horrible to Morgana, I didn't buy, or like the portrayal of her as cruel to Arthur, her husband and King, and Lancelot, and practically green with jealousy. "Greatest love story of all time" well, maybe Pulman didn't get the memo. I wasn't loving the whole "Lancelot was enchanted to love his Queen" thing. Again. Greatest love story totally destroyed.
Merlin is the same old Merlin. No effort to make him have any depth or appear any different to everyone else's portrayal, although perhaps Merlin is the one character the author didn't destroy. I seriously could not find a fuck to give about any of these characters. There was no connection to any of them, just a lot of disgust at the way they where portrayed.
Now, we've already established Pulman didn't get the "Greatest Love Story Ever" memo, but apparently she didn't pay too much attention in her history lessons. London didn't exist back in Arthur's day, therefor neither did the Tower, so it's pretty impossible for Morgana to go for a stroll with her mates. Could it be explained by the confusing mess of a parallel world scenario the author threw in, seemingly for the LOLz? I don't know. There was no proper explanation.
All in all, I,Morgana is pretty much an incredibly dragging story, with a litter of errors, and a huge dose of confusion as nothing is explained satisfactorily. The shitty portrayal, and lack of depth to hugely well known and famous literary characters will be enough to put off, and enrage anyone who has more than a passing interest in the Legend.
I, Morgana is the most half-assed book I've ever read, its like the author couldn't be bothered.
June 5, 2016
I did read a free copy by AMAZON 4 stars
My second book on my e-reader and I did like it a lot.
The story is about Morgana, the halfsister of King Arthur and this story is told us of her perspective. Morgana herself tells the story and there for it is an other tail as the King Arthur legends. It is also fiction. So it could have happend this way. She was to be queen of her fathers lands until Merlin and Uther tought otherwise.
- " He has a sense of duty and of justice that seems to be lacking in you, Morgana. He will listen before he speaks and think before he acts." -
Merlin skilled Morgana in the arts of Magic.
- I can feel my power growing as I learn all manner of spels: to transform to bind and release. -
She sees with bleeding eyes that her brother becomes the aclaimed Lord and King of the southern country. Merlin becomes his puppet master. Morgana flees the castle and take refuce in a convent.
There she thinks and plots her revence. Morgana has the gifts to go to the other worlds.
- The first secret way I create takes me to the ancient spring that lies beneath the fountain at the heart of my garden. It was probably once a shrine to the old Gods. -
The other worlds there where the unicorn still lives and the Isele of Avalon is. She tries to she the future and has visions but she can not read what the message is.
- I am learning high magic from the druids while plotting how to take my revenge on Arthur and Merlin. -
In this book it is told from a womans perspective. A totaly different perspective as at the present day perspective. A woman has no knowledge about the world of man. And can not stand up for herselve and her lands. She proves them wrong but at high costs. Until the end the love between Arthur and Morgana is heavely troubeled by doings of them both, Viviane the priestes of Avalon and the revences Morgana tries to do on to Arthur and Merlin. Only at the end she sees what she has been doing. Ofcouse this story also Involves Guenevere and Lancelot. But with a total different twist. Also the three children of Morgana, al having an other father, play a part in this story.
There are a lot of stories about King Arthur and the round table. This tale is for my a fresh wind to read the story out of Morgana's point of few.
The author grew up in a small bushtown in Africa. This gave her a great love for books while there where no tv's ect. She loved books about Dragons and Magic. She learned this way also about other countreys and cultures. When she run out of books she wrote her own. That was the start of her writting career. As a grown up she went back to school to find out she realy was a writter.
My major was creative writing, and suddenly I found myself experimenting with all sorts of genres and, in particular, writing the sorts of stories that I love to read – crime and timeslip fantasy back into the past. She wrote a lot of other books you can find them on her website. Aswell as
Medieval Muck and Mumbo Jumbo:
Q: What is a 'piss prophet'?
A: Doctors used to examine a patient's urine to see what was wrong with them, much as we still test urine today. But back in the middle ages, part of the testing process also involved tasting!
You see she takes a lot of time to researching stories. As the writer of novels set in medieval time, I've had to do A LOT of research before I started writing these stories, and even now I am still rushing around trying to find out what I need to know. or did I know a great deal about how life was lived in medieval time. Living in Australia, I didn't know too much about the English countryside either! I, too, had to find out what life was like (for both nobles and peasants) in those places. Whew! The journey has been great fun, I've learned heaps along the way - and I am still learning!
On her site I did also find out that here is an follow-up on I, Morgana:
The Once and Future Camelot
"They would do anything to be reunited with those they love, even if it means traveling beyond the boundaries of the world as we know it!" Two women, descended from Morgan le Fay but living almost 1000 years apart, share catastrophic visions of the future.
Marie, troubadour at the court of Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Morgan, a 21st century botanist are two very different women, although both have known true love, and lost it. Their lives collide in an ancient medieval garden in Glastonbury where all is not what it seems. Only if they can overcome their prejudice as well as their fear of the harmful power of magic will they be able to make sense of their lives, and influence the future.
Further information about I, Morgana and The Once & Future Camelot may be found at Momentum Books Australia and on the Pan Macmillan Australia site.
My second book on my e-reader and I did like it a lot.
The story is about Morgana, the halfsister of King Arthur and this story is told us of her perspective. Morgana herself tells the story and there for it is an other tail as the King Arthur legends. It is also fiction. So it could have happend this way. She was to be queen of her fathers lands until Merlin and Uther tought otherwise.
- " He has a sense of duty and of justice that seems to be lacking in you, Morgana. He will listen before he speaks and think before he acts." -
Merlin skilled Morgana in the arts of Magic.
- I can feel my power growing as I learn all manner of spels: to transform to bind and release. -
She sees with bleeding eyes that her brother becomes the aclaimed Lord and King of the southern country. Merlin becomes his puppet master. Morgana flees the castle and take refuce in a convent.
There she thinks and plots her revence. Morgana has the gifts to go to the other worlds.
- The first secret way I create takes me to the ancient spring that lies beneath the fountain at the heart of my garden. It was probably once a shrine to the old Gods. -
The other worlds there where the unicorn still lives and the Isele of Avalon is. She tries to she the future and has visions but she can not read what the message is.
- I am learning high magic from the druids while plotting how to take my revenge on Arthur and Merlin. -
In this book it is told from a womans perspective. A totaly different perspective as at the present day perspective. A woman has no knowledge about the world of man. And can not stand up for herselve and her lands. She proves them wrong but at high costs. Until the end the love between Arthur and Morgana is heavely troubeled by doings of them both, Viviane the priestes of Avalon and the revences Morgana tries to do on to Arthur and Merlin. Only at the end she sees what she has been doing. Ofcouse this story also Involves Guenevere and Lancelot. But with a total different twist. Also the three children of Morgana, al having an other father, play a part in this story.
There are a lot of stories about King Arthur and the round table. This tale is for my a fresh wind to read the story out of Morgana's point of few.
The author grew up in a small bushtown in Africa. This gave her a great love for books while there where no tv's ect. She loved books about Dragons and Magic. She learned this way also about other countreys and cultures. When she run out of books she wrote her own. That was the start of her writting career. As a grown up she went back to school to find out she realy was a writter.
My major was creative writing, and suddenly I found myself experimenting with all sorts of genres and, in particular, writing the sorts of stories that I love to read – crime and timeslip fantasy back into the past. She wrote a lot of other books you can find them on her website. Aswell as
Medieval Muck and Mumbo Jumbo:
Q: What is a 'piss prophet'?
A: Doctors used to examine a patient's urine to see what was wrong with them, much as we still test urine today. But back in the middle ages, part of the testing process also involved tasting!
You see she takes a lot of time to researching stories. As the writer of novels set in medieval time, I've had to do A LOT of research before I started writing these stories, and even now I am still rushing around trying to find out what I need to know. or did I know a great deal about how life was lived in medieval time. Living in Australia, I didn't know too much about the English countryside either! I, too, had to find out what life was like (for both nobles and peasants) in those places. Whew! The journey has been great fun, I've learned heaps along the way - and I am still learning!
On her site I did also find out that here is an follow-up on I, Morgana:
The Once and Future Camelot
"They would do anything to be reunited with those they love, even if it means traveling beyond the boundaries of the world as we know it!" Two women, descended from Morgan le Fay but living almost 1000 years apart, share catastrophic visions of the future.
Marie, troubadour at the court of Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Morgan, a 21st century botanist are two very different women, although both have known true love, and lost it. Their lives collide in an ancient medieval garden in Glastonbury where all is not what it seems. Only if they can overcome their prejudice as well as their fear of the harmful power of magic will they be able to make sense of their lives, and influence the future.
Further information about I, Morgana and The Once & Future Camelot may be found at Momentum Books Australia and on the Pan Macmillan Australia site.
June 9, 2014
*based on an ARC edition*
Let me start off by saying that the legend and stories of King Arthur are my favorite literary thing...ever. The story is nearly holy to me. In fact, my bloodline goes back to the Tudors in England who believed they were Arthur's descendants. Now of course that part was probably not true, but this gives one an idea of how deep my love goes for King Arthur, his Queen, his sister, and his knights. I have read every book, every adaptation, every allusion. So perhaps I am overly brutal when I say that I, Morgana does not measure up. There are many different takes you go about making when it comes to the character of Morgan (or Morgana, Morgaine, etc). In some she's a dark witch bent on destruction. In some she's a sympathetic and powerful woman in a time when power in women was seen as evil. In still others she barely exists, having been sent early to a nunnery. But this legend, this tale that is nearly 800 years old, deserves a beauty and a gravitas that is lacking in this adaptation. I, Morgana follows the tale closely enough, with a few side tracks I found interesting; for instance Morgana can use her magic to pass into parallel worlds, explaining perhaps how King Arthur could exist at the same time our own history did. I liked the mention of the Mother Goddess, I was ok with Morgana having three children. However, there was no depth to this story. The tale of Arthur and Camelot is ultimately one of the greatest love stories ever written, as well as one of the greatest tragedies. But there was not one character that had even one redeeming value. It is told from Morgana's perspective but as a reader I hated her. Arthur is written as weak and stupidly blind to the connection between his wife and his greatest knight, not as the once and future king who will one day again save a divided Britain. Gueniviere is portrayed as a jealous harpy, cruel to her husband as much as her lover, and totally loathsome to Morgana (perhaps rightfully so in that regard). Lancelot is nothing but a cad who is magicked into loving his queen, but even before that he treats Morgana carelessly. Merlin is written much the way he usually is, but his presence ends quickly, because he is just one of the many people our main character murders in her quest for her inheritance. I found it impossible to care for any of these people, which pains me since I love the characters so.
There are a couple of time issues but they are relatively minor; Morgana speaks of the Tower and the River Thames in London that she walked along with Gorlois, her father, but neither the Tower nor London (at least in name) was there at the time the legend of King Arthur takes place. Perhaps in this telling the parallel worlds explains this, and instead of it being the 5th century it's much later in the world. But it wasn't properly explained, either way.
It's possible others would not be as critical as I; however, the one-dimensional portrayal of some of the most famous literary characters in history begs my criticism. Ultimately, while I liked some of the new artistic takes on the story, I desperately missed the life these characters deserved to have.
Let me start off by saying that the legend and stories of King Arthur are my favorite literary thing...ever. The story is nearly holy to me. In fact, my bloodline goes back to the Tudors in England who believed they were Arthur's descendants. Now of course that part was probably not true, but this gives one an idea of how deep my love goes for King Arthur, his Queen, his sister, and his knights. I have read every book, every adaptation, every allusion. So perhaps I am overly brutal when I say that I, Morgana does not measure up. There are many different takes you go about making when it comes to the character of Morgan (or Morgana, Morgaine, etc). In some she's a dark witch bent on destruction. In some she's a sympathetic and powerful woman in a time when power in women was seen as evil. In still others she barely exists, having been sent early to a nunnery. But this legend, this tale that is nearly 800 years old, deserves a beauty and a gravitas that is lacking in this adaptation. I, Morgana follows the tale closely enough, with a few side tracks I found interesting; for instance Morgana can use her magic to pass into parallel worlds, explaining perhaps how King Arthur could exist at the same time our own history did. I liked the mention of the Mother Goddess, I was ok with Morgana having three children. However, there was no depth to this story. The tale of Arthur and Camelot is ultimately one of the greatest love stories ever written, as well as one of the greatest tragedies. But there was not one character that had even one redeeming value. It is told from Morgana's perspective but as a reader I hated her. Arthur is written as weak and stupidly blind to the connection between his wife and his greatest knight, not as the once and future king who will one day again save a divided Britain. Gueniviere is portrayed as a jealous harpy, cruel to her husband as much as her lover, and totally loathsome to Morgana (perhaps rightfully so in that regard). Lancelot is nothing but a cad who is magicked into loving his queen, but even before that he treats Morgana carelessly. Merlin is written much the way he usually is, but his presence ends quickly, because he is just one of the many people our main character murders in her quest for her inheritance. I found it impossible to care for any of these people, which pains me since I love the characters so.
There are a couple of time issues but they are relatively minor; Morgana speaks of the Tower and the River Thames in London that she walked along with Gorlois, her father, but neither the Tower nor London (at least in name) was there at the time the legend of King Arthur takes place. Perhaps in this telling the parallel worlds explains this, and instead of it being the 5th century it's much later in the world. But it wasn't properly explained, either way.
It's possible others would not be as critical as I; however, the one-dimensional portrayal of some of the most famous literary characters in history begs my criticism. Ultimately, while I liked some of the new artistic takes on the story, I desperately missed the life these characters deserved to have.
October 8, 2014
In Arthurian legend, Morgana le Fay was the bitter and angry half-sister of King Arthur. In the novel I, Morgana, author Felicity Pulman has written a first person narrative from this fascinating bad girl’s point of view. It is always a challenge making an antagonist the protagonist, so readers should be prepared that they may not like Morgana much at all, because she is the villain of the story.
I always enjoy first person narratives because they make for a more powerful point of view. In this novel, this is definitely the case as readers learn about Morgana’s determined spirit, how her love for author turned into anger and jealousy and ultimately her obsession for revenge. Although the story lags in the middle, the ending did provide closure and a sense of satisfaction when Morgana finally experienced a sense of remorse over the part she played in the destruction of Camelot. This novel is more fantasy than historical fiction because of the heavy magical elements. I thoroughly enjoyed the writing and the first person narrative.
I always enjoy first person narratives because they make for a more powerful point of view. In this novel, this is definitely the case as readers learn about Morgana’s determined spirit, how her love for author turned into anger and jealousy and ultimately her obsession for revenge. Although the story lags in the middle, the ending did provide closure and a sense of satisfaction when Morgana finally experienced a sense of remorse over the part she played in the destruction of Camelot. This novel is more fantasy than historical fiction because of the heavy magical elements. I thoroughly enjoyed the writing and the first person narrative.
August 23, 2014
1.5 Stars
I really really wanted to like this book. I love Arthurian legend and was so excited to get this story from Morgana’s perspective. I was hoping that this would be much like the recently released movie Malificent where were learned that she wasn’t as horrible as we all believed her to be and grew to love her character. Unfortunately, I Morgana,just didn’t grab my attention. I pushed, I really truly did but the writing was hard to get through and there was a lot of monologue. It drove me crazy. I finished it but I’ll admit that I did a lot of skimming. I kept waiting for it to get better but there was no real substance to it. The characters were poorly written and all of the characters we had grown up loving were portrayed as weaklings, or snobs/brats and very few characters in the book had any redeeming qualities. Its hard to enjoy a book when you hate everyone in it.
I really really wanted to like this book. I love Arthurian legend and was so excited to get this story from Morgana’s perspective. I was hoping that this would be much like the recently released movie Malificent where were learned that she wasn’t as horrible as we all believed her to be and grew to love her character. Unfortunately, I Morgana,just didn’t grab my attention. I pushed, I really truly did but the writing was hard to get through and there was a lot of monologue. It drove me crazy. I finished it but I’ll admit that I did a lot of skimming. I kept waiting for it to get better but there was no real substance to it. The characters were poorly written and all of the characters we had grown up loving were portrayed as weaklings, or snobs/brats and very few characters in the book had any redeeming qualities. Its hard to enjoy a book when you hate everyone in it.
July 10, 2014
I, Morgana is a new interpretation of the King Arthur story, and a rich new addition to the much-loved (and hotly debated) canon. Morgana, the daughter of a king, half sister of Arthur and a powerful presence in her own right, has been portrayed in so many different ways over the years, from evil witch to heroine priestess and everything in between, and most readers are invested in their own preferred version. This can make her tricky to bring to life, but Felicity Pulman has succeeded in creating a character and a book that remain true to the myth, while bringing new energy and new perspective to it.
Told from her point of view, this Morgana is closer to the vengeful, ambition-fuelled king’s daughter of TV’s recent Camelot series, determined to take the throne she sees as hers at any cost, than the wise priestess of The Mists of Avalon, whose motivation seemed more about the protection of goddess spirituality against the rising tide of Christianity than her own personal power. But while I have a soft spot for the latter, there is no less magic or complexity in this tale.
Recounted by Morgana as an old woman filled with bitterness and regret, the story opens when she is a child, and she is revealed as clever, loving and strong, aware of her destiny and joyously embracing it. Her relationship with Merlin and their lessons together are a delight to read; her shapeshifting into other creatures beautifully written and evocative. She is a dutiful daughter, who takes her promise to succeed her father on the throne very seriously, and a loving big sister to an infant Arthur. Yet as she grows up she becomes twisted by what she sees as betrayal – by Merlin, by her mother, by her brother, even by the times in which she lives – and is transformed into a ruthless and cruel woman, unleashing chaos as a result of her desperation to rule, and responsible for all the tragedy that befalls both herself and the kingdom. This Morgana is much harder to love and empathise with than other versions of the character – she is selfish, arrogant, hard hearted and vengeful, the sole architect of her own unhappiness – but there are hints that she is not totally beyond redemption, in her love for Launcelot and her children, and her desire to help the mysterious woman she sees in the scrying pool, so in the end she is deeply flawed yet fully realised and compelling.
Felicity Pulman’s first adult novel is ambitious in scope, with new angles to the familiar story, new relationships between familiar characters and new motivations for familiar events, as well as fascinating new twists, such as Morgana’s ability to transport herself to other worlds, the possibility of travelling through time to save the past as well as the future, and a daughter conflicted between magic and religion. It is a beautiful, magical story that sweeps you away into another time and another world, and I was sad when it ended – but I’m very happy that the author has begun work on a sequel…
Told from her point of view, this Morgana is closer to the vengeful, ambition-fuelled king’s daughter of TV’s recent Camelot series, determined to take the throne she sees as hers at any cost, than the wise priestess of The Mists of Avalon, whose motivation seemed more about the protection of goddess spirituality against the rising tide of Christianity than her own personal power. But while I have a soft spot for the latter, there is no less magic or complexity in this tale.
Recounted by Morgana as an old woman filled with bitterness and regret, the story opens when she is a child, and she is revealed as clever, loving and strong, aware of her destiny and joyously embracing it. Her relationship with Merlin and their lessons together are a delight to read; her shapeshifting into other creatures beautifully written and evocative. She is a dutiful daughter, who takes her promise to succeed her father on the throne very seriously, and a loving big sister to an infant Arthur. Yet as she grows up she becomes twisted by what she sees as betrayal – by Merlin, by her mother, by her brother, even by the times in which she lives – and is transformed into a ruthless and cruel woman, unleashing chaos as a result of her desperation to rule, and responsible for all the tragedy that befalls both herself and the kingdom. This Morgana is much harder to love and empathise with than other versions of the character – she is selfish, arrogant, hard hearted and vengeful, the sole architect of her own unhappiness – but there are hints that she is not totally beyond redemption, in her love for Launcelot and her children, and her desire to help the mysterious woman she sees in the scrying pool, so in the end she is deeply flawed yet fully realised and compelling.
Felicity Pulman’s first adult novel is ambitious in scope, with new angles to the familiar story, new relationships between familiar characters and new motivations for familiar events, as well as fascinating new twists, such as Morgana’s ability to transport herself to other worlds, the possibility of travelling through time to save the past as well as the future, and a daughter conflicted between magic and religion. It is a beautiful, magical story that sweeps you away into another time and another world, and I was sad when it ended – but I’m very happy that the author has begun work on a sequel…
September 28, 2014
This review originally appeared on my blog, Leeanna.me.
==
When I read the summary for I, MORGANA, I swooned. Just a little bit. I’m always on the lookout for books about or featuring Morgana, as I tend to like a nicely evil sorceress. Morgana tends to get a bad rap, so reading her story, in her words? I couldn’t wait to start the book.
Unfortunately, Felicity Pulman’s attempt at reinventing Morgana didn’t work for me. I almost put it down several times, and I wish I had given up on reading it, because I honestly can’t remember much of it. The book just didn’t make an impression and didn’t add anything to Morgana’s story for me.
To start off with, it’s very difficult to keep track of time in this book. I didn’t know whether a day, a month, or a year had gone by between some passages, and that’s something that always throws me off when reading. That goes along with the extreme amount of telling. Morgana tells so freaking much of her story rather than showing us pivotal events as they take place. This book is less than 200 pages, but I felt like I plodded through a 400 page book.
So much of what happens in I, MORGANA is repetition. Here’s the pattern:
1. Morgana gets mad.
2. Morgana plans revenge.
3. Morgana feels bad about what happens, but it’s too late to change her plan.
This probably happened ten times, if not more. Morgana barely grows as a character, and never learns from her mistakes. I really disliked her because of this, and because she would feel sooooo bad every time one of her poorly thought out plans created more problems.
Now, even if I dislike the main character, that doesn’t keep me from liking the book … if there’s something for me to like. But I, MORGANA just confused me in every way possible. The author had some “Otherworld” concept, but never actually explained it. The Otherworld was pretty important at the end, so I didn’t get the ending.
I really wanted to like I, MORGANA, but the execution of the story and Morgana’s character just didn’t work for me.
==
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
See more of my reviews:
==
When I read the summary for I, MORGANA, I swooned. Just a little bit. I’m always on the lookout for books about or featuring Morgana, as I tend to like a nicely evil sorceress. Morgana tends to get a bad rap, so reading her story, in her words? I couldn’t wait to start the book.
Unfortunately, Felicity Pulman’s attempt at reinventing Morgana didn’t work for me. I almost put it down several times, and I wish I had given up on reading it, because I honestly can’t remember much of it. The book just didn’t make an impression and didn’t add anything to Morgana’s story for me.
To start off with, it’s very difficult to keep track of time in this book. I didn’t know whether a day, a month, or a year had gone by between some passages, and that’s something that always throws me off when reading. That goes along with the extreme amount of telling. Morgana tells so freaking much of her story rather than showing us pivotal events as they take place. This book is less than 200 pages, but I felt like I plodded through a 400 page book.
So much of what happens in I, MORGANA is repetition. Here’s the pattern:
1. Morgana gets mad.
2. Morgana plans revenge.
3. Morgana feels bad about what happens, but it’s too late to change her plan.
This probably happened ten times, if not more. Morgana barely grows as a character, and never learns from her mistakes. I really disliked her because of this, and because she would feel sooooo bad every time one of her poorly thought out plans created more problems.
Now, even if I dislike the main character, that doesn’t keep me from liking the book … if there’s something for me to like. But I, MORGANA just confused me in every way possible. The author had some “Otherworld” concept, but never actually explained it. The Otherworld was pretty important at the end, so I didn’t get the ending.
I really wanted to like I, MORGANA, but the execution of the story and Morgana’s character just didn’t work for me.
==
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
See more of my reviews:
June 18, 2014
*I received a copy from NetGalley for my honest review.
I, Morgana is written from Morgana point of view, which I really enjoyed. Most of my experiences with the whole King Arthur tale is from his perspective, with Morgana being the evil witch.
Now she isn't exactly nice in this telling, but some of her actions seemed explained, almost justified. But not completely.
Her father had declared Morgana as heir to his throne. An honor she took very seriously and to heart. He was killed in battle and unfortunately, her mother remarried Uther who took control of the kingdom. Her mother had become pregnant with Arthur during the time Morganas father had been killed. Her mother is quiet selfish and spends her time with Uther, neglecting her and Arthur.
Merlin took Morgana under his tutelage when she was a child. She was proving to be a quick learner and eager student. And as Arthur got older, she began bring him along. Which leads to future issues when Merlin betrays Morgana, at least in her eyes, by favoring Arthur to become the future king. Which Morgana feels is her right to be the Queen, since her father had named her heir.
So, the rest of the book follows her throughout her life as she seeks revenge on all those whom she feels have wronged her and gain the throne she knows is rightfully hers.
I really enjoyed reading this story through the eyes of Morgana and seeing the differences in how things play out in this tellings.
None of the characters were perfect, nor were they completely evil. They were very real to life in how they allowed their emotions and egos and pride guide them in their decisions. And to watch them play out with unforeseen outcomes. And how they tried to deal with them and even attempts at correcting mistakes.
This just revived my interest into the stories of Camelot and King Arthur.
I, Morgana is written from Morgana point of view, which I really enjoyed. Most of my experiences with the whole King Arthur tale is from his perspective, with Morgana being the evil witch.
Now she isn't exactly nice in this telling, but some of her actions seemed explained, almost justified. But not completely.
Her father had declared Morgana as heir to his throne. An honor she took very seriously and to heart. He was killed in battle and unfortunately, her mother remarried Uther who took control of the kingdom. Her mother had become pregnant with Arthur during the time Morganas father had been killed. Her mother is quiet selfish and spends her time with Uther, neglecting her and Arthur.
Merlin took Morgana under his tutelage when she was a child. She was proving to be a quick learner and eager student. And as Arthur got older, she began bring him along. Which leads to future issues when Merlin betrays Morgana, at least in her eyes, by favoring Arthur to become the future king. Which Morgana feels is her right to be the Queen, since her father had named her heir.
So, the rest of the book follows her throughout her life as she seeks revenge on all those whom she feels have wronged her and gain the throne she knows is rightfully hers.
I really enjoyed reading this story through the eyes of Morgana and seeing the differences in how things play out in this tellings.
None of the characters were perfect, nor were they completely evil. They were very real to life in how they allowed their emotions and egos and pride guide them in their decisions. And to watch them play out with unforeseen outcomes. And how they tried to deal with them and even attempts at correcting mistakes.
This just revived my interest into the stories of Camelot and King Arthur.
October 12, 2014
It's never easy, writing from a classic villain's point of view. And Morgana is the classic villain, though I would argue that in the Arthurian legend she is seen much more ambiguously than is often assumed. She is a kind of Fate for Camelot, and for Arthur, more than a straight-out wrecker, but in the legend, her world is depicted only fleetingly. Who was she, and how did she get to where she was? Those are some of the questions Felicity Pulman poses in this bold and unusual novel, which not only richly depicts Morgana's world and her dilemmas, but also brings in some intriguing possibilities, such as Morgana's romance with Lancelot--which produces a child, named Marie, who, much later, will become one of the greatest poets and storytellers either of the worlds, human or Other, had ever seen. As a great fan of the real 12th century poet and storyteller Marie de France, who was one of the first writers to use the Arthurian legend to construct her own wonderful romances, I really enjoyed that clever,even cheeky, strand of the story! It's also a great way of getting a different glimpse into Morgana's character. For her feeling for that child, and her romance with Lancelot is the opposite of what a furious, grieving Morgana has done to Arthur, in tricking him into sleeping with her, thus producing a child unloved from the start: poor, sly, destructive Mordred.
Morgana struggles all the way through the book with reconciling the brighter and the darker aspects of her character. She is driven by revenge--against Arthur, against Guinevere, against Merlin, against the world--and revenge, as it so often does, creates a wasteland around her. But at the heart of all revenge is the inconsolable grief of a child. The pain of loss and betrayal burns at the heart of Morgana's story, even as she inflicts both on others too.
Morgana struggles all the way through the book with reconciling the brighter and the darker aspects of her character. She is driven by revenge--against Arthur, against Guinevere, against Merlin, against the world--and revenge, as it so often does, creates a wasteland around her. But at the heart of all revenge is the inconsolable grief of a child. The pain of loss and betrayal burns at the heart of Morgana's story, even as she inflicts both on others too.
August 9, 2015
'I, Morgana' by Felicity Pulman is advertised as a new take on an old legend. As a fan of Arthuriana, I enjoyed it, but there are better stories out there about this character.
Morgana is promised a kingdom by her father. She learns all kinds of interesting magic from her teacher Merlin who sees her as more talented at it than her half-brother Arthur. When her father dies, and Arthur gets what was promised to her, Morgana wants to get it back and get even with her brother. She sets in motion a series of rash things that eventually she may come to regret. A son named Mordred by her brother. A daughter by Lancelot. A potion meant to cause a fatal blow to her brother's marriage. All these machinations take their toll, and the price Morgana pays may be more than she wants to. Along the way she has strange visions of the future, which may serve as a warning to our own times.
King Arthur, the knights and some of the quests are woven in, but I had a hard time feeling sympathetic for Morgana. Maybe that wasn't the point, but it left me feeling a bit flat when it was all done. There is a huge body of fiction on this topic, but maybe not as much on Morgana, so I was looking forward to something more interesting than what I read. That's unfortunate.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Momentum Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
Morgana is promised a kingdom by her father. She learns all kinds of interesting magic from her teacher Merlin who sees her as more talented at it than her half-brother Arthur. When her father dies, and Arthur gets what was promised to her, Morgana wants to get it back and get even with her brother. She sets in motion a series of rash things that eventually she may come to regret. A son named Mordred by her brother. A daughter by Lancelot. A potion meant to cause a fatal blow to her brother's marriage. All these machinations take their toll, and the price Morgana pays may be more than she wants to. Along the way she has strange visions of the future, which may serve as a warning to our own times.
King Arthur, the knights and some of the quests are woven in, but I had a hard time feeling sympathetic for Morgana. Maybe that wasn't the point, but it left me feeling a bit flat when it was all done. There is a huge body of fiction on this topic, but maybe not as much on Morgana, so I was looking forward to something more interesting than what I read. That's unfortunate.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Momentum Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
October 14, 2014
The first of Felicity Pulman’s I, Morgana series is a very ambitious novel as well as being the author’s venture away from YA novels. It is refreshing to have Morgana aka Morgan-le-Fey’s view of events even though depicting her full life time and taking in all the Arthurian legend requires a broad canvas and may provoke some reaction from Arthurian enthusiasts, who may have their own idea of Morgana.
Any author dealing with this material has to blend magic with myth, portray real and legendary places as well as create a pageturner that fits in with our Western Dreamtime. What this version does is to make Arthur, Guinevere and Lancelot into more everyday people rather than the elusive characters of legend and that may not please everyone. But whatever challenges us and makes us reconsider the tales we learned from childhood is not a bad thing and since this book is the first of a series, it will be fascinating to see how this story evolves. I look forward to reading the sequel.
July 18, 2017
Come ho scritto nella mia descrizione qui su Gr, sono altamente stufa di leggere scene di violenza gratuita contro gli animali, perciò a ogni libro che ne conterrà verrà assegnato un voto negativo.
In generale questo ebook non mi era piaciuto comunque, perchè simile a La contessa nera.
Lo schema è lo stesso, anche se applicato a personaggi diversi.
Morgana ci racconta la sua storia fin dall'infanzia, storia in cui lei ovviamente è sempre la povera vittima di tutto e gli altri hanno sempre migliaia di colpe.
Io non sono una esperta arturiana, ma leggere una cosa del genere in cui ogni 2/3 frasi c'è una scena scabrosa no, grazie.
Poi arriviamo alle scene orribili, perchè per far capire che un personaggio è davvero cattivo deve sempre prendersela con qualche povero animale.
Non lo accetto.
In generale questo ebook non mi era piaciuto comunque, perchè simile a La contessa nera.
Lo schema è lo stesso, anche se applicato a personaggi diversi.
Morgana ci racconta la sua storia fin dall'infanzia, storia in cui lei ovviamente è sempre la povera vittima di tutto e gli altri hanno sempre migliaia di colpe.
Io non sono una esperta arturiana, ma leggere una cosa del genere in cui ogni 2/3 frasi c'è una scena scabrosa no, grazie.
Poi arriviamo alle scene orribili, perchè per far capire che un personaggio è davvero cattivo deve sempre prendersela con qualche povero animale.
Non lo accetto.
July 24, 2014
A new addition to the Arthurian Legend, told from Morgana's point of view, sign me up! I was excited to read this story and thought it would bring a fresh perspective to Morgana's legacy in the same way Gregory Macguire told us about Elphaba. Unfortunately, I could not get into this story- though short in pages it felt like it was plodding along.
P.S.- The Tower of London was not built until the 11th century.
1.5 stars
Thank you Netgalley for a copy of this ARC.
December 5, 2019
Oh man what did I just read?
I tried so hard to like this book. I was so excited to recieve it and then I began reading it...
It is written in the first person so that was automatically not a good start for me but since that's just a personal preference I decided to keep going.
The story itself is shallow, the narration fails to deliver the emotions it tries to invoke, it's too summerized as well and the erotic scenes were... just not good, you can't write a strong female like that.
**SPOILERS AHEAD ***
Morgana, a powerful female character is reduced to basically just trying to get Lancelot to love her (Lancelot who is messing with Guinevere behind Arthur's oblivious back)... Morgana gives birth a couple of times and she seems to favor more the daughter she had with Lancelot (a person who doesn't even treat her good)... and here we see the high priestess of the old religion naming her kid Marie (???) and even though she wanted to raise her herself she leaves her in a convent (?)
Morgana saves Arthur at the end and takes him to Avalon which does seem to follow the legend but to be honest... the only good thing about this book is the cover. It frustrated me to no end seeing Morgana's character treated that way and making it seem like a "self - confession" type of a story. Just no.
I waisted a whole day of my life reading this.
I tried so hard to like this book. I was so excited to recieve it and then I began reading it...
It is written in the first person so that was automatically not a good start for me but since that's just a personal preference I decided to keep going.
The story itself is shallow, the narration fails to deliver the emotions it tries to invoke, it's too summerized as well and the erotic scenes were... just not good, you can't write a strong female like that.
**SPOILERS AHEAD ***
Morgana, a powerful female character is reduced to basically just trying to get Lancelot to love her (Lancelot who is messing with Guinevere behind Arthur's oblivious back)... Morgana gives birth a couple of times and she seems to favor more the daughter she had with Lancelot (a person who doesn't even treat her good)... and here we see the high priestess of the old religion naming her kid Marie (???) and even though she wanted to raise her herself she leaves her in a convent (?)
Morgana saves Arthur at the end and takes him to Avalon which does seem to follow the legend but to be honest... the only good thing about this book is the cover. It frustrated me to no end seeing Morgana's character treated that way and making it seem like a "self - confession" type of a story. Just no.
I waisted a whole day of my life reading this.
February 18, 2017
This is the tale of Arthur, Camelot, Lancelot and Guenevere, told from the POV of Morgana, Arthur's half-sister. It spans the entirety of Morgana's life, as she is, as a child, taught magic by Merlin and groomed to become the ruler who unites the land. But due to her unthinking and sometimes callous nature, instead Arthur is chosen to become the king of legend, and Morgana swears her vengeance on all those who have stolen her birthright.
I read the Kindle edition, which claims to be around 170-some pages. I'm not entirely sure that's an accurate page count, since it took me nigh on 4 hours in total to finish this. That would suggest it's more around the 350-page mark. So if you pick up the Kindle version expecting a short read, this isn't one.
I was a bit disappointed by this book. I had the impression that it would redeem Morgana, so often depicted as being one of the evils Arthur must overcome. But Morgana here was not a likeable person. She acts without thinking, with no thought of consequences or what harm her actions might do to others. She pretty much holds a lifelong grudge against Arthur, Guenevere and Launcelot, as she perceives herself betrayed by them; but it's more just that they prevent her having her own way. She's a terrible mother, living her whole life effectively for her own ends, and really doesn't seem to care much for anyone else. Yes, she does occasionally have moments of regret, but they're few and far between, and mostly short lived. All in all, as the narrator, Morgana wasn't a particularly pleasant character.
The supporting cast is not much better. Arthur appears weak and unobservant, especially when it comes to the obvious affair between Guenevere and Launcelot. Guenevere is a self-centred harpy, whose main aim seems to be as unpleasant and shrewish as possible to more or less everybody. Launcelot, the great and honourable knight, really isn't that great, or honourable (though I've always held the opinion that he was vastly overrated, so Bernard Cornwell's treatment of him in his own Arthurian trilogy was quite a delight). The rest of the characters don't really have any particular depth to them; Gawain, Galahad and Urien were possibly the nicest of the lot, though they don't really make much of an appearance. Mordred was just plain nasty, and certainly deserved a comeuppance of one sort or another.
The plot focusses almost entirely on Morgana's quest for revenge and the fallout from her actions. Being told she won't be the absolute ruler of the country while still a teenager seems something of a flimsy reason for her actions throughout the rest of her life, but every time she doesn't get her own way she seems to do something else that just makes everything worse. There's also the existence of parallel worlds, and I got the impression that perhaps Morgana's world isn't actually our own, and was some 500 or 600 years behind our own history. The parallel worlds thread could have been an interesting aspect to the story, but aside from acting as plot devices to further Morgana's story, there isn't much made of them.
I have somewhat mixed feelings about this book. I didn't hate it, I didn't dislike it. Some of the writing was quite beautiful. It just didn't quite meet up to my expectations for it, and with Morgana being so unlikeable, it was something of a tough read in places. I wonder perhaps if I may have liked it more had it been third person and divided between different characters, to give characters other than Morgana more depth.
I read the Kindle edition, which claims to be around 170-some pages. I'm not entirely sure that's an accurate page count, since it took me nigh on 4 hours in total to finish this. That would suggest it's more around the 350-page mark. So if you pick up the Kindle version expecting a short read, this isn't one.
I was a bit disappointed by this book. I had the impression that it would redeem Morgana, so often depicted as being one of the evils Arthur must overcome. But Morgana here was not a likeable person. She acts without thinking, with no thought of consequences or what harm her actions might do to others. She pretty much holds a lifelong grudge against Arthur, Guenevere and Launcelot, as she perceives herself betrayed by them; but it's more just that they prevent her having her own way. She's a terrible mother, living her whole life effectively for her own ends, and really doesn't seem to care much for anyone else. Yes, she does occasionally have moments of regret, but they're few and far between, and mostly short lived. All in all, as the narrator, Morgana wasn't a particularly pleasant character.
The supporting cast is not much better. Arthur appears weak and unobservant, especially when it comes to the obvious affair between Guenevere and Launcelot. Guenevere is a self-centred harpy, whose main aim seems to be as unpleasant and shrewish as possible to more or less everybody. Launcelot, the great and honourable knight, really isn't that great, or honourable (though I've always held the opinion that he was vastly overrated, so Bernard Cornwell's treatment of him in his own Arthurian trilogy was quite a delight). The rest of the characters don't really have any particular depth to them; Gawain, Galahad and Urien were possibly the nicest of the lot, though they don't really make much of an appearance. Mordred was just plain nasty, and certainly deserved a comeuppance of one sort or another.
The plot focusses almost entirely on Morgana's quest for revenge and the fallout from her actions. Being told she won't be the absolute ruler of the country while still a teenager seems something of a flimsy reason for her actions throughout the rest of her life, but every time she doesn't get her own way she seems to do something else that just makes everything worse. There's also the existence of parallel worlds, and I got the impression that perhaps Morgana's world isn't actually our own, and was some 500 or 600 years behind our own history. The parallel worlds thread could have been an interesting aspect to the story, but aside from acting as plot devices to further Morgana's story, there isn't much made of them.
I have somewhat mixed feelings about this book. I didn't hate it, I didn't dislike it. Some of the writing was quite beautiful. It just didn't quite meet up to my expectations for it, and with Morgana being so unlikeable, it was something of a tough read in places. I wonder perhaps if I may have liked it more had it been third person and divided between different characters, to give characters other than Morgana more depth.
November 7, 2018
It has been a long time since I have read a book and been unable to put it down. I loved hearing the story from a different perspective and I can see where many of us could lead down the same path as Morgana before learning a valuable lesson. The writer allowed me to empathize for Morgana, I truly believe her intentions were good. She is one of the most valuable persons to the stories of King Arthur. Morgana allowed us to actually feel every other characters’ emotions as an observer. I really appreciated this book.
March 2, 2018
I loved this book, it gave a different perspective with a morally gray protagonist/antagonist
April 14, 2015
At a young age, my thirst for anything that took place in the Arthurian time frame in my reading development. The Mists of Avalon, King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and Ivanhoe just to name a few. In those we know that legend has to how Arthur became the King. There has been countless books, movies and apparently one season on TV before it was cancelled. So this not a new plot line so to speak.
But it this we are suppose to be looking at in a first person account view point of Morgana, Arthur's half-sister; who has grown old and longs to reverse time. But age has stolen her magical powers so she must resort to taking up her quill & parchment instead.
We all know that she not actually portrayed as a nice person in these stories. Shortly before her father's death, Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall; names Morgana his heir upon his death in ruling of his realm and rule his lands wisely. Morgana takes this oath to heart and solemnly swear that she would not let him down. But even as the book opens and Morgana is working with Merlin, we can see that she is willful, undisciplined, quick to judge & has a venomous hatred for those she perceives of doing her wrong.
This short sightedness plagues Morgana through out the book. We find that many people end up on that list. Everyone from Uther Pendragon, Arthur, Merlin, Guenevere, heMorgana's 1st born son - Mordred and even Launcelot incurs she wrath. All of the fore-mentioned have been on the receiving end of Morgana's sharp tongue, magical potions, deceit and her need for vengeance. We also learn of her indiscretions outside of the martial bed which produced two children out of three. Mordred, Marie and then Owain - son of Urien: King of Rheged; whom Arthur married Morgana to as a way to gain a much needed ally.
Throughout the book I found several historically errors in the timeline. For example, Morgana and her father - Gorlios goes to London to meet with High King Uther Pendragon. Well London wasn't called London in the 5th century much less have the Tower of London at the time.
It would be nice to have some way distinguish the passing of time in the book. I find that a bit disconcerting at that lacking detail. Then the mentioning of the Otherworld was never really explained. Is this where Morgana had hope to find and go back to reverse history from all her mistakes, spitefulness and supposedly prevent the series of events in her mind? Then she sends her daughter Marie and Guinglan through to the other side of the "Otherworld" to another time where they are suppose to be safe from danger?
To me, Morgana is betrayed as a scheming, vengeful, over-ambitious and deceitful to all that surrounds her. She uses her magical powers to trick, poison, and attempt murder when she doesn't get what she wants. It's hard to like her or even sympathize with her.
The rest of the characters has other issues with me. The book makes Arthur seem wishy-washy, weak, blind to the obvious (including the treasonous affair between Lancelot and Guenevere), and lacking the traits that should make him King. Launcelot comes across as a man-whore who spends some length of time with Morgana at Joyous Gard and this results in her becoming pregnant out of wed-lock. He also magically entangled with Guenevere to the play in a role in the demises of Camelot. Then we have Guenevere who is a hot mess. This comes across in her spoil brat attitude, she is whiny, jealous of any female who might talk to Launcelot and hatefulness towards Morgana. Merlin is found lacking in the story and in court. It's like it was half a thought that he was randomly tossed into the story because it was excepted.
And then ending after Arthur dies at the Battle of Camlann around 537A.D. at the hand of His & Morgana's son - Mordred. We have Morgana, Guenevere and Launcelot all end up in sort of abbey or priory to basically be forgotten.
This rendition of the King Arthur saga just didn't have to the same feel to it's predecessors did. I had hopes for this one, as it was taken from other view point than Arthur's or Merlin's. I did finish the book and I liked it, but I didn't love it as I had hoped. I wish the author had smoothed out some of the glaring wrinkles before sending it to publication. I would give this 3.25 out of 5 stars possible. Again please remember that is just my opinion on this book. You may read the same book, swoon over it and give it a 5. But on the other hand you might not even finish it, as I saw on many other reviews.
I received this ARC from NetGallery and the publisher Momentum Books. I have excepted the ARC in exchange for my fair & honest opinion.
But it this we are suppose to be looking at in a first person account view point of Morgana, Arthur's half-sister; who has grown old and longs to reverse time. But age has stolen her magical powers so she must resort to taking up her quill & parchment instead.
We all know that she not actually portrayed as a nice person in these stories. Shortly before her father's death, Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall; names Morgana his heir upon his death in ruling of his realm and rule his lands wisely. Morgana takes this oath to heart and solemnly swear that she would not let him down. But even as the book opens and Morgana is working with Merlin, we can see that she is willful, undisciplined, quick to judge & has a venomous hatred for those she perceives of doing her wrong.
This short sightedness plagues Morgana through out the book. We find that many people end up on that list. Everyone from Uther Pendragon, Arthur, Merlin, Guenevere, heMorgana's 1st born son - Mordred and even Launcelot incurs she wrath. All of the fore-mentioned have been on the receiving end of Morgana's sharp tongue, magical potions, deceit and her need for vengeance. We also learn of her indiscretions outside of the martial bed which produced two children out of three. Mordred, Marie and then Owain - son of Urien: King of Rheged; whom Arthur married Morgana to as a way to gain a much needed ally.
Throughout the book I found several historically errors in the timeline. For example, Morgana and her father - Gorlios goes to London to meet with High King Uther Pendragon. Well London wasn't called London in the 5th century much less have the Tower of London at the time.
It would be nice to have some way distinguish the passing of time in the book. I find that a bit disconcerting at that lacking detail. Then the mentioning of the Otherworld was never really explained. Is this where Morgana had hope to find and go back to reverse history from all her mistakes, spitefulness and supposedly prevent the series of events in her mind? Then she sends her daughter Marie and Guinglan through to the other side of the "Otherworld" to another time where they are suppose to be safe from danger?
To me, Morgana is betrayed as a scheming, vengeful, over-ambitious and deceitful to all that surrounds her. She uses her magical powers to trick, poison, and attempt murder when she doesn't get what she wants. It's hard to like her or even sympathize with her.
The rest of the characters has other issues with me. The book makes Arthur seem wishy-washy, weak, blind to the obvious (including the treasonous affair between Lancelot and Guenevere), and lacking the traits that should make him King. Launcelot comes across as a man-whore who spends some length of time with Morgana at Joyous Gard and this results in her becoming pregnant out of wed-lock. He also magically entangled with Guenevere to the play in a role in the demises of Camelot. Then we have Guenevere who is a hot mess. This comes across in her spoil brat attitude, she is whiny, jealous of any female who might talk to Launcelot and hatefulness towards Morgana. Merlin is found lacking in the story and in court. It's like it was half a thought that he was randomly tossed into the story because it was excepted.
And then ending after Arthur dies at the Battle of Camlann around 537A.D. at the hand of His & Morgana's son - Mordred. We have Morgana, Guenevere and Launcelot all end up in sort of abbey or priory to basically be forgotten.
This rendition of the King Arthur saga just didn't have to the same feel to it's predecessors did. I had hopes for this one, as it was taken from other view point than Arthur's or Merlin's. I did finish the book and I liked it, but I didn't love it as I had hoped. I wish the author had smoothed out some of the glaring wrinkles before sending it to publication. I would give this 3.25 out of 5 stars possible. Again please remember that is just my opinion on this book. You may read the same book, swoon over it and give it a 5. But on the other hand you might not even finish it, as I saw on many other reviews.
I received this ARC from NetGallery and the publisher Momentum Books. I have excepted the ARC in exchange for my fair & honest opinion.
July 6, 2014
For more reviews, please visit my blog Obsessive Compulsive Reader
Actual Rating: 2.5/5
The Legend of King Arthur is one that is known to many within the literary world and while I can't say I am a huge fan (that honour, I believe, belongs to those true die-hards), I nonetheless love the tale and its various adaptations and works. Morgan le Fay is a character that I like despite her often being portrayed as the villain. The Road to Avalon by Joan Wolf, for example, is a book that I enjoyed immensely as it portrays Morgana in a kinder light. So when I heard of I, Morgana, I was intrigued by this new adaptation and wondered how the Arthurian Legend will be different from Morgana's perspective.
Sadly, I really struggled with this book.
The biggest struggle above all else is the relatability of the characters. Arthur comes across as weak, conniving with an immense dose of self-entitlement. Merlin often acts indifferent and lacks depth. One of the greatest love triangles is reduced down to something artificial with a heavy dose of cruelty and jealousy mixed in. Even Morgana, the protagonist that I was really looking forward to reading about, often acts whiny, frustrated with what she has in life and bent on revenge. And as Morgana's frustration builds, so did mine. I have often stood on Morgana's side in the Arthurian Legend and this is one of those rare times that I did not.
When I don't like the protagonist, the rest of the book is unlikely to win me over.
Pulman's twists on the traditional tale is interesting and ordinarily something I would have enjoyed. What I would have loved more of is description. It would have brought some of the scenes more to life and make me more immersed in the story. However, that is not to criticize Pulman's writing style, which I enjoyed (disregarding my aforementioned frustration at the characters).
There are many points within this book where I struggled and had to force myself to continue reading. While I applaud Felicity Pulman for her brave adaptation on an old familiar well-beloved legend, the execution failed to win me over.
Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of the ebook was provided to me by the author and publisher Momentum Books in exchange of an honest review. The views expressed above are entirely my own and are in, no way, affected by the source of this book.
Obsessive Compulsive Reader
Actual Rating: 2.5/5
The Legend of King Arthur is one that is known to many within the literary world and while I can't say I am a huge fan (that honour, I believe, belongs to those true die-hards), I nonetheless love the tale and its various adaptations and works. Morgan le Fay is a character that I like despite her often being portrayed as the villain. The Road to Avalon by Joan Wolf, for example, is a book that I enjoyed immensely as it portrays Morgana in a kinder light. So when I heard of I, Morgana, I was intrigued by this new adaptation and wondered how the Arthurian Legend will be different from Morgana's perspective.
Sadly, I really struggled with this book.
The biggest struggle above all else is the relatability of the characters. Arthur comes across as weak, conniving with an immense dose of self-entitlement. Merlin often acts indifferent and lacks depth. One of the greatest love triangles is reduced down to something artificial with a heavy dose of cruelty and jealousy mixed in. Even Morgana, the protagonist that I was really looking forward to reading about, often acts whiny, frustrated with what she has in life and bent on revenge. And as Morgana's frustration builds, so did mine. I have often stood on Morgana's side in the Arthurian Legend and this is one of those rare times that I did not.
When I don't like the protagonist, the rest of the book is unlikely to win me over.
Pulman's twists on the traditional tale is interesting and ordinarily something I would have enjoyed. What I would have loved more of is description. It would have brought some of the scenes more to life and make me more immersed in the story. However, that is not to criticize Pulman's writing style, which I enjoyed (disregarding my aforementioned frustration at the characters).
There are many points within this book where I struggled and had to force myself to continue reading. While I applaud Felicity Pulman for her brave adaptation on an old familiar well-beloved legend, the execution failed to win me over.
Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of the ebook was provided to me by the author and publisher Momentum Books in exchange of an honest review. The views expressed above are entirely my own and are in, no way, affected by the source of this book.
Obsessive Compulsive Reader
June 17, 2014
[Full disclosure: I requested and received a free ebook copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]
I requested I, Morgana on a whim one day while browsing through NetGalley. The blurb sounded interesting enough but when I began the novel I was under the impression it would be all about Morgana railing against her wrongfully deserved evil reputation. Fortunately, it was nothing like that.
Morgana is an interesting narrator because she’s not very self-pitying. She accepts that she really did deserve a lot of her reputation and you can really feel her deep regret at all that she did in the name of trying to seize her kingdom back. Maybe her reputation as evil incarnate is not deserved but she was far from a good person in her younger years. Still, even though I didn’t like her as a person her introspective voice as she writes looking back on the events is enough to make me keep reading. Morgana is a complex person whose ultimate downfall was her pride so you really can’t help but empathize with her.
I liked how Felicity Pulman stuck to the traditional Arthurian legends most of us are familiar with but also put her own flair on them. Morgana can travel into the Otherworlds, which was never really mentioned in the traditional legends. She was also taught by Merlin himself and that makes for some very interesting confrontations later in the novel as both of them regret their shared past. Felicity Pulman decided to set her novel much, much later than most authors choose to set King Arthur’s time (she set it around the 1100s) but it works pretty well.
The only thing that disappointed me was that Felicity Pulman’s writing lacks description. Morgana is always telling us what is going on rather than describing the scene as she saw it at the time. It makes her a more sympathetic character in general but I would have loved a little more description of the various scenes throughout the novel. Telling is okay for some purposes but reading a whole novel of it isn’t necessarily the most exciting.
Still, I really did enjoy I, Morgana. It’s a very interesting take on a complicated woman who has become one of the great villains of legend.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
I requested I, Morgana on a whim one day while browsing through NetGalley. The blurb sounded interesting enough but when I began the novel I was under the impression it would be all about Morgana railing against her wrongfully deserved evil reputation. Fortunately, it was nothing like that.
Morgana is an interesting narrator because she’s not very self-pitying. She accepts that she really did deserve a lot of her reputation and you can really feel her deep regret at all that she did in the name of trying to seize her kingdom back. Maybe her reputation as evil incarnate is not deserved but she was far from a good person in her younger years. Still, even though I didn’t like her as a person her introspective voice as she writes looking back on the events is enough to make me keep reading. Morgana is a complex person whose ultimate downfall was her pride so you really can’t help but empathize with her.
I liked how Felicity Pulman stuck to the traditional Arthurian legends most of us are familiar with but also put her own flair on them. Morgana can travel into the Otherworlds, which was never really mentioned in the traditional legends. She was also taught by Merlin himself and that makes for some very interesting confrontations later in the novel as both of them regret their shared past. Felicity Pulman decided to set her novel much, much later than most authors choose to set King Arthur’s time (she set it around the 1100s) but it works pretty well.
The only thing that disappointed me was that Felicity Pulman’s writing lacks description. Morgana is always telling us what is going on rather than describing the scene as she saw it at the time. It makes her a more sympathetic character in general but I would have loved a little more description of the various scenes throughout the novel. Telling is okay for some purposes but reading a whole novel of it isn’t necessarily the most exciting.
Still, I really did enjoy I, Morgana. It’s a very interesting take on a complicated woman who has become one of the great villains of legend.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
July 31, 2014
I received a free copy of this book for review from NetGalley.
I’ve long been fascinated by the legend of King Arthur, especially retellings where new perspectives or unexpected elements are added. Consequently, as soon as I saw this title available on NetGalley, I applied. In many ways its the traditional legend of King Arthur, except this version is told in 1st person from the point of view of Morgana (Morgan le Fay), Arthur’s half-sister. Raised from a young age with the expectation of ruling her father Gorlois’ kingdom, Morgana sees her birthright usurped first by Uther Pendragon and then by Arthur. Consumed with the need for revenge, Morgana uses magic learned from Merlin to make her plans, and unwittingly sets in motion a far larger catastrophe.
This was an interesting read. We fully get the feeling of Morgana blundering ahead fueled by her emotions, and not really thinking through her actions until afterwards. Which is a problem when you work irreversible magics. This book definitely paints her more as a young woman, hurt and lashing out, than the evil incarnate some other versions depict her as. There were some new elements added, such as her having been taught by Merlin originally, and also a liaison with one of Arthur’s knights that has far-reaching consequences. Arthur and Guenevere appear in a much less flattering light, which was refreshing. The writing, though, was heavy on the telling rather than showing, so I never did get fully immersed in the story. And while Morgana as a character is more understandable with this narration, she did tend to harp on about how everyone had betrayed her and she’d get even, long past when she should’ve outgrown such a teenage sentimentality (this book spans several decades in her life). By the end, she is full of remorse and regret, but the growth to get to that point wasn’t as fully fledged out as it could’ve been.
But overall, if you have a liking for Arthurian lore, this is work picking up. It’s a quick read, and weaves in some new elements.
I’ve long been fascinated by the legend of King Arthur, especially retellings where new perspectives or unexpected elements are added. Consequently, as soon as I saw this title available on NetGalley, I applied. In many ways its the traditional legend of King Arthur, except this version is told in 1st person from the point of view of Morgana (Morgan le Fay), Arthur’s half-sister. Raised from a young age with the expectation of ruling her father Gorlois’ kingdom, Morgana sees her birthright usurped first by Uther Pendragon and then by Arthur. Consumed with the need for revenge, Morgana uses magic learned from Merlin to make her plans, and unwittingly sets in motion a far larger catastrophe.
This was an interesting read. We fully get the feeling of Morgana blundering ahead fueled by her emotions, and not really thinking through her actions until afterwards. Which is a problem when you work irreversible magics. This book definitely paints her more as a young woman, hurt and lashing out, than the evil incarnate some other versions depict her as. There were some new elements added, such as her having been taught by Merlin originally, and also a liaison with one of Arthur’s knights that has far-reaching consequences. Arthur and Guenevere appear in a much less flattering light, which was refreshing. The writing, though, was heavy on the telling rather than showing, so I never did get fully immersed in the story. And while Morgana as a character is more understandable with this narration, she did tend to harp on about how everyone had betrayed her and she’d get even, long past when she should’ve outgrown such a teenage sentimentality (this book spans several decades in her life). By the end, she is full of remorse and regret, but the growth to get to that point wasn’t as fully fledged out as it could’ve been.
But overall, if you have a liking for Arthurian lore, this is work picking up. It’s a quick read, and weaves in some new elements.
August 30, 2014
Being an Arthurian myth fan I really wanted to like this book, but in the end I was really disappointed. I had trouble liking the style in which it was written, but it is because I’ve acquired a taste for books that share more than one perspective.
I, Morgana by Felicity Pullman, as many re-writings of the Arthurian myth, it sticks to a format similar to Malory’s Le Morte D’Arthur and Bradley’s The Mysts of Avalon. Therefore, after reading many books like that the course of events and the characters seem a little old. I wasn’t surprise by anything. Pullman’s novel does have an interesting detail to it, and it is in the way that she manages to connect the different versions of the stories. Nonetheless, this feature, even though it’s nice, it does seem to get a little out of hand. After all, the amount of material that there is on this subject is gigantic; therefore connecting most of it in a credible manner is quite hard, and not entirely successful. But I liked that Pullman attempted to do so.
Now, being a huge Bradley fan every time that I find a book, or a TV show, where Morgana is immediately the bad guy, no matter what she does irks me in the worst possible way. So most of the book I was in a bad mood as I read Pullman’s version of Morgana turn into a hot mess.
So as I kept reading the mess became bigger and wider and more horrible until the poor Morgana couldn’t stop messing everything up. EVERYTHING. And so I finished the book and was left with a bitter unfulfilled feeling, which didn’t make me happy at all.
I, Morgana by Felicity Pullman, as many re-writings of the Arthurian myth, it sticks to a format similar to Malory’s Le Morte D’Arthur and Bradley’s The Mysts of Avalon. Therefore, after reading many books like that the course of events and the characters seem a little old. I wasn’t surprise by anything. Pullman’s novel does have an interesting detail to it, and it is in the way that she manages to connect the different versions of the stories. Nonetheless, this feature, even though it’s nice, it does seem to get a little out of hand. After all, the amount of material that there is on this subject is gigantic; therefore connecting most of it in a credible manner is quite hard, and not entirely successful. But I liked that Pullman attempted to do so.
Now, being a huge Bradley fan every time that I find a book, or a TV show, where Morgana is immediately the bad guy, no matter what she does irks me in the worst possible way. So most of the book I was in a bad mood as I read Pullman’s version of Morgana turn into a hot mess.
So as I kept reading the mess became bigger and wider and more horrible until the poor Morgana couldn’t stop messing everything up. EVERYTHING. And so I finished the book and was left with a bitter unfulfilled feeling, which didn’t make me happy at all.
February 25, 2015
As a huge King Arthur fan I was excited to find this new retelling just waiting to be read. Having never read anything by Pulman, I took a chance and was not disappointed. I grew to love Morgana in The Mists of Avalon, and I have found I lean towards positive portrayals of the villainized sister. Any story willing to tell Morgana’s side is always a welcome experience for me.
Throughout a good percentage of this story, I did not like Morgana. I was terrified that Pulman had created a monster portrayal of Morgana as a selfish, greedy, heartless brat. Luckily, Pulman allowed her character to grow and towards the end I saw redemption in her and adapted to this particular character rendition. I can’t say I loved this particular version of Morgana, but I felt it was an honest and possible explanation for how she came to be such a wounded soul.
In my opinion, the story flows like many similar King Arthur stories. Many acts we have read time and time again will appear in this story. Whether you have read The Mists of Avalon, Le Morte D’Arthur or watched the BBC TV show Merlin, there will be repeated scenes you have seen from many versions. The parts of the story Pulman took liberties with and attempted to make her own were aspects that allowed for open interpretation. I found the romance especially a unique twist that Pulman created.
I read this story in three days, which these days is pretty quick for me. If I read a book that fast it can only mean it brought me enjoyment to engage with. If you are a King Arthur legend enthusiast then I recommend this book.
Check out my review on my blog https://cellardoorbooks.wordpress.com/
Throughout a good percentage of this story, I did not like Morgana. I was terrified that Pulman had created a monster portrayal of Morgana as a selfish, greedy, heartless brat. Luckily, Pulman allowed her character to grow and towards the end I saw redemption in her and adapted to this particular character rendition. I can’t say I loved this particular version of Morgana, but I felt it was an honest and possible explanation for how she came to be such a wounded soul.
In my opinion, the story flows like many similar King Arthur stories. Many acts we have read time and time again will appear in this story. Whether you have read The Mists of Avalon, Le Morte D’Arthur or watched the BBC TV show Merlin, there will be repeated scenes you have seen from many versions. The parts of the story Pulman took liberties with and attempted to make her own were aspects that allowed for open interpretation. I found the romance especially a unique twist that Pulman created.
I read this story in three days, which these days is pretty quick for me. If I read a book that fast it can only mean it brought me enjoyment to engage with. If you are a King Arthur legend enthusiast then I recommend this book.
Check out my review on my blog https://cellardoorbooks.wordpress.com/
July 21, 2014
I enjoyed I, Morgana which is Morgana’s fictional account of the King Arthur and Camelot story. In every tale I have read of Merlin and King Arthur, Morgana has played an evil part. However, the villain’s side of the story is usually a richer, more interesting one, and this is certainly true with Morgana.
The writing is excellent in both description and action so that I was lost in her world or perhaps worlds would be more accurate. The characters have depth and texture beyond the common stories that I read of the legend. No one is perfect but all make human mistakes, but missing forgiveness is perhaps the biggest downfall of all in this version.
While Morgana tells her story and does not shy away from her huge part in the downfall of Camelot, there is sad remorse in the epilogue, which I found to make her more likable in the end. This is a new perspective and a deeper look at the King Arthur legend.
A copy was provided by NetGalley for an honest review.
The writing is excellent in both description and action so that I was lost in her world or perhaps worlds would be more accurate. The characters have depth and texture beyond the common stories that I read of the legend. No one is perfect but all make human mistakes, but missing forgiveness is perhaps the biggest downfall of all in this version.
While Morgana tells her story and does not shy away from her huge part in the downfall of Camelot, there is sad remorse in the epilogue, which I found to make her more likable in the end. This is a new perspective and a deeper look at the King Arthur legend.
A copy was provided by NetGalley for an honest review.
August 3, 2016
This is one engulfing story. One thing that struck my interest was the way all characters were portrayed. I read in the comments that some people did not like how the characters were portrayed as weak, and led to disliking them. I would like to argue that this is what makes the book good. You are reading it through Morgana's eyes. In order for her to be able to justify her actions it is vital that she sees them as weak and horrible people, unfit for their role. Otherwise how and why would she be so vengeful. It is important to read this book with an open mind, stripping from any beliefs about the actual characters, because you are reading from the 'villain's' perspective. It is not easy to see beloved characters through a bad light, but Pulman has managed to step back from the tales of the great Arthur and Merlin and show the actual struggle of Morgana and to justify her actions.
Overall a pretty good book, a bit long for my liking, but worth reading every word from it.
Overall a pretty good book, a bit long for my liking, but worth reading every word from it.
Shelved as 'abandoned'
September 10, 2014I received I, Morgana through NetGalley in return for an honest review.
While I am reviewing the book, I cannot give it a star rating as I did not finish the book.
While I am aware of the Arthurian Legends, I don't recall ever reading a book based on them. So this is my first! Will it be my last? I'm not sure - if someone points me in the direction of a good book based on those characters then I'd give it a go but I won't be seeking them out myself.
This book is told from the perspective of Morgana, Arthur's sister. I really didn't like how the story was presented to the reader. It was more like a diary (but not actually) that sequenced the events of Morgana's life and I just didn't find it very interesting at all.
While I am reviewing the book, I cannot give it a star rating as I did not finish the book.
While I am aware of the Arthurian Legends, I don't recall ever reading a book based on them. So this is my first! Will it be my last? I'm not sure - if someone points me in the direction of a good book based on those characters then I'd give it a go but I won't be seeking them out myself.
This book is told from the perspective of Morgana, Arthur's sister. I really didn't like how the story was presented to the reader. It was more like a diary (but not actually) that sequenced the events of Morgana's life and I just didn't find it very interesting at all.
September 17, 2014
This was the first book EM was approved for on Netgalley. Unfortunately, she couldnt get into the story so I gave it a try. After binge watching BBC One's Merlin on Netflix, the synopsis sounded great. But I couldnt get past chapter two no matter how hard I tried. I kept falling asleep everytime she turned into a bird. For the past three months I have been picking it up and just setting it aside for other lovelies.
The main issue was that there wasnt much interaction between the characters. The audience is in Morgana's head and became very boring and repetitive. This is the first book I read in Arthurian time. But I own four different series. I hope I can make it through them.
The main issue was that there wasnt much interaction between the characters. The audience is in Morgana's head and became very boring and repetitive. This is the first book I read in Arthurian time. But I own four different series. I hope I can make it through them.
September 7, 2014
THIS EBOOK IS A PRE-PUBLISH DATE VERSION, PROVIDED FOC FOR A CANDID REVIEW
I, Morgana had so much potential; Morgana’s story, told from Morgana’s perspective, but I’m afraid it didn’t live up to it. The narrative was dull and lacked detail. I could not warm to her or feel any sympathy (and the narrative was in the present tense which was odd to read).
As a bit of an Arthurian geek, I was looking forward to revisiting some favourite characters, but once more I was disappointed. I couldn’t stomach any more after reading King Arthur portrayed so pathetically weak.
Did not finish
I, Morgana had so much potential; Morgana’s story, told from Morgana’s perspective, but I’m afraid it didn’t live up to it. The narrative was dull and lacked detail. I could not warm to her or feel any sympathy (and the narrative was in the present tense which was odd to read).
As a bit of an Arthurian geek, I was looking forward to revisiting some favourite characters, but once more I was disappointed. I couldn’t stomach any more after reading King Arthur portrayed so pathetically weak.
Did not finish
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