Spear
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4.2 • 19 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Winner of the ADCI Literary Prize
Winner of the L.A. Times Ray Bradbury Prize
Finalist for the Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction
Finalist for the Nebula Award for Best Novel
Finalist for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel
Finalist for the HWA Gold Crown Award for Historical Fiction
"[A] queer Arthurian masterpiece for the modern era."—Los Angeles Times
"A pleasure to follow [and] a lovely flexing of Griffith’s strengths in short form." —The New York Times Book Review
“Spectacular—I've been waiting years for this book to exist.” —Maria Dahvana Headley, author of Beowulf: A New Translation
"If Le Guin wrote a Camelot story, I imagine it would feel like Spear: humane, intelligent, and deeply beautiful. It's a new story with very old bones, a strange place that feels like home." —Alix E. Harrow, author of A Spindle Splintered
A Shelf Awareness Best of the Year pick
A Vulture Best Fantasy of the Year pick
She left all she knew to find who she could be . . .
She grows up in the wild wood, in a cave with her mother, but visions of a faraway lake drift to her on the spring breeze, scented with promise. And when she hears a traveler speak of Artos, king of Caer Leon, she decides her future lies at his court. So, brimming with magic and eager to test her strength, she breaks her covenant with her mother and sets out on her bony gelding for Caer Leon.
With her stolen hunting spear and mended armour, she is an unlikely hero, not a chosen one, but one who forges her own bright path. Aflame with determination, she begins a journey of magic and mystery, love, lust and fights to death. On her adventures, she will steal the hearts of beautiful women, fight warriors and sorcerers, and make a place to call home.
The legendary author of Hild returns with an unforgettable hero and a queer Arthurian masterpiece for the modern era. Nicola Griffith’s Spear is a spellbinding vision of the Camelot we've longed for, a Camelot that belongs to us all.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This fresh, emotionally immediate queer spin on the Medieval tale of Percival and the Holy Grail reaffirms Griffith (So Lucky) as a consummate storyteller. Peretur, raised in a cave by her mother, grows up desperate to see the outside world. As her strength and magical ability grow, so too does her ambition, and she soon makes her way to the court of King Artos disguised as a young man. There, in classic Arthurian style, Peretur faces a battery of tests and challenges—embarking on quests, stealing the hearts of maidens, and butting heads with various members of the court. Before long, her untrained magic makes her a target, and she must return home to face her greatest challenge yet. Steeped in period texture that brings remote history fully into the present, and lushly illustrated by Rovina Cai (The Seventh Raven), this tale of destiny, belonging, and home is a genuine pleasure. With a gender-swapped protagonist and purposeful representation of people of color and people with disabilities, this is an ideal pick for fans of retold legends, as well as those looking for diverse fantasy.
Customer Reviews
Lovely, inclusive reimagining
The beginning was slow going for me, with all the odd names. But once the protagonist set out on her own, I was hooked. Love seeing this story through a queer woman’s eyes