Rise of Knight and Sword

Imagine a mixture of this:
- Han Solo + Leia romance
- Dinotopia
- Arthurian Legend
... And you get pretty close to understanding what Rise of Knight and Sword is about. If you watched/read Cursed and thought it needed more steampunk and pterodactyls, then you'll probably love this debut by Miriam Wade.

In this first in the One Sword series (trilogy?), we get political power-grabs, a fancy library, teenage infatuation, Excaliber, and Zeppelin stowaways. There's space for the characters to grow and develop (protag. and antagonists alike), but, at the very least, it adds new elements to a familiar story. I don't recommend reading if you're not a fan of anachronistic reimaginings of Arthurian lore (and definitely not if you're not a fan of Arthurian legends period).

An interesting novel, which grows on the reader very quickly. Guinevere is an archivist who discovers a map leading to the legendary sword, Excalibur. She has to run with it, gets away, and then finds that she has a bounty on her head. What happens next I leave to the reader to find out, as I don't wish to spoil the ending.

I requested a copy of this book before I saw the rating, and as soon as I saw it, I was super skeptical. My skepticism proved to be wrong though, because I still really enjoyed this book. While it was far from the best I've read, the plot kept me intrigued.

This book follows Guinevere on her journey to find Excalibur, highlighting a character usually ignored in the legend. Along the way she meets familiar characters, like Merlin, Arthur, Mordred, and Lancelot. All of these characters have been rewritten to fit into a steampunk world with dinosaurs roaming the wild, so the story felt completely different from other Arthurian legends.

The characters in this were really the star of the book. Guinevere became a historically savvy heroine with a world to protect. Mordred became a gruff bounty hunter with a hidden soft spot. Merlin became a mysterious fortune telling female knight. And, saving the best for last, Arthur became a pirate-esque smuggler, with something to prove. As soon as he waltzed in with his double pistols, I was in love. He was by far my favorite character, I loved his sarcasm and the constant banter between him and Mordred.

Speaking of Mordred, I kind of despised him at times. He was a total jerk, and swung between being kind to Guinevere, and demeaning her. I did my best to ignore his faults, but I do have to say that I was somewhat happy when he fell out of the narrative.

The romance in this book was one of the weakest points. As soon as Arthur laid eyes on Guinevere, he was in love, and because I hate insta-love, I was immediately a bit irritated. Thankfully, Guinevere played hard to get, so our romance turned slightly slow-burn. Arthur and Gawain's flirtations with Guinevere were always a light spot in the book, and kept me smiling.

Now, a lot of the complaints in the other reviews I've seen were about the writing style. Don't get me wrong, it definitely had its problems, but I found myself adapting to it, and by the end of the book, it didn't bother me. We had several large info dumps that I ended up skimming, and the author also had a tendency to write in the "she did this. she did that" formula, which felt super choppy. This may have been because this was a debut novel, but it did make reading a bit hard at times.

Despite the lower ratings on this book, I did enjoy it. I am a fan of most Arthurian retellings though, so that might have been part of it. I loved Wade's reimaginings of the classic characters, and the plot had enough action to keep me interested. I would say that this book is pretty hit-or-miss with readers, and I do understand some of the lower ratings.

Thanks to Miriam Wade and Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review

This book was received as an ARC from GenZ Publishing - Zenith Publishing in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I love everything Arthurian Mythology and I was super excited to find out that this book is the first of a new upcoming YA series to be released this year. My jaw was wide open and my excitement increased with pleasure as I kept reading each page. The stamina and tenacity Guinevere showed as she discovered the map to Excalibur I could not help but cheer her on the entire way. It always cheers me up when I get excited in anticipation for the next installment for a series and I haven't had that feeling since I finished the House of Night series by P.C. and Kristin Cast and having loved Rise of Knight and Sword, can not wait for Book 2. Our teen book club will be in frenzy for this book.

We will consider adding this title to our YA collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Wade's debut novel is definitely a refreshing take on an old-literary favorite.

If you've ever read White's The Sword and the Stone then you know that there are a lot of ways that Arthurian legend can be interpreted. Wade's Rise of Knight and Sword is reminiscent of White's attempt to reinvent Arthur, Guinevere, and the story that brought Arthur to power in Camelot - with a couple of modern twists.

The steam punk feel of the world Wade creates, including an intrinsic look at the age's technological fascination, goes hand-in-hand with her retelling of the struggle to power that put Arthur on the throne and created a whole new era for the citizens under his reign. With strong female characters, like Guinevere and Merlin, and sassy male hot-heads (looking at you Arthur),, Wade takes you on an adventure that will have you on the edge of your seat at times.

I laughed, I shook my head, I got extremely angry at Mordred and had to stop reading for a while. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and am super excited to see what Arthur and Guinevere's next adventure will be.

My only complaint has to do with the dinosaurs. Not gonna give away any spoilers though, so if you wanna find out what's up with the dino's you'll have to pick a copy up for yourself.

I receive a copy of this book from NetGalley and the publishers, GenZ Publishing, All opinions and views in this review are my own.

A book smart Guinevere in a steampunk Avalon with dinosaurs! In this modernized twist to the Arthurian legend, Guinevere goes on the quest to find Excalibur with two bounty hunters, using an ancient map found in the library she works.

With a creative premise, so inventive, I loved how the difference the characters have in this like who the bounty hunters are (nope won't spoil the surprise) even gender swapping one of my fave characters. Plus the little quirky details like Hengroen is an airship instead of a stallion!

Exceptional world building, decorated with plentiful details of the wonderous places and gadgets that the author has imagined. Descriptions that bring the action alive and make the suspense oh so captivating, oh so sweeter.

Guinevere's got spunk as one of the characters says, a bit naive but open to new things, vulnerable in a good way. The bounty hunters are wiseasses and so smirk-worthy. I love the trio's interactions. As hoped and expected, Guinevere is becoming braver, more of a force to be reckoned with.

Cleverly planned out by the author, I really enjoyed the twisty route of the story. Also the action is quite fast-paced and a lot is happening at once, so you really have to pay attention. But the author does a good job of explaining.I really like that the dinosaurs are not abstract, but actually are part of the story. Also that finding Excalibur becomes a matter of saving their world from the clutches of an evil king.

A hopeful romance that we know is destined but still surprising in how it is portrayed, you actually root for them. Arthur is not quite what you expect. It's interesting to see him slowly transform into the valiant knight we know. Also the path is not clear or straightforward for him to become the "once and future king".

Was a little disappointed with a betrayal that happens. It was confusing in my opinion and the reveal didn't play out as well as it could. A bit of a plot misstep in an otherwise great tale. Also the ending was a bit abrupt, as we are enjoying a nice 'final battle' suddenly things are tied up too neatly in a nice bow.

Presenting themes of inner strength, loyalty, faith and standing up for what you believe in, this was an exciting roller coaster of an adventure. I adored how fun it was. Who doesn't need some old fashioned fun in their life? This gets 4 stars on charm alone.