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Hot new releases and under-the-radar gems for adults and kids.
Staff Pick
A fascinating and lush retelling of Arthurian legend that feels as true and strange, as lofty and immediate, as queer (in every sense of the word) as a myth should be — I devoured this book and it haunted me wonderfully. Recommended By Claire A., Powells.com
Griffith's masterful queer retelling of the Percival Arthurian mythology is the bite sized bonfire story of your dreams. Or mine, at least. Sensual, tactile, dense, and dreamy, I dragged my feet to make it last and immediately added her other books to my TBR. Recommended By SitaraG, Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
"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
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.
Review
"Nicola Griffith braids the Percival tales to her own ferocious imagination, and the results are spellbinding. Her novel is a reclamation of the touchstones of Arthurian myth — skewering received notions with the sharp point of her pen. If that sounds too theoretical, let me also say that it's a screamingly hot canon-queering epic filled with bloody battles, and world-shaking magic. Spear is an unprecedented and spectacular investigation of the Matter of Britain. I've been waiting years for this book about the once and future everyone else to exist."
Maria Dahvana Headley, author of The Mere Wife and Beowulf: A New Translation
Review
"A mesmerizing tale that manages to be both epic and immersive in a short, intimate span, Spear gives us a vivid hero, a daring quest, and a clear-eyed reimaging of Arthurian legend."
Malka Older, author of State Tectonics
Review
“This fresh, emotionally immediate queer spin on the medieval tale of Percival and the Holy Grail reaffirms Griffith as a consummate storyteller.”
Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Nicola Griffith (she/her) is a dual UK/US citizen living in Seattle. She is the author of award-winning novels including Hild and Ammonite, and her shorter work has appeared in Nature, New Scientist, New York Times, etc. She is the founder and co-host of #CripLit, holds a PhD from Anglia Ruskin University, and enjoys a ferocious bout of wheelchair boxing. She is married to novelist and screenwriter Kelley Eskridge.