The Pendragon Cycle, book 1
Format: Paperback, 512 pages
Publisher: Lion Hudson Plc (29 Jan 1988)
ISBN-10: 0745913091
ISBN-13: 978-0745913094
Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 910 KB
Print Length: 496 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins e-books (11 May 2004)
ASIN: B000FC141M
Kindle summary (from amazon.co.uk)
It was a time of legend, when the last shadows of the mighty Roman conqueror faded from the captured Isle of Britain. While across a vast sea, bloody war shattered a peace that had flourished for two thousand years in the doomed kingdom of Atlantis.
Taliesin is the remarkable adventure of Charis, the Atlantean princess who escaped the terrible devastation of her homeland, and of the fabled seer and druid prince Taliesin, singer at the dawn of the age. It is the story of an incomparable love that joined two worlds amid the fires of chaos, and spawned the miracles of Merlin...and Arthur the king.
Taliesin consists of two parallel stories that join up towards the end of the book, each being told in alternate chapters. One is the story of Charis, an Atlantean princess who becomes a bull dancer; the other of the eponymous Taliesin who is found as a newborn in a salmon weir and grows up the son of a Welsh Celtic king and trains as a Druid Bard... as the summary suggests, these two are destined to be the parents of Merlin.
I have to admit I found Lawhead's world of Atlantis fascinating, though in many ways it 'borrowed' from several real ancient cultures, the Minoan civilisation being a prominent one, especially with the bull-dancing scenes. Names, too, seemed to reference characters, gods or places from ancient worlds - Annubi, the high priest (Egyptian); Queen Danae (Irish Celtic); and Briesis (Troy), to name just three, which struck me as odd - or was this a clumsy way of letting us know that the fall Atlantis had a lasting legacy on our own history? Either way, the timing does not fit. The Welsh part of Taliesin is set in the pre-Christian Pax Romana Britain, where the Roman power and influence was on the decline, however, Plato's works on Atlantis were written several centuries before this period. Another thing that irritated me: potatoes were not known in Britain (or Ireland) until AFTER 1492AD, when Sir Walter Raleigh brought some back to the court of Elizabeth I. There is no excuse for such sloppy research!
My favourite character was Charis, a carefree princess at the beginning of the book, with an affinity for seeing glimpses of the future through Atlantean devices. She is an endearing, inquisitive, mischievous child but when tragedy hits her family, she ends up becoming a bull-dancer, one of the best ever seen in Atlantis arenas. Through this tragedy and life change, she becomes hard and cold, living only for her Gulls (dance troupe) and the dance with the fearsome bulls. Taliesin, on the other hand, is a golden boy. He brings good fortune to his finder, the hapless Elphin,considered a jonas to his clan up till he fishes the baby out of his salmon weir. Suddenly Elphin becomes the clan leader, eclipsing his father the King; gathers a warband together, gets the Romans to train and shape them into a formidable fighting force, and meets and marries his soulmate almost at first sight. A bit implausible I thought. But Taliesin is destined to be a famous bard, as foreseen by the clan Druid, Hafgan and is an apt pupil, learning the ways of the Druids throughout his childhood.
Taliesin reads like a fairly run-of-the-mill historical novel for the most part. The Atlantis section I found more interesting, mainly because I have a fascination with Atlantis and it's destruction already. However, I felt much of the culture and politics described were gleaned from existing sources, predominantly the Minoan and Greek civilisations, so it did not feel original. The Celts were depicted in a rather primitive, 'noble savages' type way, which grated with me at times.
Overall, Taliesin was an enjoyable read, despite the various issues I have already mentioned. I'm not sure if I want to continue with the series - the Pendragon Cycle runs to 5 books - there are better retellings of the entire Arthur myth around.
Plot: 5
Characters: 5
Style: 4
Overall rating 5/10
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