By the Light of Camelot

by J.R. Campbell, Shannon Allen

Ruled by Arthur, the Once and Future King, these Knights took their place next to those who would become legend. Lancelot. Galahad. Tristan. Yet Kingdoms are not shaped by myths but by courage and belief...
Arkin. Tor. Brannon - Each earned their place at the Round Table but to fulfill their destiny of glory they must discover the truths within.
For no false knight can complete a true quest.
Set against a landscape of magic, cruelty and destiny, By the Light of Camelot includes 13 original Arthurian tales by award-winning Shannon Allen, Colleen Anderson, Renee Bennett, J. R. Campbell, M. K. Hume, William Meikle, R. Overwater, Fiona Patton, Diana L. Paxson, Simon Kurt Unsworth, Wendy N. Wagner, Lawrence Watt-Evans, Jane Yolen .
"Valiant Knights who are driven by the code of Camelot as they ride across a wide arc of story where your are sure to find damsels who are not always in distress, peril and creatures that lurk in the dark. A collection of Tales that rework the magic of Camelot for the 21st century reader." - The editors

Genres: Fantasy, Arthurian, Short Stories, Fiction

260 pages, Paperback

First published May 15, 2018

Reviews

[Wanda Pedersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

2020 Summer Clearance Sale

I've only had this book on my shelf for about a year, so its relatively new in my backlog. I picked it up at the annual writers conference that I usually attend after hearing it talked about in a session. I am a sucker for King Arthur tales, so I parted with cash.

These are short stories & poetry. They may be set in Arthurian Britain, but many of the themes explored are very 21st century. As with any collection, the editors have worked to provide a variety of ideas and something in it should tickle each reader's fancy, though not all may impress everyone.

I found them all reasonably enjoyable, but I was particularly fond of The Prisoner of Shalott by Lawrence Watt-Evans and Shadow of the Wolf by Diana L. Paxson. Honourable mention to Sir Tor and the River Maiden by Colleen Anderson and The Song of the Star by Renee Bennett. Several of these tales show the definite influence of contemporary urban fantasy, something which I will never complain about.

An interesting collection and money well spent. And now I must find my CD of Lorena McKennitt singing her marvelous version of The Lady of Shalott.

[Andy N · Rating 3 out of 5]

A new take on Arthurian tales, these short stories are written by different authors who give their own spin to both familiar and more obscure characters.

This book provides stories of some of the less known and talked about knights of the round table and other characters related to Arthur. While I'm familiar with most of Arthurian legends and stories, and this book was quite new for me.

The stories are nicely written and the pace is good. My only issue was the occasional attempt to integrate a modern concept or value.

Apart from that, a nice, quick read read!

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital copy!

[Caitlin Baskerville · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this collection of short stories.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

BY THE LIGHT OF CAMELOT is edited by JR Campbell and Shannon Allen and published by EDGE-Lite, an imprint of Hades Publications. EDGE publishes full-length novels and anthologies of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror.
The publisher is quite eclectic and I was first introduced to EDGE when I received an ARC E-Book, COMPOSTELA: TESSERACTS TWENTY, which I thoroughly enjoyed reading and highly recommended even though I would swear that I don’t like Science Fiction!
BY THE LIGHT OF CAMELOT consists of 12 short stories and 2 poems - all set against the backdrop of the Arthurian legends. A publisher’s note; a Table of Contents; a Foreword by editor JR Campbell; an About the Editors and Need Something New to Read? offer great access points into the book.
Authors include Jr Campbell, Jane Yolen, Fiona Patton, Wendy N. Wagner, Shannon Allen, Simon Kurt Unsworth, R. Overwater, Colleen Anderson, Lawrence Watt-Evans, William Meikle, M.K. Hume, Renee Bennett, and Diana L. Paxson.
I especially liked the Foreword by JR Campbell. An anthology needs a focus, a gathering place, an introduction. JR Campbell’s Intro was all these things. I nearly swooned when I saw the opening lines of Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shalott”. I couldn’t wait to begin!
As a school librarian, I am very familiar with Jane Yolen’s work, and her short poem, “A Short History of the Table Round” was excellent. I liked the lines, “Anywhere the king sits is the head, Royalty likes to split such hairs, We braid them into our tales.”
Although all the stories were interesting, very clever and enjoyable, my favorite was “The Prisoner of Shalott” by Lawrence Watt-Evans. Elaine (THE Lady of Shalott) is one of my favorite characters/people from the Arthurian Legends. Her infatuation with Lancelot and the fairy curse that is placed upon her as a result, is the basis of Tennyson’s famous poem and has resonated with me since I was a kid.
I quite liked “Shadow of the Wolf” by Diana L. Paxson, also.
The writing is so descriptive - I can picture the “long rows of barley and of rye that clothe the wold and reach the sky”. (from “The Lady of Shalott”) I can ‘smell’ the landscape, also. “The air is warm, weighted with the scents of new grass and thyme”. (from “Shadow of the Wolf”)
I have always been interested in the Arthurian Legends. I am reminded of youthful reading and imagination and fantasy.
Thank you for this wonderful anthology of Arthurian stories with some new ‘twists’. ****

[Alison C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of "By the Light of Camelot" from Edge, the publisher, through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewer program. As the title suggests, these are original short stories (and 2 short poems which serve as front and end pieces to the book) having to do with the Arthurian mythos as interpreted by a baker’s dozen of contemporary authors. Of those, I had only known the work of Jane Yolen, Lawrence Watt-Evans and Diana L. Paxson before now, but I was happy to discover new writers, especially Fiona Patton, Wendy N. Wagner, R. Overwater and Renee Bennett in these pages. Most of the stories are set either during the fictional/fantastical period known as Camelot, or some time after the probable Roman soldier on whom Arthur is said to be based, say during the period after the Roman retreat from Britain, when Angles and Saxons and Danes arrived, followed by Franks. I was a bit surprised to note the Wagner story, “Loyalty of A Thousand Years,” which turns up early in the anthology, is the only one set in modern times; its placement in the book made me think there would be more stories told in the current era. Aside from that quibble, I liked pretty much all the stories here, especially editor Allen’s “Before All Else” (which of course put me in mind of Lloyd Alexander), Overwater’s “House of the Knight’s Nail,” Patton’s “Brannon and the Raven,” Watt-Evans’s “The Prisoner of Shalott” (I’ll never read the poem the same way again) and Paxson’s gritty “Shadow of the Wolf.” Many of the stories feature quests, but there is enough variety in both the types of quests and the individuals questing that I didn’t feel any sense of “sameness” to the book that might be tiring to the reader. Of course each reader will prefer certain stories over others, but if you’re either an Arthurian buff or Arthur-curious, this is a volume well worth reading. Recommended!

[Abbey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A new take on Arthurian tales, this compilation of short stories from a variety of authors spins the familiar characters in unexplored ways. The stories include several tales of knights with shocking secrets, exploration of the old religions, and plenty of magic.

We are all familiar with a number of the Arthurian stories and characters. This book however, follows the stories of some of the more obscure knights of the round table, as well as some more distant associates of King Arthur. The stories in this book are neither over-told or familiar, and even the most devoted fan of Arthurian legend is bound to find something new here.

I enjoyed the pace of the stories, and the snapshot nature of some of them. They aren't all a full start-to-finish story, but rather a piece of a larger puzzle, a moment in time in the life of a character. This leaves you feeling like there is a bigger story going on, one that began long before the first page, and will carry on long after the final sentence.

The stories themselves range from fascinating and well presented to monotonous and overly current issue heavy, with a more graceless pushy message of modern times. I enjoyed all of the stories, but some of them were less fun than others because of their obvious ulterior motive of making a specific statement. This may well be a matter of personal opinion though, as it could certainly be argued that this type of fiction is meant to lead you on a specific though progression, and that Arthurian legend specifically has always carried strong political and religious overtones.

As a quick read, I would definitely recommend this to anyone interested in Arthurian legend, or historical fiction in general.

[David Cain · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology of 12 stories (plus two short poems) is inspired by Arthurian literature. Few of the stories feature King Arthur himself (or any of the other well-known characters from the oeuvre) as direct characters, although several mention them in passing. Many of the tales are relatively straightforward stories of knightly quests, others focus on the magical side of things, and a few venture into romance or horror. I was not previously familiar with any of the authors, although many of them have an extensive publishing record. The writing is of uneven quality, ranging from excellent to amateurish. I did feel that this volume was edited well. Overall, I do recommend this for readers interested in modern, accessible takes on Arthurian-inspired fantasy. A disclaimer: I received an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a rather wonderful collection of stories about Camelot and it's many players. Some of the stories are resonant of tales we already know just told in a somewhat different way, others eschew the traditional tales and invite modern discussions into classic mythos. Rather than just being filled with brave nights rescuing damsels, these stories explore female strength, transgender issues, and masculine flaws in a human, understanding, and nonjudgemental way making the tales of Camelot more human and relatable rather than purely set in a fantastic world.

All of the stories are strong in character development and structure, which I find is uncommon in anthologies. There always seems to be a weak link, but I did not find it in this collection. Well written, curated, and edited all the way around. I very much enjoyed this read.

[Maegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

First, I would like to thank EDGE-Lite publishing and LibraryThing Early Reviewers for giving me a free ecopy of this book.
I thoroughly enjoyed this short story collection set in Camelot. The stories were diverse in their settings and characters but still kept the same theme throughout the entire book. There are two poems that I didn't care for, one at the beginning of the book and one at the end, but that is more of a personal preference. I did actually enjoy all the stories in this book though.
Highly recommended if you like Arthurian legend, or any fantasy!

[Stephen Merritt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book for an honest review. This is a collection of stories related to the legends of King Arthur and Camelot. Different takes on Arthur, his Knights, and those around the country at that time. The stories provide many different tales from the viewpoint of many people. Many just with people around the country and some involving a Knight or those wishing to become a Knight.
Very interesting read with chapters as complete short stories. I very much enjoyed reading all these stories.

[Euni · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of Arthurian tales varied incredibly. There were a few poems and tales that took place in modern and ancient times. I enjoyed that the tales gave you some background on lesser known knights of the round table, but not all of them were written as well as others. This became evident from story to story. When I got to the stories that were written well I devoured them, but the other stories just dragged. Over all the book was interesting and some of the tales were pretty fantastic, but be aware that some parts will absolutely drag.

[Tammy Dotts · Rating 2 out of 5]

Most of the stories felt unfinished, as if the authors hit their deadlines and just stopped writing. Stronger endings would have helped. As would characters that drew the reader in. The only story that rose above the mediocrity of the whole was Diane Paxson’s Shadow of the Wolf. She told a complete story and made me care about all of the characters.

[Nightwing Whitehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very interesting view on Camelot, from some vastly differing points of view. Jane Yolen contributed an wry poem that had me smiling for days afterward while Diane Paxson's evocative tale with its descriptive landscapes and emotions is still affecting me. Each tale added to the history that is Camelot, and together they made for a fabulous way to fill a rainy weekend.

[Annarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love King Arthur stories and the title was what attracted me.
This is a very good collection of stories, well written and with interesting and strong characters.
Some stories are better than other as usual and this was a very enjoyable and entertaining read.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book for free from EarlyReviewers.

I love stories of Camelot, so I was looking forward to reading it, but most of the short stories really weren't that interesting to me. I thought the book was okay, but nothing too special.