This week’s #spellbooksaturday was truly a delightful blend of fantasy, time travel, and romance from the author of The Once and Future Witches…
The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Sir Una Everlasting was Dominion’s greatest hero: the orphaned girl who became a knight, who died for queen and country. Her legend lives on in songs and stories, in children’s books and recruiting posters—but her life as it truly happened has been forgotten. Centuries later, Owen Mallory—failed soldier, struggling scholar—falls in love with the tale of Una Everlasting. Her story takes him to war, to the archives—and then into the past itself. Una and Owen are tangled together in time, bound to retell the same story over and over again, no matter what it costs. But that story always ends the same way. If they want to rewrite Una’s legend—if they want to tell a different story— they’ll have to rewrite history itself.
[source: bookshop.org]
As someone who devoured Arthurian legends as a child, I really appreciated Harrow’s world building through the use of myths and legends, and her exploration of the ways in which these stories may be used dangerously to foster nationalism. The pacing was captivating, and I was pleasantly surprised by the first major twist in the novel. Time-travel plots can be challenging for writers to execute effectively, without falling prey to overused tropes and paradoxes, but Harrow maneuvers with surprising skill, giving emotional weight to her characters that supports the narrative throughout.
Have you read The Everlasting? What were your thoughts? Share in the comments!
I have a Bookshop.org list of #spellbooksaturday features for folks to peruse, but in the spirit of transparency, as a Bookshop.org affiliate, I receive a small percentage of book sales purchased through my links. If you find that off-putting, feel free to shop directly through bookshop.org or your own local bookseller! My only goal here is to resist Amazon and the mega-rich.
DID YOU ENJOY THIS SPELLBOOK SATURDAY FEATURE? SHOP THE LIST ON BOOKSHOP.ORG, OR CHECK OUT SOME MORE READING RECOMMENDATIONS…
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