Sword at Sunset

I accidentally found and read this book almost forty years ago. It has never left my mind. I must have been about twelve. I loved all things Arthurian and had by that time read everything i could get from the library. All of the children's renditions as well as the classic versions. When I found this in a box of paperbacks I was thrilled but somewhat put off by the darkness of the cover art. It was my introduction to legend written as possible reality. It was a revelation to read after so much of the idealized glory of chivalry that I had loved. The story was told as the memories of a dying man. Merlin was more of an engineer than a sorcerer. Politics. Dirt. Bad people. Because of this book, I was able to go on on to enjoy Mary Renault's versions of the Greek legends. I am happy to find it here and i will read it again.

I just finished both "Sword At Sunset" and its predecessor "The Lantern Bearers" and both books were absolutely magnificent works of Roman historical fiction. "Sword At Sunset" tells the tale of Artos the Bear, whom we know better as King Arthur, and his attempts to rally a polyglot conglomeration of Romans, Celts, and even native Britons (the Dark People) to repel the invasions of the Saxons, Angles, and Jutes. Artos first becomes the Count of Britain, a title left over from Roman occupation, and eventually becomes Western "Emperor" of Britain as he battles his Saxon foes and their opportunistic Celtic allies to keep the darkness at bay. This book was one of the first to really tell the legendary tale of King Arthur in a manner that could have actually happened, and if there WAS a real King Arthur, his life and battles probably bore a great resemblance to these tales. Told with frightening accuracy and details regarding not only the epic, gripping battles but the day-to-day aspects of running an army, this book is an absolute treat for historical buffs. And the characterization is rich and believable--not just the main characters but ALL of the cast of this book are three-dimensional, believable human beings, with foibles and personalities. Anyone looking for knights in shining armor and chivalry of the medieval sort should keep on looking, but anyone who wants an utterly convincing and captivating tale of what the last days of Roman Britain was like should make the effort to track down a used copy of this book (its no longer in print unfortunately). This is one of two books--"Eagle In the Snow" by Wallace Breem is the other--that gives an unstintingly accurate protrayal of life at the end of the Roman Empire without sacrificing characterization, plot, or readability. Strongly strongly recommended.

I've treasured my copy of this novel for decades. Sutcliff specialized in Dark Age Britain, although this is the only novel she wrote for adults. She weaves a haunting portrait of a misty, troubled, ancient land where Roman civilization and Celtic pagan culture are threatened by the barbaric Saxon invaders. Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot (here shown as the original character of Bedivere--Lancelot is strictly an invention of the Middle Ages)are portrayed as the historical characters they surely were. Don't look for a fantasy Camelot, with banners and Round-Tables. Here, Arthur is a Romano-Celtic warlord, desperately working to stave off the inevitable invasion. There is a brooding quality of impending doom that pervades the entire book. No one has ever drawn a more convincing canvas of Romano-Celtic Britain, in my opinion, or a more realistic portrait of the kind of man that Arthur probably was. A treat to be savored and re-read.

This is the best story yet written on the Romano-British cavalryman and leader whose deeds gave rise to the legend of King Arthur. In the days of my youth Rosemary Sutcliff's fiction for children opened the wonderous world of the people of Roman Britain. Sword At Sunset is NOT A JUVENILE FICTION BOOK despite including characters and continuing a story line from an earlier novel: The Lantern Bearers. MS Sutcliff brilliantly weaves what little actual knowledge we have with fictional details in a manner that brings Arthur out of legend and into life. The story is that of Arthur's struggle to lead the Britons, both Celtic and Roman, against the invading Saxons. It is the story of the warrior brotherhood known as his 'Companions' as they battle to preserve the light of the dregs of Roman civilization in Britain against the darkness of the barbarians who would destroy it. The battles are realistic and the reader practically feels the blood, sweat, fear and courage of the fighting men. It is also a story of love, loyalty, betrayal and a horrible unspeakable sin, the consequenses of which could destroy all that Arthur holds dear. The story includes realistic events that would seem to explain an archeological mystery of the era and other events that give rise to important elements of the medieval legend. MS Sutcliff takes us through Arthur's challenges as he strives to mount his men on the horses of his dreams, which he believes are the key to victory against the foot-bound Saxons. We follow him as he meets and befriends the men who will be his sword brothers as well as his meeting with the lady he grows to love, Guenhemara. We see Arthur confront a ghost from his past whom he knows will try to destroy him and whom his own honor will not allow him to destory in turn. As a soldier and historian I had always wanted to write a historical novel of the Arthur behind the legend. I would have no Camelot, no round table, no magic or knights in shining armor. It would be a story o!f a Dark Age warrior fighting a desperate battle to hold back the night. To my small dismay and my great enjoyment I found that the master story teller who woke my passion for history had already done so. I have read both Mary Stewart's and Jack Whyte's books on the Arthur behind the legend and I have enjoyed them and highly recommend them. Because of it's realism, the historical and military research so obviously put into it and the 'historical feel' of the story, I enjoyed Sword At Sunset even better.

Seems like lots of people are doing the "King Arthur thing" nowadays; every time I visit the bookstore I see a few more novels about Arthur, or Guinevere, or even Mordred. But for me, the single best Arthurian novel out there, barring the "originals" like Mallory and company, is Rosemary Sutcliffe's "Sword at Sunset". The story is dark and compelling, the characters familiar from legend but fully- fleshed in their own right. It's hard to create a new story when the outcome is pre-determined; yet Sutcliffe accomplishes it. She goes back to the archaeological and historical evidence, and creates a vision of a Romano-British civilization desperately holding out against the inrushing barbarians, thirty years after the Roman Legions left Britain for the last time. There is no magic, no Merlin, no Round Table, no Excalibur; Artos is crowned Emperor by drunken soldiers after a battle. The glory of the story, such as it is, comes from the characters' determination, not from medieval trappings of castles and shining armor. Sutcliffe writes (wrote - she died last year) with a real sense of place and time: you smell the campfires and hear the clash of battle. It is this immediacy that makes the story utterly compelling and convincing. I am convinced that if Arthur existed, this is what his story must have been like.