The Bright Sword

The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman.

A classic Arthurian legend; minus the Arthur.

This book subverts expectations so often that it wraps right back around to meeting them again, but it's still an enjoyable read. As the story takes great pains to impress upon you, Arthurian legends should be filled with gallant knights rescuing damsels in distress and undertaking glamourous quests for King and Country. In this version of Camelot though, the knights are decidedly human with all the vices that entails, the damsels are quite capable of rescuing themselves and the last glamourous quest severely culled the knightly population of Britain, before a pointless civil war finished off the rest and Arthur for good measure.

Our view into this world kicks off shortly after these events, with the typical mistreated orphan protagonist finally arriving at Camelot to find all the old legends dead and the dregs of the Round Table racing to drink themselves to death. the story which ensues has all the typical fantasy beats; the protagonist slowly proving themselves, a prickly love interest who eventually warms to them and world ending threat the party of misfits must go on a quest to prevent.

Though the story's refusal to let any expectation go unsubverted can lead to predictability at times it's still a pleasant read, with the more grounded takes on knights as actual people being a highlight. Nearly everyone gets a back story chapter, and some of them were highlights of the book as well as allowing you to piece together the world's history, revealing key facts around where they become relevant to the 'main' plot.

Despite the contrarian take on the genre the battles are still climactic, the emotional beats mostly hit and the ending suits the overall vibe well. The Bright Sword probably won't win a Pulitzer, but if you like fantasy it's a comfy read with enough differentiating it to stay interesting.

Funnily enough I played Tainted Grail Conquest recently, which has the same overarching premise.