I tried and tried but unfortunately couldn't get into this book. The premise sounded so good but the writing wasn't for me.

Excalibur is the first absorbing title in Peter Gibbons’ exciting and enthralling new series, The Chornicles of Arthur.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Britain is in complete and utter ruins. Plundered and broken, the Saxons have invaded and conquered every corner of this once great country and they are still not satisfied. The Saxons want more and more and these blood-thirsty conquerors have got no intention of stopping until everything within reach is in their possession. With the constant threat of war, the kingdoms run by old monarchs and historic alliances being held together by gossamer threads, everything seems desperate and hopeless. However, help might be about to come from the most unlikely and unexpected of sources.

There is a new warlord who has been granted the most extraordinary gift by the Druid Merlin. Power is now within his grasp and he must use it wisely in order to restore hope, reverse the country’s ailing fortunes and return Britain to prosperity. With mighty sword Excalibur, nothing is impossible for this young man. He might have no kingdom and only his wits and his sword, but he is determined to succeed because his name is Arthur and he will not stop until he is successful in his quest for a new beginning for his country.

Excalibur is a bold, bloody and brilliant historical novel full of action, excitement and adventure that takes readers on a wonderful journey through time where the stakes are deadly, enemies are around every corner and tensions are running high. Brilliantly atmospheric, wonderfully plotted and wholly immersive, historical fiction buffs will want to add Peter Gibbons’ Excalibur to the very top of their must-buy lists.

Fabulous adventure!
I am a sucker for anything Arthuriuan, but have been disappointed in some versions of King Arthur. Peter Gibbons has restored my faith in the genre and in authors giving their own take on the legend.
Peter Gibbons' wonderful landscape, deep characters and rich visualisation help to transform the reader from the drab 21st century into the ealry medieval period and the world of King Arthur and his band of knights.
I loved it!

Peter Gibbons book, Excalibur, is book one in the Chronicles of Arthur series; a brand new retelling of the Arthurian legend that will leave readers breathless with the action and brutal rendering of Saxon warlords and Dark Ages history. If fact, Mr. Gibbons draws on extensive research to bring Excalibur to life, showing in remarkable details, the day to day life in Britannia during this brutal time in history.

Readers hear about the prophecy of the red dragon and white a bit more than they than they usually do in passing history, as well as Aurthur's sister Morgana, and her background.

Mr. Gibbons does an outstanding job at reeling readers in right from the beginning up to the end with the action, life like characters, and well developed plot. If readers are looking for a bold, new take on a classic story, giving Mr. Gibbons's Excalibur a chance is one that is sure to please every type of reader!

To say Peter Gibbons has fast become a favourite of mine is an understatement. The author and publisher Boldwood, have been killing it in the historical fiction genre recently so when I learnt a new series was starting you can imagine the excitement I felt.

The Arthurian Chronicles tells us about one of the most fascinating characters in history in my opinion – Arthur. From a young age Arthur held a lot of interest to me.. mainly because no one could say one way or another if he existed but the whole idea of Arthur and the sword Excalibur excited me! for me it’s a risk going for Arthur as you need to get that excitement level right to match the myths, and the reader is going to have high expectations.

Did Gibbons deliver? Of course he did!! Gibbons knows his craft and most certainly knows his audience. We have what I’ve come to expect…the wonderful, dark and gruesome gore that any battle loving fan needs but the story is wonderfully weaved with fact and fiction.. I think that’s what makes Gibbon’s writing so exciting to read as his topics always allow some leeway for events to play out and you can really see the effort put into the tale to make the pieces come together.

The author isn’t afraid of detail either, setting the scene.. the ensemble cast too with many a familiar name, each play a part in the development and flow of the tale but in typical Gibbon’s style nothing Is forced in there, its done in what feels like such an effortless way, but I know must have took quite some time to write.

Book 1 is all about laying the foundations but that doesn’t mean you don’t have excitement and you can tell towards the end of the book that a battle is brewing.. but there’s still time for the author to keep the reader on their toes too leaving the reader fulfilled..but at the same time in silent shock.

I know I bang on about pace and flow.. probably way too much… but Peter Gibbon’s gets it.. the mix is so perfect it builds the excitement from the 1st page to last..

Don’t just take my word for any this either.. just look at the praise for the author.. Harffy, Cook, Porter and Doherty.. all household names in my book and certainly authors who are keeping my bookshelves full.

I did want to say there’s a downside but there isnt.. I’m always keen to crack on with the next book..luckily I won’t need to wait long with the next instalment already up for pre-order for release later in the year!

A very impressive read and after enjoying a lot of the authors books of late I feel like it’s also something new and fresh allowing Gibbon’s to further cement himself as one of the best authors out there!

A wonderous 5* read.

My fellow readers. Excalibur was truly amazing to read. I enjoyed the background story from all the characters and learning about characters that I’ve never heard of before. Take for instance young Arthur’s father Ector or his brother Kal and his daredevil younger sister Lunette. The journey that Merlin sends young Arthur on is one of pure mystery, surprises, survival and magic.
I very much appreciated that the book wasn’t bogged down with to much political talk or romance talk. Both are sprinkled through the entirety of the book. The story does focus on the bond that the two brothers Arthur and Kal has for one another as well as making it back home to their father to show him what men that they have become. I thought that the action and war details were explained very well. I could actually see the battles that took place at the edge of mountains in the pouring rain. Warrior’s fighting to the death. Excalibur slashing through the chaos Eager to get to Huell. What a wonderful treat to read a story from history that has been written so well. I am totally on board to read the next journey Arthur sets out on. I give this book two snaps and a twist.
Until next time my fellow readers. Read on!

This is another take on the Arthurian legend. Characters are well written and exciting. This book is very descriptive and it flows very well. One of my favorite Arthur stories I've read so far.

Excalibur is the story of Arthur that takes us from from his late childhood as a fostered son of the famed champion Ector until his first major battle as a leader against the Saxons.

The evolution of Arthur as a man and a warrior is explored against a backdrop of Britain after the romans left - a somewhat lawless time where strong and brutal warriors carved out kingdoms for themselves, and any systems of centralised governance broke down, making them much more susceptible to being picked off slowly by invading and settled Saxon forces.

Gibbon’s approach is grounded strongly in the historical - he discusses his sources extensively, drawing on early texts like the works of Bede, Nennius’ Historia Brittonum, and the Book of Taliesin and later medieval works such as Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of Kings of Britain as well as many more.

This approach is also reflected in the story itself - Merlin and Nimue explain their ‘magic’ is based on the power of belief and tradition - as well as a bit of trickery.

Their form of magic is still a power that cannot be understated in a time of extreme instability where many people were searching for answers and meaning, in addition to having the shadow of the Romans and all they represented looming over them.

I thought this overarching theme was particularly cleverly highlighted by Gibbon with Arthur’s internal voice, which thrummed with a restlessness with the status quo and a hunger for more.

Arthur understood that a united Britain was the only strategic way to win against the Saxons. I particularly liked that his power came from a mix of force and cleverness - his reflections on lost Roman technique and his enthusiasm for adopting new military tactics all felt like a move away from rule by brute force and felt like the hallmarks of a leader about to earn his legendary status.

Thank you to @BoldwoodBooks @rararesources and the author @petermgibbons for an advanced copy of this book in return for an honest review. Excalibur is out now!

I am part of the Random Resources tour and will post the above review on my instagram @charlottereadshistory on 3 July

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

This is the first book in the Chronicles of Arthur series. On first impressions, I felt the author did a wonderful job with setting the scene. When I read a historical novel, I like to feel as though the story is taking me somewhere else, and the author did an excellent job with bringing the story and characters to life, with vivid imagery. I found that for the most part, I focused on the general atmosphere, the descriptions of the characters and their behaviour, rather than the dialogue.

Some of the battle scenes seemed a little bit intense, but certainly action-packed. It didn't take me long to get into this, and it was an entertaining read. If you are a historical fiction reader, or particularly interested in the legend of King Arthur, you may want to give this book a try.

Thank you to Rachel's Random Resources, NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and to the author, for the opportunity to read and review this.

This is a great historical retelling of the legend of Arthur but with far less fantasy and more realism. Arthur, an orphan at birth, was raised by his adopted father, or spear-father as he likes to call him, alongside his adopted brother Kai and now that both are seventeen years old they ride in their father's war band. When they come across some mercenaries the two brothers must fight for the first time against real enemies, but while Kai feels ready to fight and draw blood, Arthur finds himself terrified and unable to face a real battle. To kill an enemy will make Arthur and Kai men and warriors, but with Saxon forces threatening the kingdoms of Britain will Arthur be able to defend his homeland?

I do love reading books set in the early medieval period and I was especially excited about this one as it's also a sort of retelling of the legend of Arthur. The story begins with Arthur as a young seventeen year old facing his first battle against dangerous enemies along with his brother Kai. Arthur faces difficulties at first though, in getting over his fear of battle which leads him to feeling shame amongst the other warriors. When the war band return to the home of the King, a druid soon arrives at the king's hall where Arthur and others are staying, telling of an important mission that must be undertaken, and how both Arthur and Kai must take part. I like what happens in this first part of the story, how this mission leads to us meeting some other characters in the Arthurian legend and how Arthur grows as a person throughout this time.

The story is quite fast paced and moves on, jumping ahead a year after this mission. We soon see Arthur forging his own path and destiny which involves a lot of battles and sees Arthur becoming a strong and confident leader. I don't want to give away what happens but the story does cover the first part of the battles Arthur faced, and while the book does have a good ending and conclusion to this particular part of his story, it is a bit of an abrupt ending for me. The story is filled with lots of battles and individual fights which while exciting results in this story being on the more gory side. There are some gruesome deaths mentioned as well as occasional uses of the s swear word and other insults.

The book does have some historical notes at the end and a map at the start of the book which helps in understanding where the various kingdoms are ar this time, as well as a glossary at the end too. While the original Arthurian stories feature some fantasy and magic, this book tries to reimagine the Arthurian tales in a more realistic, historical way. Magic is less prominent in the tale and certain magical things are able to be explained in realistic ways. I like this more realistic portrayal of the classic legend although if I'm honest I did feel like something was missing from this story. While I did like this story, it was interesting, exciting and quite fast paced, I just didn't connect with Arthur's character as much as I had hoped. While he's a good character and has his flaws, especially at the start of the book, I just felt a bit disconnected from his character, especially when the story jumps ahead a year and Arthur has changed. I think I would have preferred a longer book, exploring the change in his character more at that time, or just to spend more time with him before things moved on a year. I'm not sure if it's that, but at times Arthur just felt more cold than perhaps he should have, especially later in the story and it made me feel a little disconnected to his character.

Overall, despite a little disconnect I still enjoyed this story though, and it's a great historical read for anyone interested in the early medieval period, the legend or Arthur and who likes some pretty gruesome battles.

While I appreciated the Dark Ages outlook on the many Arthurian characters in these pages, I did not appreciate rereading the same information many times, for example, the description of a shield. I can't be more specific due to not wanting to use spoilers for other readers, and perhaps you won't think the same as me when reading this rendition of Excalibur. However, I believe you will need an open mind to the tales of Arthur and Excalibur to enjoy this book. Being of at least 4 different Celtic tribes from Britain and Ireland, I enjoyed seeing rarely used names from our Pantheons of Gods, and Gaelic words with their anglicized counterparts. The Author is very descriptive when writing, which allows the reader to be there amongst the characters and to share their adventure. However, I did feel the writing was a little stiff in some spots, it just didn't flow naturally for me. But in the end, this is the beginning of a new series and I look forward to seeing where the Author takes us.

Excalibur by Peter Gibbons in this book the author makes it seem like King Arthur has walked off the pages of a cartoon and into reality and makes the mythical king into an insecure scared adolescent and we get to watch him turning into what he will ultimately Become. The metamorphosis
Doesn’t happen in this first book however in this book he meets Merlin after being sent on a quest by a druid doing merlins bidding to find princess Guinevere the Saxons are still a big problem. The story mr. Gibbons weaves has slight differences from the story most people know but it all makes for a great tale. Author has grown up with this foster brother Kai and raised by the man he calls spear father Guinevere is not from Britain or at least she speaks a different language. I found this to be a very interesting book with great sword fights awesome villains in the oven grader people to root for. I cannot wait for the next book to see what happens with author and his foster family I do wish we would’ve seen more of the bumbling teenage author but I still find him so likable insecurities and all. #BoldwoodBooks, #NetGalley, #PeterGibbons, #Excalibur,

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this eCopy to review

Excalibur is an epic historical novel set after the Romans had left Britain, leaving all the Kings at war with each other. Can Arthur convince them to join together to face a new foe, the Anglo Saxons?

Full of battles and a journey into becoming a man this was an interesting more factual take on the Arthurian legend. It was very gruesome and realistic about the battles, I loved how cunning Arthur is and how he used that to win his battles

‘𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙀𝙭𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙧, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝘼𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙪𝙨 𝘼𝙢𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙪𝙨 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙈𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙧𝙪𝙞𝙙, 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙖𝙭𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙣𝙫𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙛𝙧𝙚𝙚. 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙨𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙?’


🗡The book - 1st in the Arthurian Chronicles - is a retelling of Arthurian legend, but unlike other retellings, it sets the story in a historical period and tells it more realistically, removing its mythical elements.

540 AD. Britain. Following the Roman departure, the Saxon hordes invaded the country and plundered it while its numerous kingdoms were divided and weak ripe for pluck. In such a time, a new warlord arises who with the help of a legendary sword Excalibur will unite the country and fight back against the baying Saxon warriors. His name will be Arthur and this is his story from his youth till his first great battle.

🗡Peter Gibbons is not a new name in the historical genre, but this one is my first read by him and I must say I can't stop myself from comparing the book with Bernard Cornwell's The Warlord Chronicles trilogy, which is also based on Arthurian legends - that's how much I was impressed by his writing.

🗡The story was beautifully waved around actual historical events and mythical legends which makes it more believable and proves the author's mastery over Viking and Dark Age lore. The tightly knitted plot, the fast-paced narratives, the atmospheric descriptions, cinematic battle scenes keep me turning on the pages. I also loved the detailed map and the historical note at the end.

🗡Every character is meticulously written and developed. Arthur's characterization as a reluctant hero was smooth and faultless. Other characters both historical like Ida, Octha, Theodric, Urien, or Owain, and legendary ones like Merlin, Nimue, Uther, or Ector are well fleshed out and a new perspective is given to them.

🗡The book end with the battle of Glen - Arthur's 1st battle against the Saxons, where the author gives his own twist to the legend which was quite shocking and I hadn't seen it coming.

Overall Excalibur was a wonderful read and I can't wait for the next book. Fans of Bernard Cornwell, Giles Kristian, and Matthew Harffy surely gonna love it. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

𝙈𝙮 𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨(4.5/5)

They say that Arthur will come back in Britain’s darkest hour, but I think his myth is alive and kicking given the number of novels about the Matter of Britain were out in this decade.
This is a good one, gritty and grim as the best stories about Arthur are (Monthy Phyton and the Holy Grail is among the best but its’ a movie).
It’s a fast paced and action-packed historical fiction that tells the story of Arthur but how it could be, more realistic and less mythical. I loved it and I loved the new outlook to some parts of the myth as reading about characters like Merlin, Nimue or Ector fleshed out and part of a historical moments, with all their strengths and weaknesses.
A fast paced and gripping read that kept on the edge. I loved the tightly knitted plot and how the battles felt realistic, like you could smell the blood and the sweat
I read a new book will be out this autumn, cannot wait to read it.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for this digital copy, all opinions are mine

I’ve always been interested in stories of King Arthur.
This one takes place as he’s a young man. He’s finding his way on the battlefield. We see him meet Merlin for the first time and when Merlin gives him Excalibur.
It’s a very descriptive book. Lots of fighting and battle gore. Arthur grows as the book goes on and becomes quite the warrior. If you love epic battles, definitely add this to your list

Gibbons takes Arthur from a sensitive teen to a cold warrior, but veers back to sensitive, even maudlin. The fights are vividly detailed, and he put spins on legendary characters. I wanted to see these characters explored further, not to repeats of their feelings and plot points. I'll read the next, but in hopes that he explores the characters.

A epic retelling of Arthur from a journey of being a young boy to a man. The atmosphere is quite brutal in keeping with the times so not for the faint hearted but I relished it because it is so honest. The characters are well told especially Arthur who I grew quite fond of. The powerful writing makes it a thrilling read which I found hard to put down. Even when I wasn't reading I was thinking about the story and wondering what direction it would go in next. A incredibly crafted plot with terrifying blood thirsty battles!

A retelling of the story of Arthur of the Britons and Merlin The Druid. A very engaging retelling in which you feel like you are emersed in the conditions and amongst the players in the story. Not for the fainthearted as it is quite brutal in places but only in keeping with how the people of the time would have had to defend their country. Although the story of Arthur is well know this is a very good version if it. The characters are well rounded and you quickly get a feel for them and want nothing bad to happen. I can't wait for the next installment. I would recommend this book ti anyone. With thanks to the author, Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this advanced copy.

This was an action-packed, gritty and creative retelling of the Arthurian legend. More grounded in history and beliefs than myth and magic, Peter Gibbon’s Excalibur fills the hole left by Bernard Cornwell’s The Winter King.

I loved how Gibbons creates his own interpretation of Arthurian legend and characters, and therefore keeps this legend fresh. The novel is very much focused on realistic history, and Arthur’s journey to being a spearhead for resistance and the British identity. The magic in the novel comes from people’s beliefs in Dark Age Britain, at a time when the Romans had left, and their need to unite against a new enemy - The Saxons

The novel introduces many of the traditional characters such as Arthur himself, his step-brother Kai, knights such as Bors and Balin, and Nimue, the dark sorceress. But these characters are portrayed in a new way and with new purposes and roles, yet they all intertwine to create a baseline for the legend we know.

This was full of battles, violence, politics and is a fresh new take on Arthurian legend. It’s the first in a series that’s left me hungering for more.