This book was something and has me so conflicted on how much I actually liked it!

On one hand, WHAT A FRESH IDEA! I love the concept of the Arthurian knights, characters we know, being magicked into immortality and forced to rise and defend Britain anytime it’s in peril! What an interesting premise. The dichotomy of a person born over a thousand years ago trying to get by with old notions and customs in a world like our own set in the not so distant future was so fascinating and entertaining!

I enjoyed that the peril Britain was facing was severe and catastrophic climate change. A foe that these knights can’t really fight head on was a fun twist! I also really enjoyed a lot of the characters themselves! I’ve read quite a few Arthurian reimaginings and I always appreciate when they are made a bit more diverse, as was done in this book!

This should have checked all of my boxes, and in some ways it did, it had the fantasy elements, it was a great reimagining with a fresh plot, but it still fell a bit short!

I think all in all my issues were a few small things that all piled up. I struggled with the length of this one, at nearly 500 pages it felt too long.. for the most part i liked the stance the author took politically, climate change is real and a major issue, but there were moments I wanted to pull out my hair with how bogged down I got in political tirades and maneuvering.. it just felt like that could have been a bit more succinct and still have made the same impact.

My other issue was I like my Arthur’s good, likeable, noble even. I know that’s definitely a personal preference based on my feeling surrounding the original character, but gosh- I had the hardest time with how unlikable a few of these Arthurian characters were.

Add all of that to how much was going on in this story and I felt like a few things lost me along the way. It all felt messy and rather rushed there at the end.

All in all this was really interesting plot. I’m glad I had the chance to read it and I’d definitely read more from this author again.

I’d recommend this if you like:
-Arthurian characters (but make some queer)
-Bad A women
-Dragons
-fantasy elements (like magic and talking animals)
-climate crisis stories
-dystopian future vibes
-reincarnated knights of the round table
-longer books!

3.5-4 Stars
A unique Arthurian retelling with some interesting ideas and plots, this end-of-the-world fantasy is quirky and snarky. I like the characters and loved the reinvented Kay, but I think there's so many working parts here that some themes get a little lost. More backstory for the knights would have been great! If you like adaptations of classics and fantasy works, you may enjoy this novel, too. There's a couple of times where the story drags just a bit, but keep going, it's worth it. I'd read another one by this author. For adult audiences.

Net Galley Feedback

Imagination roars with excitement in this book.

It’s a fictitious world in the future where the knights of King Arthur’s round table have come back from the earth to save the day. Britain is in peril with climate change creating floods from rivers and waters rising from the sea.

It makes me remember the movie Camelot with Arthur, Lancelot and Merlin. And there’s many more characters including a group of women warriors. Also, a dragon surfaces with fire and guess who charges after it? Yes, a woman leader, Mariam.

In this story, there is a lot of anger from a group of people with guns. “Hate is the path of least resistance…easier for people to hate each other than it is for them to love themselves.” The knights remembered the days in the past in battle and when you killed someone, you saw that man’s eyes. Now violence is a push with a button which isn’t the same. There’s no remorse. The knights have a challenge like no other.

In every magic story, there is a bit of truth. It reinforces the fear many of us have with the warnings of climate change and the dire effects that are happening right now with the earth. It also makes us concerns about the violence that is in the news every day.

The story will appeal to those that love this dystopian society with zombie ants, magic mushrooms and squirrels chatting away. Yet, in between the fantasy, there are concerns about who is going to save the planet. It felt like I was getting drawn into this world as I was reading late at night.

In the morning, I woke up immediately hearing the song from Camelot, “Follow Me” with the lyrics by Mary Sue Berry. I looked it up. It starts with a character in the book: Nimue. “Far from day, far from night. Out of time, out of sight. In between earth and sea. We shall fly. Follow me.” and so on. One might say, the story got into my head and surfaced into my dreams.

It's not a quick read. I was out of my comfort zone trying to make sense of all that was happening. It takes a lot of thought throughout the duration and trying to figure out how everything is going to play out and end.

My thanks to Thomas D. Lee, Ballantine Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy with an expected release date of May 23, 2023.

The most unique take on the myth of King Arthur I have ever read. It starts with the idea that Merlin made the Knights of the Round Table essentially immortal; and they come back to life whenever Britain is in peril. The story is set in a near future when the climate crisis is at a critical moment. There is fair amount of humor in having a knight with ideas of chivalry that are not compatible with modern sensibilities. It is an interesting idea to put someone who has vowed to save Britain from peril being exposed to the idea that "peril" is not necessarily a clear-cut enemy. The climate crisis fiction is rather heavy handed, but the story is character driven and keeps everything moving in a very engaging way. I would definitely recommend this book!

2.5/5 stars

I wrestled and struggled with this historical fiction fantasy. The premise was promising. The Knights of the Round Table were given immortality by Merlin and live under their own tree to be brought back when Britain is in peril. The peril here is global warming, but there are mentions of others throughout history. While the knights and their contemporaries are essential characters, Mariam, a young rebel fighting against power mongers, really leads the charge.

My main issues with this book were its length (500 pages, needed lots of editing) and its overabundance of preachiness. There were boring stretches throughout rehashing plot points ad nauseam. And while I know global warming is a real and viable concern, this storyline became tiresome as it was saturated in endless platitudes and political motivations. I actually considered DNF because I felt battered and weary. Those who love Arthurian legend will probably enjoy this (although the characters are very different in some cases), and it is well written, but it just wasn’t for me.

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing the free early arc of Perilous Times for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

I love a good Arthurian tale, and this one at first sounded really new and fresh. But it became a major political piece. While I can appreciate an authors political opinions, I am not not a fan of it at the expense of a timeless tale.

This dystopian science fiction with a medieval twist sounded so fresh and interesting, but unfortunately it turned out to be a major liberal mouthpiece inside a really cool story idea. The writing style and voice had great flow and was very readable. My favorite parts of the book were Kay and Lancelot's memories of their lives and the previous times they had been woken up to save Britain. I wish there had been more of that. The main focus was the liberal viewpoint on climate change, immigration, and changing Arthurian legends to make them gay. The author even managed to get in a jab against Trump. Not my cup of tea overall, but I loved the creativity of bringing knights of the round table back when the realm needed heroes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for access to this arc.

This book is an urban modern retelling of the knights at the round table. The synopsis seemed really interesting and I think for fans of the knights of the round table I could see them loving it. It was very different and a creative viewpoint and so I loved the authors different view. There were a couple of lines that rubbed me the wrong way and felt a little racist to me. I think if I knew more about who the knights at the round table were (outside the Disney sword in the stone) then I may have enjoyed this more. I felt a little lost with the characters and ultimately had a hard time connecting with the characters due to my lack of knowledge of them prior to the book.

Overall the author had a creative stab at old characters and I think for Arthur and the knights era fans this would be a winner.

Thank you to NetGalley the publisher and author for this ARC.

This was entertaining and overall a great story. I found it a little slow at times and lacking more in depth look into the characters which kept me from forming any strong attachments to them. Still a fun story and kept me entertained.

3.5 stars.
I wanted to like this. I was sold in the blurb at the words talking squirrel. But I couldn't really get into it.
It felt like it was trying much to hard in so many ways. It wasn't badly written, but it didn't draw me in and couldn't keep my interest, despite squirrels and dragons and magics. If you're in to not terribly subtle allegories (and really, a lot of people are) you will probably eat this up.

dnf @30%
This is definitely not my normal genre but it was sent to me by the publisher and the synopsis being a King Arthur retelling had me curious so i decided to take a chance and try it. I definitely get the appeal and genre fans will love this but sadly it just confirmed that this type of book just isn’t for me

I love the Arthurian Legend. I have since I was little and first watched the miniseries with Sam Neill as Merlin. I gobbled that show up, and then Camelot the musical, then Disney’s Sword in the Stone, then Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and well, you see where I’m going with this. Any opportunity to dive into a different version of this tale, and I’m all in. Perilous Times seemed like it would be right up my alley, and yep. It totally was.

Perilous Times borrows familiar characters from the Arthurian legend, but definitely isn’t a retelling or spinoff or anything like that. You see, a long, long time ago, the original Arthurian Legend happened. And then Merlin did some magicy-things, and made them all immortal. All the knights would never permanently die — instead, they would sleep under their trees, and awaken when the realm was in peril. This means, of course, that they’ve been woken up quite a lot over the course of their thousand plus years of existing. But this time, this time something is seriously different.

Our three main characters are Sir Kay, Sir Lancelot, and Mariam, an eco-terrorist. That sounds scary, but really what she’s trying to do is save the environment. And if that means blowing up a few oil rigs, than dammit she’s going to do it. Mariam was willing to do what needed to be done, and she was really tired of all the talking, organizing, and meetings. You will spend most of this book frustrated because it feels so real. It’s not a bad frustration — it’s one that will remind you of how the real world is. How irritated you get when you see your government actively working against moving forward, against changing for the better. Lee did a fantastic job weaving in the reality of our world with the fantastic of this world.

The Britain that the book is set in is dying. It’s a wasteland, a polluted, horrible mess. People are dying, starving, sick, and tempers are now hair-trigger. It’s not a nice place Lee has set his novel in, but wow does he put this to the best possible use. He does an absolutely excellent job describing how awful everything has become, and putting us in Kay’s eyes as he sees how the world has changed is just perfect. Kay is tired. He’s over a thousand years old at this point, and he’s damn tired of having to wake up and kill people again. He doesn’t want to. He wants to sleep his eternal rest, and see his wife again. Mariam gets frustrated with Kay, because he’s so wishy washy about wanting to help. Understandable, but really what is a Knight of the Round Table supposed to do against global warming?

Lancelot was fascinating. Lee writes him as a gay man who would rather follow orders than question them. He’s a bit smarmy, a bit egotistical, and a lot totally over his head. While I really disliked him almost the entire novel — I think you’re supposed to — I enjoyed reading his chapters because they were always interesting. He was always doing something that you didn’t want him to do. It felt like watching a car crash.

And then there’s Arthur. Whatever preconceived notion you have of the King just gets thrown out the window. I wasn’t the biggest fan of his characterization in Perilous Times, but it really worked for the book. I prefer my Arthurs Good with a capital G, but this one wasn’t. He was a brute. A cruel, brute who thought he was better than everyone else. Not my preference, but again, it really worked here. We also see Morgana, Nimue, and Merlin, but I’m not spoiling when they show up.

I don’t want to spoil the main plot, because it’s more interesting to just sort of fall into it. But it’s done well, and it’s rather easy to follow. Perilous Times would have ranked a full 5 stars for me, but the ending felt a little rushed, and not in a good way. It just felt short — I would have liked a little more explanation of what exactly was going on, but instead it was extremely vague. Overall, though, Perilous Times was fantastic.

It feels like the Knights of the Round Table are having a bit of a moment. I can think of at least five Arthurian fantasy revivals published in the last few years. And as a mythology retelling nerd, I'm loving the resurgence - and all the modern takes. Whether exploring a smaller part of the myth like the Lady of Shalott, centering Guinevere instead of the Knights, or bringing the characters's descendants into the myth, these new books allow for real exploration of a Very Famous Story. They break down the tales we love and examine them against modern perspectives - and I, for one, am all about it. So I was more than happy to pick up a pre-read of Perilous Times by Thomas D. Lee (thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for the gift copy!).

Perilous Times takes a different tack than other modern Arthurian retellings. Instead of descendants or reincarnations, the knights actually come back to life whenever the Kingdom is in peril. And so, in a near-future climate apocalypse, the knights come alive to battle... climate change. It's a funny and interesting premise, and I was expecting something Terry Pratchett-esque. (For some reason, the title gave me those vibes.) I got something a bit different, but not unwelcome...

Fantasy, revived

One of the challenges for a modern Arthurian revival is the choice of characters. While there are some knights that everyone knows (Arthur, Lancelot), and some famous characters (Merlin, Guinevere, Morgan le Fay), the majority of the cast is less familiar. And so many authors focus only on that famous cast - a choice that can make all the books feel samey.

Lee takes a different tack - he zooms in on Kay (Arthur's foster brother) and Lancelot. The two serve as foils for each other throughout the novel. Kay, in Lee's telling, is Black (in contrast to Lancelot's true Golden Boy status). Kay questions his orders, where Lancelot simply follows them. Because Kay is less known than Lancelot, Lee can give him whatever traits are most helpful.

That's not to say that Lee doesn't dig deeper into Lance as well. I'd never heard of Galehaut before, but Lee uses him to create new depths to the already-familiar Lancelot character. And we get to see more and different sides of a number of other characters: Merlin, Morgan le Fay, and Arthur all make an appearance. For a casual Arthurian fan, it's a pretty fun read.

Modern perils

Of course, the characters aren't different solely because Lee chooses to emphasize new stories. Instead, he sets them against the biggest modern peril possible - climate change. In Lee's telling, the Knights of the Round Table come back to life whenever England is in sufficient danger to need their support. They've been revived countless times - and here, it's in response to the explosion of an oil rig by an eco-terrorist, Mariam.

As it happens, Kay hasn't been back to life in a while, and both he and Lancelot are dismayed to see the state of the environment. Gone are the woods and fens of yore, replaced by watery marshland and refugee camps. It's much more of an existential threat than the wars they've faced in the past, and it's interesting to see how they grapple with the challenge. Interesting, too, to see their reactions to the committees and meetings for change - there's a definite bias for action espoused here.

That said, Lee took on a tough challenge in juxtaposing ancient knights and climate change - those who solve by stabbing against a problem that can't really be stabbed. So he uses a slight cheat to make the whole story work out - it turns out at least part of the problem an be stabbed! I'll try to avoid spoilers here, but the ending tries to have its cake and eat it too. Is the threat human greed, or a sinister cabal? Lee doesn't have a truly satisfying answer.

Reader's notes & rating (⭐⭐⭐✨)

Endings aside, I thoroughly enjoyed this read and would recommend it, I started reading Perilous Times hoping for something funny and ended up with something a bit more earnest. Once I got over the expectations mismatch, I quite enjoyed the read - Lee is a creative writer and it was fun to explore his world for a while. It's a good read for someone into the Knights of the Round Table and their lore - and one who believes in climate change. I'm not sure how wide that overlap is - but if you fall in, give this a shot! Three and a half stars.

Read this if...

You are familiar with (and appreciate) the general mythology of the Knights of the Round Table

You like books that juxtapose modernity and ancient values - and examine the juxtaposition

You like books where things blow up

Skip this if...

You're a climate-change denier

You're expecting a retelling - this isn't that

You are Very Convinced that King Arthur was a fantastic leader

Perilous Times will be published on May 23, 2023.

I am officially dubbing 2023 the year of Arthurian retellings. I've read two so far this year, and they have both been show-stoppingly fantastic.

Now, on to my thoughts about this book specifically. Because OH MY GOD. It's really good. So, so genuinely fantastic. I fell in LOVE with the characters within pages of meeting them, all of them are so unique and eclectic. Thomas D. Lee does a fantastic job at establishing the world, the setting, and the dire consequences of humanities lack of action in the climate crisis. It was laugh-out-loud funny while still being incredibly insightful and relevant to modern politics, which is a balance few writers can achieve. I cannot recommend this book enough.

PERILOUS TIMES is a brilliant modern retelling of Arthurian legend. It subverts the myth by using these classic characters to highlight poignant aspects of present-day culture and problems that are not limited to the west. In this version there two main points of view (POV), that of Sir Kay and Mariam. There is a more limited POV with Lancelot. Sir Kay is a Black knight of the round table. Mariam is a person of color (I recall, hopefully correctly, that it's alluded that she is Muslim). And Lancelot is gay and definitely not into Guinevere. There is also a minor character who is a transwoman.

I absolutely love all of these changes, particularly that Sir Kay is Black. As some may not know, there were Black people (Africans) living in what is now England during the early medieval times. (I only learned this fairly recently while reading CULTURE WARS last year.) I loved the bluntness of Mariam. She lives in an age where the end of time as she knows it is imminent thanks to climate change. My only quibble is that I thought Mariam, who is part of a free-thinking rebel faction, could have asked more pointed questions in the first half of the book. Then some muck ups might have been avoided. However, there are moments of levity as any humor present is on the dry side, which was perfect for me. The writing style is extremely approachable, has the perfect amount of showing and telling, and isn't overly descriptive.

My favorite broad aspect of PERILOUS TIMES, though, is the incorporation of so many concepts relevant to our lives today. A lot of Kay's inner dialogue really resonated with me with respect to how he sees the world. And how as one person one can feel so helpless in the grand scheme of things. I teared up a bit at some of the passages. With respect to the modern relevancy, in this allegory there are two overarching themes. One is that the power to more easily facilitate change lies with a few who ultimately fail to do so for one reason or another, namely greed. The second general theme is to not underestimate the sway one person with conviction can have to make a mark.

With respect to the first theme, men in high places have the sway to create a positive change. The lifestyles of the rich and famous control the marionette strings of world order and planet health. However, greed and bureaucratic red tape make any efforts by the people nigh impossible to push through. This results in feelings of despair and hoplessness. These same men help turn the people's focus to hate as a distraction and that focus is racism and xenophobia. In full deadpan on my part, I'm sure this doesn't seem familiar at all. With respect to the second theme, one of the important takeaways is that it is ok and valid to feel angry. But use that emotion for positive change, not to hurt others.

There are also many other lessons on display in PERILOUS TIMES, which the author penned wonderfully through the lens of Arthurian characters. Nimue, classically known as the Lady of the Lake, represents the health of the water. King Arthur represents toxic masculinity and seems somewhat modeled after Trump and, possibly, Johnson. There is commentary about news and the magnification of opinions. That is, how one group can spin the news and how those in power can enhance or reduce its reach. And how the loudest voices don't necessarily represent the majority or only opinion. But an echo chamber will make it seem that way.

There are multiple mentions of how important jobs related to security are no longer held by citizens of England. This leads to a lack of loyalty and increases security risks. This book also highlights the loss of our connection to the earth as we trade it for a materialistic society that harms our only home. And, I'm not done yet, even medical rights and invasion of privacy of one's DNA is on the table in this retelling.

As I write this review I could probably go on and on, and I realize even more how profound I feel this book is. If you do not prefer commentary on today's issues, then this isn't the book for you. However, PERILOUS TIMES offers a valid introspection of our culture today as well as how past events can influence the once and future earth. The use of romanticized western legend to tell this tale is an ingenious mechanism to portray important issues of import.

This review will go live on May 2 at: https://aliteraryescape.com/2023/05/02/arc-review-perilous-times-by-thomas-d-lee/

Perilous Times is a modern day take on the Arthurian Legend primarily following immortal Knight/brother of Arthur, Kay, and Mariam, a member of FETA. Together, they stumble across other individuals from legends of old, as they fight to save a rapidly devolving world all while trying to uncover who is behind the apocalyptic plot.
✨
✨
After reading the synopsis for Perilous Times, I was really looking forward to reading it. The Arthurian Legend has always been of interest to me, so I was intrigued to see it brought to life in modern times. I loved the new take on the well known characters and how Lee made them his own. The characters were the real selling feature for me. I enjoyed their backstories and character development. Unfortunately, the plot was more heavily focused on the climate disaster than I anticipated. With mentions of dragons and magic, I was expecting more of an urban fantasy retelling. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just a difference in perception for what I expected vs read.

Time-traveling Knights of the Round Table? Yes, please! Here we are in the end of days. The planet is hurtling towards disaster. It's too hot, the water's drying up, the food is running out and people are fighting in lumps.. The realm of Britain is most definitely in peril.
And what do you need when there are perilous times? You need heroes. Not just any heroes either, you need King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Oh yes, it doesn't get much more heroic than that. Well actually it does. You might also need some dedicated climate activists, the odd magician and even a dragon or two.

This wonderfully bonkers story has some very serious roots in that it takes climate change to its ultimate conclusion but after that it's completely mad. However through the madness it's a brilliant story. It stretches the imagination. It plays with your perception of myths and it will make you snort with laughter too. Wonderfully Gaiman-esque and Pratchetty. :)

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House for this e-book.*

A profound examination of the last days. I loved it.
Many thanks to Random House and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book surprised me in the best way!

It had a weak start, which made me slightly uninterested in the book, but around the fifth chapter, where things started picking up and we’ve started to got used to the characters, that’s where the plot began to become something on its own.

I love Lancelot (he’s my favorite, actually), but Kay and Mariam manage to be interesting on their own and create interest for me. The only true complaint I have is that the ending was slightly weak; though that’s understandable considering what the author had to deal with. Highly recommend to people who want to get into fantasy! :)

Perilous Times has possibly one of the most interesting premises for a book that I've read in a long time. Combining the mythos of King Arthur and his court with an ecocritical view of the future, Lee creates an extremely engaging tale. My only problem with novel comes from Lee's tendency to hit the reader over the head with with the lessons he wants the reader to take away from his novel.