TW// racism, murder (including children), mentions of suicide, sexism, brief meat/food shaming scene, drug addiction, antisemitism, animal death (including a dog), incest (it’s briefly mentioned two people engaging in intercourse are cousins)

Perilous Times was a drag to get through and it felt like it would never end, but I’m lowkey proud of myself for pushing through and finishing this one. This book peaked my interest when I read the synopsis. It’s a queer book featuring Arthurian legends and climate change. It should’ve been amazing, but it fell really flat with the execution.

The pacing of this book was super slow and honestly the events in the story weren’t that interesting. The only scenes where I didn’t feel like I was about to fall asleep out of pure boredom were Merlin’s scenes but he was barely in the story at all. If this story’s pace had been sped up, it would’ve been a lot more enjoyable.

Most of the characters were dull. I thought any of the character from Arthurian legends would be interesting to read about, but then I got stuck with Kay. He just wasn’t that interesting to read about. Mariam wasn’t great either, but at least she had some character development throughout the story. Mariam's sisters in FETA had bland personalities, which was really disappointing since FETA had the opportunity to be a strong found family. It just never reached that true found family potential though since all of Mariam’s sisters were two dimensional. Most of them were carbon copies of each other as well.

I also got fed up with how this story dealt with acitivism. I like what a lot of the different activist groups were fighting for, but the way the characters in the groups were described made them seem like silly, unproductive activists. It was really disappointing because no one can understand why people should take issues like climate change seriously if all the activists fighting for those issues are ridiculous and unlikeable.

Thomas D. Lee clearly knows a lot about the Arthurian legends and he has the potential to make a great book featuring those legends, but Perilous Times needs a ton of revisions before it can live up to its potential.

Sadly not really my cup of tea. In theory it sounded promising but I just couldn’t get into it. I may try a reread when I am in a different mood and update this.. but as if now… I wasn’t a fan.

What happens when you take the magic of Camelot and align with with modern eco warriors? Magic of course! This enchanting book mixes sci-fi and contemporary lt, to give the reader a roller coast read, that grabs you from page one, and never lets you go! be warned, you'll be casting the movie of this tale in your head as you read it! it"s hard to believe it's a debut novel- it has all the charm, humor, and believable characters of writers with major bestsellers under their belts.If you love the Arthurian legends, you'll love this book!

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine for an advance copy of the novel detailing the adventures of the Knights of King Arthur in a future that is too much like our own, and just as deadly.

Playing Dungeons and Dragons and loving action movies I remember the first time I watched the movie Excalibur on HBO with my parents, who never looked at the movie guide so missed the nudity, adult situations and massive amounts of stabbing that took place in the movie. I had been a reader of Arthurian myths, The Sword and the Stone of course, and I think some comic stories. Excalibur was real, Shakespearean trained actors, John Boorman with a budget. The movie still holds up. I read Le Morte d'Arthur, Mary Stewart, White, Steinbeck, and a whole lot of weird Wicca stories about the magic of Arthur. While I liked those I liked most the stories that moved Arthur out of a lost age in the past, to a future, where knights, even knights errant were needed. Camelot 3000 is a comic series with Arthur fighting aliens. Peter David's series has a modern twist. The King by Donald Barthelme has Arthur in World War II working with Churchill against the Germans. I enjoyed those stories alot, and now I have a new favorite. Perilous Times Thomas D. Lee is a story of the future that is coming that no one wants to acknowledge, filled with drowning England, dragons, a corporate owned government, and Knights of the Round Table, called from the grave to defend the nation at its most dangerous of times.

Sir Kay awakens from the sleep to find the very Earth around him squeezing him back to the surface, to arise and defend England once again. A spell either a blessing or a curse from Merlin has made the noble knights of Arthur return time and time again to fight for England, against the French, the Germans, Germans again, the Falklands at least in Lancelot's case, fighting, dying and returning again and again. The air is hotter than Kay is used to, and wetter, but danger is still close as Kay hears the sounds of gunfire, something he is still getting used to a a nearby building. Merlin's spell gives him the gift of languages, and Kay can read the word Saxon security which confuses him as Saxons were an old enemy, and he wonders if he is fighting them anew. Kay is passed by a woman, who is being shot at, so being gallant he takes the bullets for her, dying, and rebirthing anew outside the gates. Mariam is an eco-terrorist planning to destroy a fracking facility, and she takes the time the knight gives her to blow the building, revealing a dragon hidden inside, which flies away. Something that Kay is quite familiar with. At the same time Sir Lancelot has also returned, and is met by the immortal playwright Marlowe, who informs Lancelot the world has changed, and not for the best, but that knights are still needed. And adventure begins.

A very funny and very sad story about knights in a future that is ugly, hot, wet, and coming fast, but nobody really wants to care. England is for sale, the country has been been bought by corporate types, the seas are drowning the Capital, and no seems to see anything wrong, except for the select few who are branded criminals, or knights, who have seen a whole lot more. The writing is very strong, with a sense of place, a bit of whimsy and nostalgia in the writing, that carries throughout the story. Reminiscent of Terry Pratchett in many ways, used fantasy to show the world follies as they really are. Many will probably scream about the color of Sir Kay and Mariam's skin, or that they are doing a woke agenda fighting climate change that is not real. Or the fact that Lancelot has a lot more interests than Guinevere. Which is a shame as they are missing a very good story. And a rousing adventure.

Recommended for fans of knights, doing heroic deeds in an age where heroes don't seem to exist anymore, and everyone seems to be on the grift. Even urban fantasy fans will like this story, as the decaying and collapsing city that is London, along with dragons, and a bit of magic will be right up their alley. Thomas D. Lee is a very good writer with a lot of good ideas, and I can' wait to see what he does next.

Perilous Times
by Thomas D. Lee
Pub Date: 23 May 2023 | Archive Date: 30 Sep 2023

This was a good mix of a futuristic setting with characters coming from myths and legends. This is a debut book, and when looking at it through that lens, this was well done. Not really my style of book but I will say it is unique.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of the book.

I love a good dystopian fantasy/science fiction story and anything involving the Arthurian legend, so this book checked all the boxes for me. It has a clever plot that I found engaging.

Climate change has melted most of the glaciers, much of England is underwater and England has sold Essex to the Chinese; perilous times, indeed!

Mariam and her small band of eco-terrorists are trying to fight big oil and stop the progression of planet-ruining practices. Unfortunately, when Mariam blows up a fracking facility she unwittingly creates an even greater disaster for the environment and unleashes a dragon as well. Trying to escape the destruction and the mercenaries trying to catch her, she encounters a strange man dressed in ancient chainmail and equipped with a sword. It turns out he is none other than Kay, King Arthur's brother who is under a spell cast by Merlin the magician to return to life whenever the realm is in peril. Kay is not the only knight of the round table to be resurrected, Kay's old nemesis Lancelot has also returned and it appears to Kay as if Lancelot's plans for righting the current situation are not entirely righteous.

And so begins this amusing tale. It is both funny and thought-provoking with characters out of sync with their time period trying to cope in a world of drones and a monstrous drilling rig that will destroy what is left of the environment, and don't forget that dragon! Not a small mission, but certainly not one that is impossible for a strong-willed woman and a couple of immortal knights. I thoroughly enjoyed this book; the premise and the wonderfully-drawn characters kept me turning the pages long after I should have been asleep.

Thank you, NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an advance copy. The publication date is May 23, 2023.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of the book. I'm not going to lie, I had kind of a difficult time getting into and finishing this book. The premise of the story is intriguing and interesting, but I felt as I read that a person definitely has to have some knowledge of the Arthurian stories and the characters involved. I liked the new character Mariam, and I liked how she felt real. I don't know if I'd read this again, but it's decent.

Overall I enjoyed this book, the characters, the story and the world building were all fine and well done, but the pacing was slow throughout most of the book and downright glacial at times. Because of this slow pacing I found that my attention waned and it was hard for me to keep on reading at times. But I did complete the book and I am glad I did.

The overall premise of the book was delightful, the knights of the round table being resurrected whenever England was in peril. But this time when Kay is resurrected he doesn’t find a war going on, but rather a war of a different nature, climate change. The setting of a near future Britton being hot and slowly flooded by waters was rather depressing at times. The author did an excellent job of showing what the future might look like if we keep going the way we are.

Kay and Mariam are the primary narrators with a some of the other characters chiming in when needed. Lancelot also had quite a few chapters from his perspective. I really enjoyed Kay’s character, he just wanted to get the job done and go back to sleep under his tree. But he does start to care a bit more about what is happening to his country and how he might be able to help. Mariam was a bit harder to like. She was a bit on the whiny side and was hindered greatly by her insecurities and self doubt. She does manage to come around and realizes her strength is exactly what is needed to get the job done.

One of the best parts of the story of the story was Lancelot and Kay’s relationship. They had grievances from their pasts that were hard for them to get past, and they fought like brothers, but were able to come together in the end. I also loved Merlin, he was a bit of a mess and I loved that he was growing ‘magic’ mushrooms to help the world. There is also a squirrel character, Barry. He was a white supremacist that tried to kill Kay, and was turned into a squirrel for his troubles. His character arc was great and he was sometimes the comic relief in tense moments.

The overall world building and plot were well done. There needed to be a bit more description at times, like when they were doing the spell that brought Arthur back. They kept going on about needing certain objects to do the spell, but then only one of them seemed to be used? It was odd. Overall the pacing was slow, and was also hindered by overly preaching about the climate and how the earth was in trouble. Once Arthur came back the pacing picked up but then we were rushed to the end in about 75 pages. The ending was good though, and hopeful even though the world’s troubles had not yet been totally solved.

This was a good mix of a futuristic setting with characters coming from myths and legends. This is a debut book, and when looking at it through that lens, this was well done. I would probably pick up another book by this author in the future.

This was such a unique take on a classic story, but I wished it was a bit more historical in what the knights did. The writing style was immaculate, but I was unable to keep up with the story with all of the futuristic and climate change messages.

Not really my style of book but I will say it is unique. I love the mythology of king Arthur’s knights of round table

This was an interesting take on historical fiction with Arthurian tales being modernized. And while I love WWII historical fiction, it's always great to be out of that time span for a while. The concept of the story is extremely unique but I, personally, couldn't get interested in this one. However, I think those that like Arthurian history, learning more about our ever changing climates and politics would enjoy this one.

In a future that is all too believable, climate change is on a course to destroy the world as we know it. Humans are not solving the problems, but luckily Merlin's magic makes it possible for certain knights of Arthur's Round Table to come back to life in perilous times and save the day. Sir Kay, Arthur's brother, finds himself waking up to come to the rescue of Mariam, an ecoterrorist who has inadvertently set off a fatal explosion. When the two of them join forces, their misadventures are sometimes hilarious, always exciting. Although this book seemed to bog down a bit in the middle, it was great fun to read this version of familiar Arthurian heroes and villains. We can hope a sequel is forthcoming.

I'm unfortunately not going to be able to finish this book because I've developed an issue that makes reading on screens difficult but what I have read is so good! I'm so disappointed I won't be able to finish it because it's a very intriguing and very unique take on Arthurian legends and the climate crisis. Each knight is very distinct from the other which I think a lot of other stories are lacking but Perilous Times really gives each character a developed personality and background. Hopefully one day I'll be able to get a physical copy and see how it all ends!

"An immortal Knight of the Round Table faces his greatest challenge yet - saving the politically polarized, rapidly warming world from itself - in this slyly funny contemporary take on Arthurian legend.

Legends don't always live up to reality.

Being reborn as an immortal defender of the realm gets awfully tiring over the years - or at least that's what Sir Kay's thinking as he claws his way up from beneath the earth yet again.

Kay once rode alongside his brother, King Arthur, as a Knight of the Round Table. Since then, he has fought at Hastings and at Waterloo and in both World Wars. But now he finds himself in a strange new world where oceans have risen, the army's been privatized, and half of Britain's been sold to foreign powers. The dragon that's running amok - that he can handle. The rest? He's not so sure.

Mariam's spent her life fighting what's wrong with her country. But she's just one ordinary person, up against a hopelessly broken system. So when she meets Kay, she dares to hope that the world has finally found the savior it needs.

Yet as the two travel through this bizarre and dangerous land, they discover that a magical plot of apocalyptic proportions is underway. And Kay's too busy hunting dragons - and exchanging blows with his old enemy Lancelot - to figure out what to do about it.

In perilous times like these, the realm doesn't just need a knight. It needs a true leader.

Luckily, Excalibur lies within reach.

But who will be fit to wield it?

With a cast that includes Merlin, Morgan le Fay, the Lady of the Lake, and King Arthur himself - all reimagined in joyous, wickedly subversive fashion - Perilous Times is an Arthurian retelling that looks forward as much as it looks back...and a rollicking, deadpan-funny, surprisingly touching fantasy adventure."

You know I'm a sucker for a good Arthurian retelling.

A fun and often times funny retelling of the classic Knights of the Round Table tale. Despite being almost 600 pages it was a very quick read as the author kept the story moving.

Great plot , very interesting story and developments , got hooked right away into it. The characters are good and very well done as well, good book .

As a retelling goes this one was unexpectedly easy to read and humorous but with a serious basis in climate change. I enjoyed it.

I remain a total simp for anything Arthurian, but this book stands apart from many. This is a novel that understands the soul of its mythology. It bears the obvious legacy of Malory or T.H. White in its broad strokes - Arthur, Excalibur, Lancelot, Kay, Merlin, Morgan Le Fay and their relationships to one another. But it also shows the influence of Marion Zimmer Bradley in the complicated nuances of those relationships. It even has callbacks to Disney’s The Sword in the Stone, which tickled me!

Merlin has magicked it so the Knights of the Round Table are eternally reborn whenever “the realm is in peril,” which was a brilliant device to bring them into the perils of today. The writing strongly portrays the impact fighting the wars of powerful men for centuries had on Kay and Lancelot. I love when these well-trod characters are humanized by being given depth and fallibility, and Lee has done so here. The political aspects of the story were poignant, with a realistic portrayal of the world approaching the miserable end of the climate crisis. You know, plus dragons popping out of the ground. I didn’t expect the humor, but found myself chuckling aloud at various points.

All that said, I found the characters and plot from modern times to be less compelling than the inner thoughts and backstory of the Arthurian characters. While I enjoyed the originality of this concept and it probably feels overdone, I would also happily read a pure retelling of the Arthurian Saga if Lee wanted to write it. But regardless of what it is, I’ll be keeping my eye on his future works!

*I received a free ARC from the publisher and NetGalley, all thoughts and opinions are my own*

Perilous Times was an interesting read. I like historical fiction and it read as a modern day twist on historical fiction. I found that part enjoyable.

Overall: 3/5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start off by saying the reason this book was a 3 star book for me (mostly to be honest a 2.5/5 stars) was because of the overall plot theme which drove the story. I was not totally aware this book was going to focus heavily on climate change and was an overall metaphor for save the trees- really it was kinda punny. I did not really like this as a plot element, not because I do not think we need to save our planet but because I use fantasy reads to escape from the real world. While there is a fantasy element to this story, climate change and the tress do drive the entire plot forward. So in the end it just was hard for me to stay engaged because I did not like the driving plot line.

However! I did like the way the author used the knight of the round table to drive this plot forward. It made sense, and it worked for the story. I also found Kay to be a VERY likable character. I loved his relationship with Lancelot, I liked their interactions and rivalry- very brother like. I also liked Morgan and Nimue. Mariam was ok, wasn’t terrible but she was ok.

There are some great events in this book, one involves fighting a dragon and a duel between Kay and Lancelot. The fantasy element really starts to take over after about 60% in, however for me that just was too far in. Also we get to meet Merlin and he’s something. Very kooky and dismissive to say the least.

Now there are some things that are also happening in this story such as racism which is touched on pretty early on. Kay also does his far share of killing and again it is a book about climate change. So those may be trigger warning or plots that may not make this book readable for some. However, I would recommend this book for anyone who is a large fan of knights of the Round table retellings, and someone who doesn’t mind climate change as a fantasy book plot point. The writing was good and I had no issues with how the author wrote this story or characters. My rating is purely based off it just wasn’t the plot for me overall. I believe Goldsboro is doing a special edition of this book. So you may be able to pick up a snazzy one there!