On the way back to the tournament grounds, Tristram meets, oh, let’s call her Orlene. Orlene was the damosel who accompanied Sir Launcelot on an adventure that Malory skipped over, his defeated of a Sir Carados at a place called … Continue reading →
“Monday’s Monk,” by Jason Sanford (~14 pages, third person limited, past tense) is more ambitious. A lone Buddhist monk struggles to cope with an anarchic future Thailand wherein a militia ruthlessly hunts down and destroys nanotechnology and those who … Continue reading →
Then the jousting tournament begins, and simply everyone is there. Sir Palamides, but also Sir Gawaine, Gawaine’s brothers Sir Gaheris and Sir Agravaine, Sir Bagdemagus, Sir Kay, Sir Dodinas, Sir Sagramore the Lusty, Sir Li’l Gumret, and Sir Griftlet, plus … Continue reading →
The March 2013 issue of Asimov’s arrived in my mailbox last week. My biggest complaint about it is its review of Year Zero, the recent novel by Rob Reid, which Peter Heck enjoyed and which I, to put it mildly, … Continue reading →
So King Anguish introduces Sir Tristram, aka Sir Tramtrist, and if you think I’m making that up you’re wrong, to his daughter the lovely Isoud. It turns out that in addition to being the fairest maiden in Ireland, the lovely … Continue reading →
Back in Cornwall, Tristram isn’t doing so well himself. While he talked a good game, Tristram’s joust with Marhaus has left him bleeding from several substantial wounds, including a nasty spear-wound in his side that Marhaus opened up the fight … Continue reading →
Sir Marhaus sees Tristram coming at him, and steps back. “Hey there, kid, you’re Melodias’s son Tristram, right? You’re plainly very brave, which is a shame, since I’m a remarkably badass knight. I mean, I’ve fought plenty in my … Continue reading →
Sir Tristram goes to his father and asks for permission to fight Marhaus. “You know he’s a Knight of the Round Table, and one of the best fighters in this novel, right?” asks Meliodas. “Yeah, whatever. I think I can … Continue reading →
Young Tristram leaves Liones and Cornwall at this point, and goes to France, with his tutor Gouvernail. In France he learns how to speak French and how to play the harp. Tristram is the best harpist of his generation, you … Continue reading →
So there they are: Elizabeth dead, the midwife holding Baby Tristram, the barons all around them. Will Baby Tristram make it? Yes. Elizabeth’s legacy is so great, and her death scene last chapter so touching, that it inspires the midwife … Continue reading →
