Book Thoughts: Scarlet

Title: Scarlet
Author: Stephen R. Lawhead
Series: King Raven #2

I enjoyed Scarlet a lot more than the first book in the series (and I enjoyed book one, to be sure). I thought the narrative style was a little weird at first; switching to an intermittent first-person narrator was a strange jump after the first book's third person. But once I adjusted to that, Will Scarlet is such a fun narrator.

I liked his voice, I liked that he seemed much more human than most of the other characters -- basically, the addition of Will Scarlet to the King Raven saga has done some very good things for the series.

Also, I think this book had a much more central and focused plot than the first book, which made it a lot easier to stay engaged. While the first one was very much setup for the rest of the series, this one had a cohesive plot - beginning, middle, and end - that could almost stand alone. I say almost because the ending leaves you wanting to know how it all concludes in book three, but the individual story of this book is wrapped up.

Very rarely do I enjoy the middle book in a trilogy more than the first book, but this is one of those rare cases. If you had a hard time with Hood, keep reading, because Scarlet is much better. And if you really loved Hood, I don't know what you're waiting for. Go read this now.

Book Thoughts: Hood

Title: Hood
Author: Stephen R. Lawhead
Series: King Raven #1

I just finished reading this one, and it was not what I expected, nor did I expect to enjoy it as much as I did.

Hood is the first in a trilogy that is a retelling of Robin Hood -- but rather than in Sherwood Forest, it's set in the dark forest of medieval Wales and chock full of British political intrigue. I've always been a fan of the Robin Hood story (come on, who didn't love the singing-animals Disney movie of it?), but I wasn't sure what to make of the Welsh names and mythology.

But any wariness I had was swept away in the story. I enjoyed recognizing the various reincarnations of the traditional Robin Hood characters (Bran as Robin, Iwan as the Welsh form of John, so Little John, and of course Merian), but I also got sucked into this as a story all its own. There are parallels to Robin Hood, definitely, but it isn't a direct retelling. It's more a "reimagining."

There were places where the writing felt a little forced, but the story makes up for it. It's a decidedly dense novel (took me several days to read it), but that's because it is packed with Welsh lore and adventure.

Hood probably isn't for just anyone, but if you're a fan of the Robin Hood story and/or medieval stories and/or adventure, you should give this one a try.