The Bright Sword Audiobook By Lev Grossman cover art

The Bright Sword

A Novel of King Arthur

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The Bright Sword

By: Lev Grossman
Narrated by: Nicholas Guy Smith, Lev Grossman
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About this listen

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A New York Times Editors’ Choice • The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Magicians Trilogy and “master storyteller” (New York Times) returns with a triumphant reimagining of the King Arthur legend for the new millennium

Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY
THE NEW YORK TIMES, NPR, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, VANITY FAIR, TIME, OPRAH DAILY, TOWN & COUNTRY, ELLE, VOX, PASTE, LIT HUB, POLYGON, KIRKUS REVIEWS

“Lev Grossman’s
The Bright Sword stands out as the best fantasy of the year.” —The Wall Street Journal

“Grossman, who is best known for his The Magicians series, is at the top of his game with
The Bright Sword.” —The New York Times Book Review

“A thrilling new take on Arthurian legend. . . . Marvelous.” —
The Washington Post

“If you love King Arthur as much as I do, you’ll love Lev Grossman’s
The Bright Sword, a fresh and engrossing take on the Matter of Britain featuring a colorful cast of Round Table knights who don’t often get as much story time as they deserve. The creator of The Magicians has woven another spell.” —George R. R. Martin, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Game of Thrones

A gifted young knight named Collum arrives at Camelot to compete for a place at the Round Table, only to find that he’s too late. King Arthur died two weeks ago at the Battle of Camlann, and only a handful of the knights of the Round Table are left.

The survivors aren’t the heroes of legend like Lancelot or Gawain. They’re the oddballs of the Round Table, like Sir Palomides, the Saracen Knight, and Sir Dagonet, Arthur’s fool, who was knighted as a joke. They’re joined by Nimue, who was Merlin’s apprentice until she turned on him and buried him under a hill.

But it's up to them to rebuild Camelot in a world that has lost its balance, even as God abandons Britain and the fairies and old gods return, led by Morgan le Fay. They must reclaim Excalibur and make this ruined world whole again—but first they'll have to solve the mystery of why the lonely, brilliant King Arthur fell.

The first major Arthurian epic of the new millennium, The Bright Sword is steeped in tradition, complete with duels and quests, battles and tournaments, magic swords and Fisher Kings. It's also a story about imperfect men and women, full of strength and pain, trying to reforge a broken land in spite of being broken themselves.

©2024 Lev Grossman (P)2024 Penguin Audio
Editors Select Epic Fantasy Historical Arthurian Royalty Feel-Good

Interview: "The Bright Sword" reimagines the legend of King Arthur for today’s age

'...it was interesting to me to try to take on something more in the epic line, and you don't get much more epic than Arthur.'
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  • The Bright Sword
  • '...it was interesting to me to try to take on something more in the epic line, and you don't get much more epic than Arthur.'

Editorial Review

Behold the legend of King Arthur’s leftover knights
Lev Grossman has thrown himself headfirst into the legend of King Arthur, and he’s come up with a retelling of the many-faceted story that feels both earnest and tongue-in-cheek. The rub is that the story starts after Arthur has died and Camelot is in shambles—what happens next? Collum, our impassioned, naïve hero, shows up a little too late to become a knight of the glorious Round Table. But fear not! There are plenty of adventures to be had for the despondent leftover knights. Replete with Grossman’s signature critical eye toward tropes and accepted truths, and juxtaposed with narrator Nicholas Guy Smith’s classical British storyteller vibe, The Bright Sword is the King Arthur legend for the questioning masses of today. — Melissa B., Audible Editor

Fresh Arthurian Perspective • Complex Character Development • Engaging Magical Elements • Witty Dialogue
Highly rated for:
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I have read & listened to many many books on King Arthur. This by far was the most entertaining and the most original King Arthur story I've encountered! It has elements of some really old and accurate information that pertains to his story, plus loads of fun bits & bobs that will make you laugh out loud! Don't hesitate on this one, it's a gem!

A new twist on King Arthur

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I’m sure I would have enjoyed the hard copy just as much, but the narration is fabulous. A real treat!

Absolutely PERFECT!

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A rollicking adventure that I could not stop listening to. The author does a wonderful job breaking the main narrative up with chapters reveling important facts about each character.

Wonderful

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Lots of good things but I struggled to care or stay awake. I loved the magicians but the large ensemble of characters in this one and a rather oafish main character who didn’t really transform in a meaningful way except he got good at fighting.

Meh

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I normally enjoy this author but found this story long winded and somewhat boring. Too bad

High hope but disappointed

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Lev Grossman displays his writing prowess yet again with The Bright Sword. He gets a lot done in a single book, and has left me feeling hopeful and melancholic both. The narrator is also fantastic, one of the best I’ve heard.

A Bright Story

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Creative storytelling with a clear performance. Fun take on the knights and happenings of Camelot.

Fun take on Authorian Legend

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Was a series of short stories, wasn’t expecting that. I lost focus. Attention drifted. I needed more connection to keep interest

Lost interest a lot

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loved this book! a few of the origin chapters were better than the overall novel, but there's something really lovely about this journey.

good old fashioned adventure

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Loved The Magicians series, so I was excited to see this Arthurian novel by Lev Grossman. It does not disappoint! Funny, poignant, thought-provoking. Brings many King Arthur tropes together in one lovely, up-to-date package. The narrator also never fails to delight, although his Guinevere seems to have a head cold throughout…

Nothing but love

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