The Fort at River's Bend (Camulod Chronicles #5) by Jack Whyte

The fifth novel in The Camulod Chronicles finally gets to the education of Arthur by his mentor and surrogate father, Merlyn.  It covers the period of time where young Arthur is aged 8 through 15, very formative years indeed.  It’s also, perhaps, the most idyllic novel in the entire series.  The end of the last book, "The Saxon Shore", saw an assassination attempt on young Arthur’s life so Merlyn and a small group of trusted friends and protectors make their way secretly to an old abandoned fort not far from Hadrian’s Wall.  There, Merlyn and company undertake the duties of educating Arthur and forming the man who will become the great king of all Britain.  It’s almost a utopian novel in fact as there is only enough danger to the group to keep their skills up and provide key lessons for Arthur and his young companions and virtually no threats from outside political forces. This peaceful time also allows Merlyn to make some welcome changes in his own outlook on life and to recover from the loss of his wife. The end of the novel makes it clear that those circumstances will soon be changing as the group must return to Camulod (Camelot) to face new threats from old enemies.

This novel, as with all the others so far in the series, is a non-magical version of the Arthurian tale. It’s basically pure historical fiction with all of the tropes of magical Merlin, Excalibur, the Lady of the Lake, etc. all told via realistic explanations. The only caveat to this are some dreams that Merlyn has occasionally that seem to foretell what will come.  

The book is told from Merlyn’s first person point of view, from a time long after the events depicted.  This allows him to provide foreshadowing here and there but nothing that would surprise anybody who knows the basics of Arthurian lore. It’s also great fun to read how Merlyn excuses his own behavior when he has been foolish or stubborn.  

These novels are awesome and I really am savoring each and every one.  I seem to go through actual withdrawal when I complete one so I’m glad there are still several more to go.