The Cleaving by Juliet E McKenna

Publisher – Angry Robot

Published – Out Now

Price – £9.99 paperback £0.79 Kindle eBook

Four women, four destinies – the future of King Arthur's court…

The Cleaving is an Arthurian retelling that follows the tangled stories of four women: Nimue, Ygraine, Morgana, and Guinevere, as they fight to control their own destinies amid the wars and rivalries that will determine the destiny of Britain.

The legendary epics of King Arthur and Camelot don’t tell the whole story. Chroniclers say Arthur’s mother Ygraine married the man that killed her husband. They say that Arthur's half-sister Morgana turned to dark magic to defy him and Merlin. They say that the enchantress Nimue challenged Merlin and used her magic to outwit him. And that Arthur’s marriage to Guinevere ended in adultery, rebellion and bloodshed. So why did these women chose such dangerous paths?

As warfare and rivalries constantly challenge the king, Arthur and Merlin believe these women are destined to serve Camelot by doing as they are told. But men forget that women talk. Ygraine, Nimue, Morgana and Guinevere become friends and allies while the decisions that shape their lives are taken out of their hands. This is their untold story. Now these women have a voice.

With stories a perspective is always going to be chosen by the author. We’ll be told who to focus on and what happened to their lives. Its always tempting to say well they’re the most interesting character and as I only want a great story that’s who I want to know more about. But stories are therefore going to have characters we don’t get to know so well. We are now re-appraising the messages these stories now represent. I was very interested that Juliet E Mckenna’s approach in their gripping retelling of Arthurian legend manages to have a refreshing spin on the tale but also takes advantage of the myths to create almost a secret untold story of the key women who hold the legends together.

Nimue is not human but belongs to one of the Hidden magical races that reside in Ancient Britain. She has spent many years watching humans and ensuring that they pose no dangers to her people. She has found herself hiding amongst them in Cornwall serving the local royal King Gorlois and Queen Ygraine. It’s a time of feuding Kings all vying for power from the south coast to the isles of Orkney. The greatest warrior able to stop the Picts thanks to his cunning and bravery is King Uther Pendragon. A King who also has one of Nimue’s fellow countrymen serving him as a counsellor and possibly offers more than advice - Merlin. Merline claims Uther holds the key to saving the people from live magic and must be protected but Nimue finds Uther has set his sights on Ygraine and will be as ruthless in lust as he is in fighting. Merin’s aid will wreck Ygraine’s happy family and lead t the birth of a child who will be called Arthur. Over the coming years Nimue seeks the rise of Arthur, bears witness to the fates of Ygraine, her daughter Morgana and a young future Queen known as Guinevere all of whom will shape the future of the world and a secret war with the magical forces that are constantly on guard against humanity.

I was very impressed by the approach that The Cleaving adopts. Rather than say McKenna is retellling the Arthurian legends it would I think be more accurate I feel to say this is in some ways an inversion. The Arthurian legends are taking place as we know them, but McKenna is exposing those parts of the tale often glossed over and yet are aspects of the major legends written in the medieval era. The first act makes us via Nimue’s presence see Ygraine as more than simply Arthur’s mother. We get to see her as a happy wife, mother and Queen as aware of her country’s politics as her husband and so very loyal towards her people. All of this then makes Ygraine’s actual role in the legend of Arthur all the more horrific as she is raped by Uther who thanks to Merlin’s magic, has adopted the disguise of Ygraine’s husband to fool her. A part of the legend perhaps glossed over – Ygraine simply is a tool to create Arthur’s destiny which is Merlin’s view. By holding our attention on Ygraine not just before and during we also get to see the aftermath. This is not a hero origin story but the start of a tragic set of events that leads to the rest of the story. Nimue being not human is our observer and provides the voice and support for those that Merlin consider mere collateral.

Giving these characters a backstory really fleshes out their motivations. We meet young Morgana who we find sees the death of her father, the rape of her mother and Uther then sets himself up as ruler. Is it any wonder she is hostile to those of Pendragon. It’s a slow burning anger that rises as we enter the time of Arthur who while tries to be goo d is perhaps a bit too focused on jousts, having favourites and constant wars with other Kings. Here Arthur is a more distant King – all his adventures happen off stage we instead get to see the other side of Camelot. Merlin is a more sinister guiding presence using knowledge of the future to endlessly control events. We find tales of enchanted swords and warring magical groups that make Camelot feel less a golden age and a possible respite from chaos that itself may create more. Nimue becomes horrified (as do we) at how far Merlin’s desire to control goes leading to a conflict that again links back t the legends – we just understand why she believes the sorcerer needs to be stopped.

In the final acts of the book, we meet Guinevere and start to see the end of Camelot. I really liked how McKenna using their trademark love of history and detail brings this fabled place to life and at the same time makes us see Guinevere as a woman trying to survive being married off to a stranger and one who seems more interested in battles and fighting than being around his wife. This is when no heir is produced – women as mere tools for a lineage an ongoing theme for the books. This leads to the appearance of Lancelot who McKenna asks us to reappraise if he really is acting out of love or lust. These scenes are the catalyst, and my only regret is this act itself could have been a second book as one villain only really appears to make his mark a few chapters near the end and a bit more time to explore this period too would have been fascinating and does instead feel a sudden conclusion.

The Cleaving is a great twenty first century look at Arthurian legends. It gives a much-needed refreshing look at the key women in the tale who have been often sidelined or merely used as warnings as to the nature of women to undo great men. McKenna quietly points out these women’s stories as already laid down in the myths and ask if this happened to you would you just sit quietly and do nothing? Highly recommended for fans of myths and historical fantasy.