Starred Review Yolen takes elements of Arthurian legend and makes them her own in this involving novel. The central image of the sword in the stone comes to prominence not as the way an unknown boy becomes king but as a means devised by Merlinnus the mage to bind the people's allegiance more firmly to the young King Arthur. Besides Arthur and Merlinnus, the narrative closely concerns Sir Gawaine, who is determined to stay loyal to Arthur despite his mother's traitorous plots against the king, and young Gawen, who arrives at court to train as a knight and becomes an assistant to Merlinnus instead. In Yolen's hands, many characters who have been colorful cardboard figures in other books come to life as sympathetic human beings. Even Sir Kay, for all his flaws, is somehow likable as portrayed here, and Arthur's affection for him is understandable. Yet all is not well in Arthur's realm, even at his court: evil is real, magic is dangerous, assassins are abroad, and power is the only language universally understood. The revelation of a secret creates a surprise ending that departs from traditional Arthurian legend, though many will find it a satisfying climax. Combining old and new, adventure and idealism, this will leave many readers hoping for a sequel that is just as well written and intriguingly crafted.

Morgause feels that her 17-year-old son Gawaine belongs on the throne of England, in what <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">PW's starred review called "a spellbinding twist on the Round Table legend." Ages 12-up. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Aug.)

The sword in the stone is the nub of this novel, but in Yolen's telling, Arthur has been on the throne for some time when Merlinnus conceives the idea as a means to consolidate Arthur's shaky rule--particularly to forestall Morgause, the North Witch, who would place one of her own sons on the throne, and herself behind it. Yolen is playing to her strengths here, and from these old materials she works a creditable new story.

Political intrigue dominates this new version of how Arthur came to pull the sword Excalibur from a stone. Arthur, already an adult, is king but without full support of the country, so his advisor Merlinnus creates a stone with a sword in it that only Arthur will be able remove—thus demonstrating that he's the rightful king. Meanwhile, Morgause, whom informed readers will recognize as Arthur's evil half-sister and former lover, turns her powerful black magic against Arthur, plotting to put one of her sons on the throne. She sends four them to Arthur's court, where one may be trying to kill him—a mystery. Another mystery is the real identity of Gawen, a boy with golden hair and slim build who becomes Merlinnus's new helper and Arthur's increasingly important friend. Fans of King Arthur will be the best audience for this tale; the reading benefits significantly from already knowing the characters' backgrounds, not offered in any detail. Although the prolific Yolen usually supplies more action, those who can't get enough of Arthur and his court will likely enjoy the different slant on his rise to power. ( Fiction. 11+)

Gr 5-8-A prolific fantasy writer retells a familiar hero tale with an entirely new twist. Following Thomas Malory's 15th-century Le Morte d'Arthur, modern writers, notably T. H. White in The Once and Future King (Putnam, 1958), have described the magnificent sword locked in a great stone and its fateful inscription. As in Rosemary Sutcliff's Sword at Sunset (Tor, 1987), Yolen sets the story in post-Roman Britain. Arthur is already king, but as the son of usurper Uther Pendragon, he is barely holding together a country divided along ethnic and religious lines. His chief rival is his older half-sister Morgause, the crazed witch queen of Orkney who longs to place her son Gawaine on the throne, so she can be the power behind him. Merlinnus, Arthur's elderly protector, constructs the stone and sword as a dramatic piece of showmanship supported by his own magic to confirm Arthur's right to rule. But a mysterious young page, Gawen, appears at Cadbury, gaining the trust and affection of the mage and the king, and upsetting all expectations, including those of readers. Yolen has clearly immersed herself in Arthurian legends and Celtic lore, but her scholarship rests lightly on this page-turning tale of magic and adventure, betrayal, loyalty, and love. Through smooth, accessible prose, she draws her characters with broad strokes. Those familiar with stories about King Arthur will note points in the plot that hint at a sequel. An entertaining addition to fantasy collections.-Margaret A. Chang, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.