Rating: 
Summary: a worthy follow-up to The Lantern Bearers
Review: Rosemary Sutcliff is unusual in that her books for juveniles can easily be enjoyed by adults. Her follow-up to The Lantern Bearers is really a book for adults. I was affected more by the story of Aquila in The Lantern Bearers but still enjoyed the sequel. The story is a realistic account of the Arthur who might actually have existed. Sutcliff's description of landscapes is unmatched by any other fiction writer.
Rating:
Summary: Arthur, Emperor of the British
Review: Rosemary Sutcliffe wrote her books long before 'Lord of the Rings' made sword-and-sorcery popular. Her books are short on the sorcery, but so much the better for that. The concentration is on the imaginative reconstruction of a lost period in the history of civilization. Hence, her books are true historical novels, not fantasy, and are more intellectually satisfying than most fantasy novels. In this book, the historical Arthur tells his own story from the death of his relative and leader, Ambrosius, to the final deadly battle at Camlann. It is not necessary to have read the prequel "The Lantern Bearers" (a great book in its own right, possibly even better than this). As usual, Sutcliffe succeeds admirably and this reconstruction is true to its own rules, making it a fascinating and difficult-to-put-down novel. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: One of the original Arthurs, and one of the very best
Review: Seems like lots of people are doing the "King Arthur thing" nowadays; every timeI visit the bookstore I see a few more novels about Arthur, or Guinevere, or evenMordred. But for me, the single best Arthurian novel out there, barring the "originals" like Mallory and company, is Rosemary Sutcliffe's "Sword at Sunset". The story is dark and compelling, the characters familiar from legend but fully- fleshed in their own right. It's hard to create a new story when the outcome is pre-determined; yet Sutcliffe accomplishes it. She goes back to the archaeological and historical evidence, and creates a vision of a Romano-British civilization desperately holding out against the inrushing barbarians, thirty years after the Roman Legions left Britain for the last time. There is no magic, no Merlin, no Round Table, no Excalibur; Artos is crowned Emperor by drunken soldiers after a battle. The glory of the story, such as it is, comes from the characters' determination, not from medieval trappings of castles and shining armor. Sutcliffe writes (wrote - she died last year) with a real sense of place and time: you smell the campfires and hear the clash of battle. It is this immediacy that makes the story utterly compelling and convincing. I am convinced that if Arthur existed, this is what his story must have been like.
Rating:
Summary: One of the original Arthurs, and one of the very best
Review: Seems like lots of people are doing the "King Arthur thing" nowadays; every time
I visit the bookstore I see a few more novels about Arthur, or Guinevere, or even
Mordred. But for me, the single best Arthurian novel out there, barring the "originals" like Mallory and company, is Rosemary Sutcliffe's "Sword at Sunset".
The story is dark and compelling, the characters familiar from legend but fully-
fleshed in their own right. It's hard to create a new story when the outcome is
pre-determined; yet Sutcliffe accomplishes it. She goes back to the archaeological
and historical evidence, and creates a vision of a Romano-British civilization
desperately holding out against the inrushing barbarians, thirty years after
the Roman Legions left Britain for the last time. There is no magic, no Merlin,
no Round Table, no Excalibur; Artos is crowned Emperor by drunken soldiers after a battle. The glory of the story, such as it is, comes from the characters'
determination, not from medieval trappings of castles and shining armor. Sutcliffe writes (wrote - she died last year) with a real sense
of place and time: you smell the campfires and hear the clash of battle. It is this immediacy that makes the story utterly compelling and convincing. I am convinced that if Arthur existed, this is what his story must
have been like.
Rating:
Summary: A great book by a great writer
Review: This is one of the most magnificent re-tellings of the Arthurian story, thrilling, moving tragic, authentic, it must at last be described as high and noble. All Rosemary Sutcliff's work is splendid, but this is the pinnacle.
Rating:
Summary: The best book on Arthur, the real warrior behind the legend.
Review: This is the best story yet written on the Romano-British cavalryman and leader whose deeds gave rise to the legend of King Arthur. In the days of my youth Rosemary Sutcliff's fiction for children opened the wonderous world of the people of Roman Britain. Sword At Sunset is NOT A JUVENILE FICTION BOOK despite including characters and continuing a story line from an earlier novel: The Lantern Bearers. MS Sutcliff brilliantly weaves what little actual knowledge we have with fictional details in a manner that brings Arthur out of legend and into life. The story is that of Arthur's struggle to lead the Britons, both Celtic and Roman, against the invading Saxons. It is the story of the warrior brotherhood known as his 'Companions' as they battle to preserve the light of the dregs of Roman civilization in Britain against the darkness of the barbarians who would destroy it. The battles are realistic and the reader practically feels the blood, sweat, fear and courage of the fighting men. It is also a story of love, loyalty, betrayal and a horrible unspeakable sin, the consequenses of which could destroy all that Arthur holds dear. The story includes realistic events that would seem to explain an archeological mystery of the era and other events that give rise to important elements of the medieval legend.
MS Sutcliff takes us through Arthur's challenges as he strives to mount his men on the horses of his dreams, which he believes are the key to victory against the foot-bound Saxons. We follow him as he meets and befriends the men who will be his sword brothers as well as his meeting with the lady he grows to love, Guenhemara.
We see Arthur confront a ghost from his past whom he knows will try to destroy him and whom his own honor will not allow him to destory in turn.
As a soldier and historian I had always wanted to write a historical novel of the Arthur behind the legend. I would have no Camelot, no round table, no magic or knights in shining armor. It would be a story o!f a Dark Age warrior fighting a desperate battle to hold back the night. To my small dismay and my great enjoyment I found that the master story teller who woke my passion for history had already done so.
I have read both Mary Stewart's and Jack Whyte's books on the Arthur behind the legend and I have enjoyed them and highly recommend them. Because of it's realism, the historical and military research so obviously put into it and the 'historical feel' of the story, I enjoyed Sword At Sunset even better.
Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly excellent.
Review: When I first saw Sword at Sunset on my summer reading list for school, naturally, I cringed. First of all, it was 500 pages, and second of all, I've never been a huge fan of period novels, since usually they're filled with the vernacular of that time which can be hard to decipher, making it unenjoyable to read. I commend Rosemary Sutcliff for writing Sword at Sunset unbelievably historically accurate, but not so completely filled with jargon that you want to put it down after three pages. Another thing, the characters in the novel were incredibly easy to relate to and you didn't feel like they were on a distant planet. Basically, if I could enjoy a book like Sword at Sunset, anybody can.
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