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Hawk of May

by Gillian Bradshaw Book 1 in the Down the Long Wind series.

First published 1980

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4.3(136)

Gwalchmai, the middle son of King Lot and the sorceress Morgawse, grows up in the Orcades overshadowed by his warrior brothers and eager for his mother’s approval. She trains him in dark magic, but grief and the suffering he witnesses gradually reveal the cruelty demanded by her power.

Breaking with Morgawse and his brother Medraut, Gwalchmai escapes south to the court of his uncle Arthur at Camlann. To earn a place in Arthur’s warband, he must overcome fear, resist the legacy of his family and choose the discipline of the Light, beginning the transformation into the champion remembered as Gawain.

Historical Periods

Arthurian BritainLegendary setting, conventionally c. 5th–6th centuries CE

Genres

Children’s & Young Adult Fiction Coming-of-Age Fiction Historical Fantasy Mythological Fiction

Historical people

King ArthurLegendary; traditionally placed in the 5th–6th centuries Gawain

Series reading order

Books in the Down the Long Wind series

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