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digiacomoa's review
dark
medium-paced
3.5
I mean, it was a book. I guess I liked Merlin but overall not my thing
humblebee20's review against another edition
4.0
A really good read that was a lot of fun to speed through. The characters are all lifted from Arthurian legend, and yet the very modern prose makes the characters thugs and more down to earth and yet simehow more outlandish than the hugh fantasy often associated with the king. The indroduction led me to believe it would be a very cut and dry, if cynical and more realistic take, but the following sections blew that idea out of the water. It did take some getting used to the somewhat modern language and Arthur being a drug lord, but after the book slaps you with that, you're well prepared for the absurdity that's to come. While I loved the crazy take on the classic characters, especially Guineveire, the grail section felt a little too out there for my tastes, despite loving the "dragon's" influence on the land. Good for fans of a realistic and crude medieval settong with a good helping of dry wit and fantasy elements.
tam_townsend's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
0.5
Crass and juvenile to no real end. In what is perhaps some kind of meta- commentary, the title is quoted every three chapters or so in order to beat the reader over the head with the author’s message about violence and political power. Doesn’t bring anything particularly new to Arthuriana except perhaps the bit where Guinevere is a ninja. There are far better and more interesting subversive retellings
caitsidhe's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Often brilliant, often annoying - especially when Tidhar is trying very hard to be clever with the references. The whole section with Lancelot and 'gung-fu' was eyerolling.
hahildebrand's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
5.0
This is outstanding - a weird, profane, funny, violent reimagining of the Arthurian myths, carried along by a gleeful, giddy narrative voice.
eininthebird's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
lou_noel's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i get what they were going for. not really my vibe.
aleffert's review against another edition
3.0
Did the Arthurian legends need a version where Arthur gets his start his running dealing drugs and everyone quotes gangster movies? No, but this is a perfectly fine if perhaps almost comically gritty take on some otherwise familiar stories.
hazem_walid's review against another edition
3.0
Is by force alone a novel about the Arthurian legend ? not really it is a book about force alone seen easy from the title. what will you do to have what you want and what will it take to get it.
"To be a king the innocents must die, to be a king the guilty live, to be a king is to be judge and executioner both, and rule by force alone.''
- The book takes a perspective of a mythical story more than a linear story, like in the Iliad by Homer. That had its ups and downs for me. I was liking the story but I was not connecting with the character at all.
- The story has some weird element the other place (beyond the wall was it called?) was just a very big hallucination trip that I love but sometimes that I didn't understand what was happening.
- The style of writing has its ups and downs too, because of the way the author chose to tell the story but in some parts, it reminds me of one of my favorite authors [[Joe Abercrombie.]]
They don’t think of the implications! To go to war, someone has to hire cooks! Maintain discipline, make sure the roads are clear after the rains, ensure provisions, medical supplies, lines of communication— Arthur thinks it’s just like in the old days, when they were boys when all you needed for a fight was a knife and a yard, and somewhere to stash the bodies after.
- Characters, as a whole, weren't the focus of the book but some of them were very good Merlin( we can say he is the lead character of the novel?), Kay and Lancelot, in my opinion, were the best characters and I think Arthur was merely at the novel.
He knew what he was: a parasite on the body politic – from the Greek: literally, a person supping at another’s table. That’s what he is, that’s what being a knight is. They are like leeches, feasting on the toil of those who can’t take the cure, who can’t fight them. They bleed the populace, the tenth tithe at a time, just enough not to kill them, just enough to keep them working. He knows what he is. And there’s a power in knowing your true self. Lancelot has no illusions, not anymore.
- This novel seems like the Guy Ritchie movie (King Arthur: Legend of the sword) in some way or another and I love that movie so when I feel the similarities come, I love it.
- So in the end, the novel has some provoking ideas about the idea of [[power]]
There is so much life in him, and so much power, or the potential for power still. This is what the Lady wants, this is why Merlin serves him. They feed on power as leeches feed on blood.
It is at that moment when his fingers close on the hilt of the sword and he pulls it out of the stone that he knows he would be king. Not by divine right or by a line of descent. By force alone. and how the legend is formed and why.
And always remember what is a king but the last guy to take power
"To be a king the innocents must die, to be a king the guilty live, to be a king is to be judge and executioner both, and rule by force alone.''
- The book takes a perspective of a mythical story more than a linear story, like in the Iliad by Homer. That had its ups and downs for me. I was liking the story but I was not connecting with the character at all.
- The story has some weird element the other place (beyond the wall was it called?) was just a very big hallucination trip that I love but sometimes that I didn't understand what was happening.
- The style of writing has its ups and downs too, because of the way the author chose to tell the story but in some parts, it reminds me of one of my favorite authors [[Joe Abercrombie.]]
They don’t think of the implications! To go to war, someone has to hire cooks! Maintain discipline, make sure the roads are clear after the rains, ensure provisions, medical supplies, lines of communication— Arthur thinks it’s just like in the old days, when they were boys when all you needed for a fight was a knife and a yard, and somewhere to stash the bodies after.
- Characters, as a whole, weren't the focus of the book but some of them were very good Merlin( we can say he is the lead character of the novel?), Kay and Lancelot, in my opinion, were the best characters and I think Arthur was merely at the novel.
He knew what he was: a parasite on the body politic – from the Greek: literally, a person supping at another’s table. That’s what he is, that’s what being a knight is. They are like leeches, feasting on the toil of those who can’t take the cure, who can’t fight them. They bleed the populace, the tenth tithe at a time, just enough not to kill them, just enough to keep them working. He knows what he is. And there’s a power in knowing your true self. Lancelot has no illusions, not anymore.
- This novel seems like the Guy Ritchie movie (King Arthur: Legend of the sword) in some way or another and I love that movie so when I feel the similarities come, I love it.
- So in the end, the novel has some provoking ideas about the idea of [[power]]
There is so much life in him, and so much power, or the potential for power still. This is what the Lady wants, this is why Merlin serves him. They feed on power as leeches feed on blood.
It is at that moment when his fingers close on the hilt of the sword and he pulls it out of the stone that he knows he would be king. Not by divine right or by a line of descent. By force alone. and how the legend is formed and why.
And always remember what is a king but the last guy to take power
glimnore's review against another edition
5.0
By Force Alone is one of those rare gems that isn't talked about a lot but speaks volumes about the way we, as a society, glorify tales of kings and nights and heroes. In our attempts to grow as a people, we gaze fondly back toward the past, romanticizing it while ignoring our most painful present and the ever-terrifying future.
Lavie Tidhar strings together a beautiful story, excellent characters, and prose that practically drips off the page. The soft magic systems, the imminent and obvious end, and the nostalgia are the cherries on top.
And he does this while being creative and original with the source material and....having a Lancelot that knows Kung-Fu. If that last bit isn't enough to get you to read this, I don't know what is.
Lavie Tidhar strings together a beautiful story, excellent characters, and prose that practically drips off the page. The soft magic systems, the imminent and obvious end, and the nostalgia are the cherries on top.
And he does this while being creative and original with the source material and....having a Lancelot that knows Kung-Fu. If that last bit isn't enough to get you to read this, I don't know what is.