The New Camelot (Emry Merlin, Band 3) - Hardcover

Schneider, Robyn

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0593623010 ISBN 13: 9780593623015

Verlag: Viking Books for Young Readers, 2024

Inhaltsangabe

Sayeth it ain't so! The finale to the epic Emry Merlin trilogy is here, with all the sorcery, snark, and high stakes that made The Other Merlin one of Publishers Weekly’s Best Books of the Year!

Everything is finally going right for Emry Merlin. Now that Arthur is the king and her wayward magic is under control, she’s enjoying life as Camelot’s official court wizard—and as Arthur’s girlfriend.

But when an unexpected visitor arrives at court, Emry finds her hard-won position threatened. And Arthur is torn between listening to his advisors and following his heart. Even more troubling, war is on the horizon, with King Yurien’s access to dark magic ensuring Camelot’s doom. That is, unless Emry, Arthur, and Lance can find a way to defeat the evil sorceress Bellicent with magic from her own world. But undertaking a quest to Anwen is perilous business, and our young heroes will face many obstacles on their journey—from dangerous beasts to suspicious nobles to cursed maidens determined to find someone to marry.

Can Emry and Arthur save their kingdom and fix their relationship, or will they have to choose between their future and Camelot’s?

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Robyn Schneider grew up in Southern California, where she spent her childhood reading fantasy novels and searching for secret passages. She’s a graduate of Columbia University, where she studied creative writing, and the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, where she earned a master's of bioethics. Robyn is the bestselling author of The Other Merlin, The Future King, The Beginning of Everything, Extraordinary Means, Invisible Ghosts, and You Don’t Live Here. Her work is available across the world in over a dozen languages. She lives in Los Angeles with her TV producer husband, their tiny puppy, and far too many books.

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CHAPTER 1
Arthur Pendragon kept his head down and his hood up as he crossed the bustling market square. The mouthwatering scents of roasted chestnuts and meat pies filled the cold night air as a street busker sawed merrily at his fiddle. Crowds pressed in from all directions, eager to warm their hands with a mug of spiced cider, or to trade a coin for a prediction of their future.
In his plain wool cloak, scuffed boots, and leather jerkin, Arthur did not earn a second glance from anyone, which was exactly what he was going for. It was a chilly evening in late January, and that alone was enough of an excuse to bundle inside a hooded cloak.
When he’d traded his royal finery for more suitable garb and announced he was going out, his guards had sighed but had stood aside without protest. All except for Tristan, who had insisted on coming with him, for protection.
And, Arthur suspected, for a night out. His friends had left for the tavern directly after supper, and he’d promised to join them when he could. Which had taken longer than he’d hoped, since nearly half the court wanted a word with their king. Thankfully, some quick subterfuge was all it had taken to slip away. Well, that and an outright lie about a guest waiting in his chambers, which would have everyone speculating for days. But that was Future Arthur’s problem.
Current Arthur’s problem was Tristan, who’d promptly forgotten about their destination in favor of buying snacks from the market stalls. Arthur pressed back a sigh. They were late enough as it was.
“I never get leave on a market day,” Tristan enthused, his mouth full. “Want some?” he asked, proffering a cone of spiced, roasted nuts. Arthur felt a stab of guilt for his impatience. He forgot sometimes that he wasn’t the only one for whom the castle was both home and prison. He plucked up a roasted chestnut, popping it into his mouth.
Sard, it was good. Perhaps Tristan was onto something. Lightening his purse here would disguise his true destination. He’d learned that if he headed out with his friends after supper, any nobles who desired a word trailed them to the tavern. No doubt a few enterprising courtiers were already waiting at the Gilded Lion, which he was avoiding for that precise reason.
He drifted toward a bookseller’s stall, sifting through the worn copies of romance and adventure stories until he found a few that looked interesting.
Tristan joined him, wiping crumbs from the front of his cloak. “Aren’t there enough books in the castle library?”
“I’ve read all of those,” Arthur deadpanned, and for a moment, the young guard believed him.
He picked up a thick novel, catching a glimpse of the book beneath it, entitledCornwall: A History. He winced at the unexpected reminder of the last thing he wanted to think about. It had been two months since his disastrous wedding, or lack thereof, when the Duke of Cornwall had used the cover of the festivities to lay siege to the unsuspecting castle. The losses had been staggering. And it was only through Emry’s quick thinking and imaginative magic that they hadn’t been worse. Arthur still had nightmares of his father dying in his arms. Of picking up a sword and doing what King Uther couldn’t—killing the Duke of Cornwall and putting an end to his deadly grab for the throne.
But with the duke out of the way, Arthur’s worries focused constantly on an even bigger threat—King Yurien. The worry ate away at him as paperwork piled on his desk, and council meetings had him terrified that he would make the wrong call.
Not that his advisors afforded him the opportunity to make any decisions at all.
What was it Lord Agravaine had said just that afternoon? No one expects you to run the kingdom straight out of the gate. Take your time.
Still, two months felt like enough time that he should be doing more than signing preapproved legislation and doodling in the margins of his parchment during council meetings. Every time he tried to voice a concern to his council, they dismissed it, making it clear he didn’t know what he was talking about. And he worried they were right. That he wasn’t truly ready to lead the kingdom, and that, if he pushed, he’d only make things worse. So he fretted in silence, and when his friends asked, he pretended he had it all under control.
His friends! Sard, they were still waiting for him at the tavern. He paid for his books and hurried across London, Tristan rushing after him and grumbling about getting indigestion. When the spire of St. Paul’s came into view, sticking up above the London rooftops at a slightly crooked angle, Arthur tried to push away the memory of how that had happened. He slipped down the alleyway that separated the churchyard from a tavern, passing the slab of stone that sat in the courtyard between them.
Almost two years ago, on a drunken night out, he’d pulled the sword from the stone. Back then, he’d been convinced that the people of Camelot wouldn’t want him as their king. That, no matter what he did, he’d never be able to prove himself.
And he still worried that he wouldn’t. Even though he’d recovered Excalibur, made an ally of the King of France, defeated the Duke of Cornwall in combat, and even signed a peace treaty with the King of Cameliard after narrowly avoiding marriage to his daughter, Guinevere.
Despite all these victories, he still felt like the unwanted spare who was never supposed to inherit a kingdom.
London had dozens of taverns far better than the Crooked Spire. Yet Arthur found himself drawn to this one. In the dim light of the candles that dripped indiscriminately over table and patron from the iron chandelier, the whole place had a cozy glow. Better yet, the barkeep made sure no one bothered him, or his companions, and let them hold on to their weapons instead of leaving them by the door.
When Arthur entered, he spotted his friends playing cards at one of the round tables by the back staircase. Lance was talking animatedly, and Percival was beaming at him. Emry rolled her eyes and said something that twisted her mouth into a smirk.
Arthur’s heart squeezed at the sight of her. She wore a black dress that laced up the front, her hair falling in dark waves to her shoulders. Black makeup was smudged around the corners of her eyes. She looked fierce and powerful and entirely magic, even just sitting there laughing.
When she spotted him, she grinned as though he was exactly the person she wanted to see most in the world. And something deep within him fluttered, feeling the same.
“Look who finally showed up,” she teased.
“We weren’t sure you’d make it,” added Lance.
“Then you highly underestimate my ability to sneak around like a castle rat,” said Arthur.
“Wait, are those books?” Emry gleefully pointed at the stack under his arm. “Did you bring books to a tavern in case we’re poor company?”
Arthur bristled. “Of course not. I bought them on the way here.”
“But if we’re really boring, I bet he’ll read one,” Lance said, as though issuing a challenge.
Percival grinned. “Now, what’s everyone’s favorite type of door? I personally prefer wooden ones.”
“The kind with bolts, or the kind with locks?” Lance inquired.
“I suppose it depends on the thickness of the door in question,” Perce said thoughtfully. He turned toward Arthur, the picture of innocence. “What’s your opinion?”
Arthur rolled his eyes. “You do realize I’m the ki—”
“Kind of person who prefers ones with enormous...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Viking Books for Young Readers
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2024
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0593623010
• ISBN 13: 9780593623015
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 496
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Zeitfracht Medien GmbH; info-medien@zeitfracht.de; ; Ferdinand-Jühlke-Straße 7; Erfurt; 99095; Deutschland