About.com Rating

W.W. Norton, 2014

The legend of King Arthur is an integral and enduring pillar of Western mythology, a tale handed down through generations of telling and retelling until we can no longer distinguish fiction from fact, if ever there were facts. Nevertheless, we continue to enjoy the thrilling stories of Arthur and his court, secure in the "knowledge" that he will return one day and rescue Britain in its darkest hour of need.

In Finding Camlann, Sean Pidgeon, Director of Research Solutions at John Wiley & Sons, has written a sparkling literary thriller that purports to set the record straight and reveal the origins of the true King. Pidgeon skillfully weaves real facts, perceived facts, and fictional facts into an amazing account of King Arthur. It is a gripping tale of research, love lost and found, and academic searching and in-fighting set in a very real landscape. In fact, his descriptions of the Welsh countryside place the reader solidly in place, especially when his protagonist travels from one location to another. Pidgeon's use of descriptive language is extraordinary and his feel for the precise word is exact. Consider the sound of tea being poured: "a thin mezzo-soprano tinkling that deepens, as the cup begins to fill, into a more substantial tenor gurgle."

Donald Gladstone is an archeologist who is trying to finish a book which proves "by combining the evidence of modern scientific archaeology with the long-established traditions of documentary scholarship, that almost everything that has ever been written about the historical Arthur is wrong." This seems a rather dry premise to the fictional book within this novel; however, Pidgeon's unwrapping of the mystery is anything but dry.

He combines history, literature, archaeology, geography, geology, mapmaking, and creation myths, and throws in a believable love story to boot.

When, by chance, Gladstone meets Julia Llewellyn, a researcher at the OED in Oxford, at a pub, the various aspects of the novel are set into motion. Llewellyn has come across a poem, "The Song of Lailoken," written by or translated by Siôn Cent. His name is pronounced "Shon Kent" we learn in a handy guide to Welsh pronunciation that concludes the book. Llewellyn knows from her word searches that so much of life and literature comes in layers, and the layers that Pidgeon creates deepen the mysteries. For example, did her husband participate in a bombing that severely injured her father? How will Gladstone's knowledge of geology contribute to the search for Arthur's grave? What is Professor Caradoc Bowen's connection to Siôn Cent and how is he connected to Llewellyn's husband?

In a nod to a realistic issue in writing history, Pidgeon has the character of Professor Bowen illustrate the difficulty of separating fact from fiction. Bowen imagines all those who have authored stories about King Arthur sitting around playing a game of "Chinese Whispers." Known as "telephone" or "rumors" in the United States, this is a game in which a story begins, goes through a number of people, and comes out as something significantly different. In his example, the line of stories stretches over 300 years and begins with Gildas whispering to Bede who whispers to William of Malmesbury and on to Geoffrey of Monmouth and Henry of Huntingdon. Not everyone listens closely so parts of the story have to be filled in to complete a coherent narrative that moves along to Chrétien de Troyes to Bleheris to Layamon and finally to Thomas Malory. This "modern" story we know has been modified to suit the times along the way. This is a key point in underscoring Finding Camlann with a very real sense of verisimilitude.

This novel is a marvelous investigation into an imagined truth about King Arthur. It is at once scholarly and popular. Pidgeon builds the tension thoughout until the narrative culminates in an appropriate climax. Finding Camlann will appeal to those who have read Malory or those who have watched "Camelot." It clearly has broad appeal.