Le Fay
by Sophie Keetch
Its like she made a deal with the devil, everytime something goes right, there's always a catch.
The second book in the Morgan le Fay Trilogy does everything you could want it to. It expands the world, adds depth to the characters, and somehow manages to pack even more into a single book, all whilst being paced to perfection. Sophie Keetch has a gift for writing, words are truly her craft, and Le Fay is the proof of it.
Lady Morgan grows in this story, magically, politically, royally, and watching her step further into her own power is as thrilling as it is heartbreaking. She is so close to flawless, and the tragedy is that being close to flawless still isn’t enough in her world. Everywhere she goes, her environment keeps finding ways to take back every inch she gains, and every break she catches seems to come at a dear cost. And just like Morgan, you never stop hoping it won’t.
The relationship with surrounding characters, such as Merlin or Urien, are a stark portrayal of the world, but its Morgan’s contrast with Arthur that is unforgettable. They are two people with the same mother, shaped by the same world, moving through it in very different directions. Neither one are entirely wrong, and that’s why I found myself hesitating to call the antagonists villains even more so than I hesitate to call Morgan a hero. A lot of the conflict in this book simply comes down to perspective, and Le Fay shows that ambiguity perfectly.
The chaos in this story snowballs, and I was constantly wondering how we got in every situation, only to realise it was just the hand Morgan was dealt, one unfortunate card after another, until the rollercoaster end. Sophie Keetch’s writing is as beautiful as ever, and I’m going straight into Storm Over Camelot now this one has ended.