Thomas D. Lee – Perilous Times

Today I’m over the moon to be hosting my stop on the blog tour for Perlious Times by Thomas D.Lee. Thanks to Tracy Fenton from Compulsive Readers and Orbit Books for my gifted copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

They say ‘old soldiers never die’ – and in Sir Kay’s case, the ballad can be taken literally.
Publication date Thursday, May 25, 2023
For hundreds of years Kay and his fellow knights of the round table have been woken from their long slumber whenever Britain had need of them; they fought at Agincourt and at the Somme. But in these perilous modern times, the realm is more divided than ever, a dragon has been seen for the first time in centuries, and Kay is not the only ancient and terrible thing to come crawling up out of the ground . . .

Perilous Times is a fiercely entertaining contemporary take on the myths of Camelot, which asks: what happens when the Knights of the Round Table return to fix the problems of the modern world?

This debut is perfect for fans of Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Jodi Taylor and Ben Aaronovitch.

An absolutely original and highly unique dystopian fantasy tale by Thomas D. Lee. Perilous Times literally grabbed me from the moment I saw the cover and read the synopsis. I was so intrigued and eager to read this book I began as soon as it landed through my letterbox.

Perilous Times is a totally modern retelling of the Arthurian legends of old. It’s fresh and an exciting read. I am a massive Terry Pratchett fan, and this book just reminded me so much of his work.

The characters are turned on their heads with queer characters and black knights, too! Set in  the modern world against the climate crisis, we see Sir Kay, a knight of the Round Table, who is lying under an old oak tree. When the Realm is in peril, he awakens and crawls through the mud, ready to defend the country from anything. The only trouble is, this time, the country is sinking from the rising sea levels, and it gets worse!
Mariam is an eco-warrior who is single handedly attempting to save the planet. When she meets Sir Kay, she thinks maybe there is a chance.

The tale is excellently told. I was as immersed and captivated by this book as I am reading a Terry Pratchett novel. The authors vision of our country hits so close to home and he cleverly weaves in the major events we have seen happen over the last years, Brexit has a place and the fabulous takes on the political parties, well that had me chuckling.

Humorous, satirical , and emotional. This is a dystopian fantasy I completely adored. I mean, there is even a reformed squirrel! Loved it. I’m so glad I read this book, and I will honestly be looking out for his next book.

Author Bio

Thomas D. Lee is an author of fantastical and historical fiction. In 2019 he completed an MA in Creative Writing at the University of Manchester’s Centre for New Writing. He has
now embarked upon a PhD at the same institution, specialising in queer interpretations of the Arthurian mythos. He frequently considers emulating Merlin and becoming a hermit in the woods who speaks only in riddles.