What Am I Reading for My 2010 New/Old Reading Challenge?

I just finished reading Queen in Exile, a fantasy romance by Donna Hatch. I'll be reviewing her book as part of her blog tour, so you'll have to wait until then for my impressions. :-)

Back now to an "old" book for my reading challenge...kind of. The Last Enchantment, by Mary Stewart, is the final book in her Merlin trilogy. It's been sitting on my bookshelf since high school at least, next to its sister books, The Crystal Cave and The Hollow Hills. I presume that I read it at some point, since I remember that it was from this book that I first learned that there is a legend that there were actually two Guenivere's in Arthur's life, not just the one that we know so well today. So I must have read this book to find that out, right? And yet, so far, the book seems somewhat unfamiliar to me. At the very least, I clearly never read it as many times as I did The Crystal Cave and The Hollow Hills.

Nevertheless, the fact that I remember the part about the two Guinevere's convinces me that I did, in truth, read this book at least once before, so I'm counting it as an "old read"...even if I don't remember anything else about it! Maybe more memories will come back as I get deeper into the book. We'll see!

In the meantime, here's the back cover blurb from The Last Enchantment (this is the cover that most nearly mirrors the one on my copy):

Arthur is King! But while he is unchallenged on the battlefield, sinister pwers plot to destroy him in his own Camelot. When the red-gold witch Morgause, Arthur's half-sister, ensnares him into an incestuous liaison--and bears his son, Mordred, to use to her own evil ends--a fatal web of love, betrayals and vengeance begins...


Seen through the eyes of Arthur's prophetic protector, Merlin--whose own mysterious powers are in dire danger--here is a tale rich with the majesty ad turbulence of the magnificent lend it tells...resplendent with Mary Stewart's own special magic.


I will share a Tuesday Teaser from The Last Enchantment with you on Tuesday. In fact, judging from the other two books in the series, I'll probably share three Tuesday Teasers with you before I finish the book!


If you'd like to join my 2010 New/Old Reading Challenge, its not too late! Click here and here for more information. And remember, there are prizes involved if you join us! :-)