Finding Camlann

November 19, 2012
What at first glance looks like a Dan Brown knockoff is in fact a different animal altogether. An ancient, grisly find uncovered at the Devil’s Barrow near Stonehenge rekindles archeologist Donald Gladstone’s quest to find historical evidence of King Arthur’s existence and true identity. He’s aided along the way by Welsh linguist Julia Llewellyn, a married woman with a mysterious family past. Together they try to make sense of “The Song of Lailoken,” an ancient Welsh battle poem, while fighting their growing attraction. While many recent popular novels take a swashbuckling, two-fisted approach to uncovering ancient secrets, this debut from Pidgeon, a reference publisher at John Wiley & Sons, embraces a more scholarly method. Much of the novel takes place in academic conferences or dusty college corners, with Pidgeon having fun with English and Welsh history. For American readers or nonhistorians, the book contains much interesting information about the United Kingdom, but for those hoping for a rip-roaring knight’s tale, the story drags at times. Pidgeon’s novel is situated comfortably in the English countryside’s hedged lanes and strange earthen mounds, a read that rewards a deep inspection. Agent: Tina Bennett, Janklow & Nesbit.