ONCE AND FUTURE HEARTS BOX THREE By Tracy Cooper-Posey

I read these stories for the second time to review them, and enjoyed them just as much this time as the first. The characters are always deep and complex; the descriptions of the geography, peoples, and culture are rich and varied. The stories are told from a very human point of view, which draws the reader into that world. Tracy’s writing as always weaves a unique in depth story .

This is the third box set of these wonderful Arthurian books. Here we have books seven, eight, and nine. Being able to binge on some of my favorite books is a great thing. I absolutely love the way this author tells the main story of Athur and his court, and also weaves in lovely stories or lesser characters. This is a different and very unique reimagining.

Each story in Cooper-Posey’s Once and Future Hearts series breathes life into the legend of King Arthur and is magical journey back in time. Reading the series in a compilation heightens the experience, but it is a journey best enjoyed if the books are read from the beginning in proper order. The Once and Future Hearts series is one of my favorite series by this author – you simply cannot go wrong reading these books!
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The Abduction of Guenivere is a refreshing character development of King Arthur's wife. Guenivere has not had a huge role in the previous books, but as her inability to provide an heir becomes painfully obvious, she becomes increasingly anxious over possibly losing her position as queen. In all other ways, however, Guenivere is an exemplary wife in all other ways, though woefully unappreciated by King Arthur.

After five long years, Lancelot returns to Arthur's kingdom; his stepsister Tegan is delighted to have him back in Camelot, but her happiness soon turns to dismay as King Arthur decrees that she must marry Gawain (son of Lot) to strengthen the kingdom's alliances. The wedding is tense and the marriage barely tolerable at best, but the twist is – Tegan has loved Gawain for years, but a drunken Gawain unwittingly slighted her years ago.

In the middle of all of this, Guenivere mysteriously disappears right before the Roman ambassador comes. Most in the kingdom assume Guenivere has run away, but Tegan and Lancelot know she has been abducted - but why and by whom? Lancelot takes Gawain to look for Guenivere and much to her shock, Gawain insists that Tegan comes, too, saying she has expertise and skills that may come in handy to find the queen.

The Abduction of Guinevere does not disappoint! Once again, Cooper-Posey offers a very engaging read, full of romance, adventure, and suspense. The characters come to life before your eyes, as more and more depth is added to each throughout the book. Even if you haven't read the earlier books in this series, you will still enjoy this story. So, come and visit King Arthur's court!
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In the Downfall of Cornwall, King Arthur has summoned much of the kingdom to witness and celebrate the marriage of Mark of Kernow to a beautiful Irish princess, Iseult… whose hand in marriage was won by King Mark's nephew, Tristan. Nothing is ever simple, however, and as a result of Tristan being severely injured during his questionable win over Iseult's brother, Aodhan... Tristan and Iseult end up falling in love. This is not a good development, because it endangers the peace between Britain and Ireland (supposedly obtained through the marriage of Mark to Iseult). There are several conflicts throughout this tale, most revolving around Tristan's friends trying to protect him and the good of Britain; other conflicts, however, revolve around the growing attraction between Tristan's friend Sagramore (a stranger without a home but also heir to two thrones) and Anwen, daughter of the legendary Idris the Slayer and Rhiannon, and the ongoing relationship between Lancelot and Guenivere.

This is a very exciting tale, as you may have guessed, due to the sheer number of intertwined storylines, complicated relationships, and love triangles - not to mention finding love when you least expect it. There is plenty of action, romance, and a coming of age for Anwen, when she grows into her own person and finds a deeper understanding of her father, one of the greatest warriors of their time. Each story will leave you wanting to know more - and looking forward to the next installment.
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I've read every single one of Cooper-Posey's "Once and Future Hearts" books and can honestly say that The Vengeance of Arthur is the best book yet! King Arthur is entering another critical point of his reign, where his ever-patient Saxon enemies are waiting to detect any weakness as an excuse to strike. King Arthur has established peace - but it's unstable, especially while some of his allies are reluctant. The skies are darkening, but is it due to a rare cosmic event, or is it a sign of the future?

Owain is one of those reluctant allies and it certainly doesn't help that he has a dark background, sullied by close family members of ill repute (and that's an understatement) who resent Arthur and his power. Still, Owain has a moral code that he cannot go against, so he tries to save the life of Lamorak, who was found in the bed of Owain’s aunt, and is now being hunted by his enraged cousins. An unexpected chance event finds him in the company of Saraid, lady-in-waiting to Adrivete (daughter of King Drust of Deira), who finds herself surprisingly intrigued by Owain, who bursts upon the kingdom in pursuit of Lamorak. One thing leads to another, and Lancelot arrives to escort Lamorak to Camelot, along with Owain, Adrivete (who has her own backstory), and Saraid.

The journey to Camelot is a bonding experience, as everyone outside of Lancelot's entourage has their own reasons to dread arriving in Camelot. What happens in Camelot is unexpected - Cooper-Posey has a knack for inserting plot twists that will leave you gasping out loud. This book has it all - suspense, mystery, murder, romance, and action - as well as building up to the next installment. Cooper-Posey is a master storyteller, and she skillfully weaves her storylines and characters - I loved this book! The Vengeance of Arthur is a rollercoaster ride from start to finish and you'll be left anxiously waiting for the next installment.

These next 3 books in the Once and Future Hearts keeps you on the ride of a great story. Each book has a story of it`s own but intertwines in the fabric of the whole story. If you enjoy the story of Arthur and Gwenivere and are looking for more of the story......This box set as well as the previous 2 boxsets are the way to go.

These books are amazing! This set is books 7, 8, & 9! I’ve read them all before and it’s nice to reread them as a set. There are so many great characters that take you on this journey through Arthur’s court. Tracy’s writing as always weaves a unique in depth story . It’s all so good-it must be true! You will love these books.

I loved each gripping storyline with their plot twists and intricacies that intrigued me. Each novel in the series is even better than the last (I've devoured them all!) with the wonderful characters central to these stories completely captivating me. I love the unpredictable nature of the writing of Tracy Cooper-Posey. I couldn't wait to see how the overall plots would affect the main characters and where their journey would lead them as well.

I'm familiar with the names in Arthurian legend, but not the stories, so I enjoy the unfolding overarching tales of the High King's life and his influences on the way of life in Britain so long ago. I found that interest or knowledge of Arthurian legend is not a prerequisite for getting hooked on this series.

I love how each story is told as a slice-of-life close-up of everyday people from Arthur's court and from other parts of Britain in those times. All the characters are real and easy to relate to because Ms Cooper-Posey creates such rich detail without a lot of wordage.

I highly recommend this series be read in order and am delighted that after nine books I'm still captivated and surprised by new plot twists.

This box set contains three great books that tell the story of Arthur through the eyes of lesser to unknown members of his court. It gives more depth to the world the story is set in and I love seeing an idea of how the non main characters lived.

A fantastic series

Once and Future Hearts Box Three, by Tracey Cooper-Posey, contains Abduction of Guenivere, book 7, Downfall of Cornwall, book 8, and Vengeance of Arthur, book 9 in the Once and Future Hearts collection, an Arthurian legend series. I read these stories for the second time to review them, and enjoyed them just as much this time as the first. The characters are always deep and complex; the descriptions of the geography, peoples, and culture are rich and varied. Abduction of Guenivere: I normally see Guenivere portrayed as narcissistic and not a likeable character, however, this Guenivere is not the self-serving beauty queen so often portrayed. Instead, despite the good and bad in her personal life and interactions with Arthur, she still places the kingdom at the center of her life and makes the sacrifices needed to further Arthur’s vision of Camelot and Britain. Lancelot is more than a cardboard knight stealing his queen away from the rightful king. Cooper-Posey gives the reader an understanding of the complexities of their lives in a meaningful way.
Downfall of Cornwall details the machinations of a selfish man who nearly brings war and destruction on Britain. Although the story is about the ill-fated actions of Tristan, the core of the matter is the relationship between Sagramore and Anwen. Each of them has to change and adapt to stay ahead of the carnage strewn throughout the land by Tristan.
Vengeance of Arthur is the ninth installment of Cooper-Posey’s “Once and Future Hearts” series. I have never been a fan of the Arthurian legend, regardless of format or interpretation. Until Cooper-Posey. She makes me enjoy the long unfolding of the tale, told through the passage of time and eyes of different couples. Her characters are fleshed out and the interactions true to life. The interconnections of the various players are coming together, twining together in new and intricate strands and knots. In this installment, Morguase is murdered by her son, but the ripples of this crime are far reaching, and have catastrophic consequences. Owain, nephew of Morguase, wants to believe in the innovative judicial system established by King Arthur, despite his distaste for the man himself. It’s his encounter with Saraid, a displaced member of royalty, that helps him rearrange his thinking and loyalties. The best story so far. I’ll be sorry to see this series conclude.

This box set of three books is part of the lavishly-detailed tapestry of this author’s telling of the Arthurian legends. Her skilled descriptions bring to life the surroundings of 6th century not-yet-England. It all becomes real, gradually realized just as it happens in real life when someone goes to a new place. The stories are told from a very human point of view, which draws the reader into that world. Far from being simply the dirty and tedious time that is too often found in books of this era, these fully-dimensional characters behave in ways we can understand and navigate their world with ease, taking us right along with them. The major characters we expect to see are all there: Arthur, Guenivere, Lancelot, Merlin and many more. They aren’t depicted as legends but, instead, as fallible individuals in extraordinary circumstances, together with all of the messy emotions, actions, and mistakes that come along in life. Other major characters in these books, ordinary people, also come to the fore and carry the stories into unexpected avenues in delightful ways. The medieval era is not my favorite for historical reading, but this talented author whisks me up into her stories and it is very difficult to put them down. As an avid reader for many years, I consider that very high praise, and it’s well deserved. I own all three of these books, but have re-read them and honestly reviewed them as a whole from an ARC copy of the box set. I have come to enjoy the continuity of reading box sets; there is an undeniable pleasure that comes from being immersed (and that’s the correct word to describe this author’s work) in this fictional world for a longer time.

Abduction of Guenivere
Another excellent Arthurian legend adventure; so magnificently written that it makes you question the reality of Camelot. The main characters, Tegan and Gawain, are enmeshed with King Arthur, Guenivere, his Queen, and the daily living at court. There is intrigue, magic, danger, unrequited love, but most importantly the awakening of love. The daily lives of all those involved, are what make this story so amazingly realistic. I won't do spoilers so I hope what I've given you is enough to make you want to grab this, and all the other books in this series. You will fall in love with all the characters you meet in these legendary, and fact filled, stories.

Downfall of Cornwall
This is the 8th book in this series and once again we have an amazing story. We get so much within this story; humorous, but the no-nonsense attraction that blooms into love, the camaraderie between life long friends that spirals into a disaster, jealousy beyond reason, secretive affairs come to light, a scary father whose daughter finally understand his love. What makes the story so outstanding is the "realness" of it, you just know what your reading has to have happened. The reason for this is the authors attention to every detail of the time period, from the clothes that they wore, the food they ate, the acceptable behavior and protocols of that period, even how and why their buildings were built they were. We are flies on the walls built by the author and her amazing research. Among all this we get to see characters from previous books, I just love that. I figure you can tell by now that although I've given no spoilers, this story, like the others in the series, is a wonderful read, filled with love and action.

Vengeance of Arthur
You'd swear every word read is true, that's the power of research and love of writing. This book in the series has a powerful punch. Yes it has Arthur, Genevieve, Lancelot but the story is filled with other characters that you just know must be real. They have to be because they move you emotionally. We have characters that feel they have no worth, but are proven wrong, we have
salacious murder, wronged innocents, evil, malicious men, love which was lost for a decade but never forgotten found again, new loves discovered, and the barely seen edges of a love full of betrayal. Throw in traitorous murderous man that a King won't harm and like I said you have one powerful punch of a story. No real spoilers, just some glimpses of what you'll miss if you don't get this gem of a book