The Candle in the Wind by T. H. White (NOT Elton John)

This is the fourth novel in the Once and Future King series, and deals with Mordred's attempt to take over Arthur's kingdom by recruiting the fractured Orkney brothers and using Arthur's own law against him by exposing Lancelot and Guinevere's affair. I liked this book much less than The Ill-Made Knight (the previous novel), I felt it was much too didactic and driving a particular political agenda (which I can't quite define because I'm terrible at understanding politics and just not that interested). My favourite parts were, as usual, the interactions between characters. White uses the bizarre situations and tensions created in the Arthurian legend to flesh out his characters wonderfully, and writes dialogue very well. I especially liked the relationship between the Orkney brothers, who are torn between loyalty to Arthur, loyalty to their family, loyalty to one another, and selfishness. Lancelot, Guinevere and Arthur's relationship is portrayed very well too. I found the long arguments, reflections and explanations annoying, and found much of the language condescending and irritating. It seemed that White had definitely moved out of the realm of children's literature with the two previous novels, but even though this novel is dominated by themes of violence and war, the language is oddly and incongruously over-simplified at times.