Lady’s Knight (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner, A&U Children’s)

Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner’s latest novel, Lady’s Knight, is a tantalising forbidden love story for the ages. Gwen has spent years manning the village blacksmith under the guise of her father’s name. Desperate to break free of the societal confines of womanhood, Gwen enters the local jousting tournament as the mysterious knight Sir Gawain. Her impressive win against a local favourite catches the attention of Lady Isobelle, the noblewoman whose hand in marriage (and dowry) is on offer as the tournament prize. Desperate to maintain some sort of agency in her own life, Isobelle enlists Gwen to help her, asking her to continue to fight as Sir Gawain to save her from a future (and other knights) she desperately wants to avoid. But when Gwen starts to fall for Isobelle, and rumours swirl about the return of the widely assumed dead dragons, their agreement becomes about more than just winning the battle. Kaufman and Spooner (These Broken Stars) have crafted a boundary-pushing sapphic love story that challenges the traditional tropes of the romantasy genre in an earnest and inspiring flurry. The result is a riveting tale of desire, devotion and destiny that demonstrates the potential for this popular genre to go beyond heteronormative-driven plot lines. Fans of Kaufman and Spooner’s previous novels and Lex Croucher’s Gwen and Art Are Not in Love will enjoy this story about heroic love.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Shannon Grey is a writer and editor based in Naarm/Melbourne. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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