The Broken Kings by Robert Holdstock
reviewed by Steven H Silver
While most people associate Merlin with the legends of King Arthur, the author has been examining the magician's history and ties to Jason, Captain of the Argo, in the Merlin Codex trilogy, which culminates with The Broken Kings. Located now in Alba, the land that would be Britain, Merlin finds himself facing the conflict between King Urtha of the Cornovidi and his children, Kymon and Munda.

The Iron Grail by Robert Holdstock
reviewed by Cindy Lynn Speer
Merlin continues his wandering of the world and the careful husbanding of his magic that his kept him youthful since the beginning of time in this second book of The Merlin Codex. He returns to Albion, where he sees that the dead still claim ownership of the fortress of Taurovinda -- literally. Soon, Urtha, the warlord of this fortress, will return from his adventures overseas, Merlin will travel to the Ghostlands to retrieve Urtha's children from hiding, and the Argo, captained by Jason and guided by a young woman named Niiv will set itself ashore. The latter is especially dire news to Merlin.

Gate of Ivory, Gate of Horn by Robert Holdstock
reviewed by William Thompson
Rich with allegory and metaphor, dense in the pantomime and pantheon of mythic deities called upon to act out traditional as well as recontextualized roles, this is a novel likely to mislead and confuse the uninitiated, to bear them as easily astray as a  walk through Ryhope Wood.  But in many respects this is little different than the experiences of the author's characters, a reflection of the recurring labyrinthine search made of the Wood's heart, investigations into its identity at both a mythic as well as deeply personal level.

The Mythago Cycle by Robert Holdstock
reviewed by Steven H Silver
Steven gives us his take on each of the four books that make up this cycle; Mythago Wood, Lavondyss, The Hollowing and Gate of Ivory, Gate of Horn. If you are looking for plot- or even character-driven fantasy, the Ryhope Wood cycle will not serve your purposes. If you are interested in an examination of mythology and its hold on the human subconscious, sometimes in esoteric terms, the author consistently manages to hit a bullseye.