Son of Orkney

All his life, Gareth of Orkney has lived in the shadow of greater names: Gawaine, hero and captain in the armies of Camelot; Agravaine, knight of the Round Table; the mighty Lancelot; and Arthur, the High King whose court is said to make or break all who enter it.

Determined to discover whether he is worthy of the Round Table by merit rather than blood, Gareth travels to Camelot in disguise and takes his place in the kitchens as a lowly servant. Mocked and scorned, he endures humiliation in silence - until a desperate lady arrives seeking a champion to save her sister from the fearsome Red Knight of the Launds.

But the road south will test more than Gareth's strength. Each battle draws him closer to honor, love, and revelation - and closer to the truth he fears most: that the violence of Orkney cannot simply be escaped. It must be mastered, or it will master him.