To order a personalized copy of Dawnflight from me via Half.com, click here.
Dawnflight Awards
- Named one of Nancy's Top Picks for 1999 at Romance Reader at Heart
- Nominee, 1999 Affaire de Coeur Readers' Poll, August 2000 issue. Thank you, everyone who voted!
- Nominee, 1999 Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award, Best Innovative Historical Romance
- Finalist, 2000 Golden Quill, Historical category. Award sponsored by Phoenix Desert Rose chapter of the Romance Writers of America.
- Winner (tie), 1999 Blue Boa Award for Excellence in Romantic Fiction, Historical category. Award sponsored by Peninsula Romance Writers. Complete list of winners is here.
- Ranked one of four "Best Buried Medieval Romances" of 1999 at All About Romance.
- Ranked #4 Best SF/Fantasy Book of 1999 by Lisa DuMond of SF Site.
- Honorable Mention in SF Site's Readers' Choice Best SF and Fantasy Books of 1999. Thank you, everyone who voted!
Romantic Times Magazine Top Pick for November, 1999
Click on the following for more information about:
[Awards][Reviews][Interviews]
[Synopsis]
[Excerpt]
[Contests]
[Why I wrote Dawnflight]
Back to: [Top of page] [Index]
Dawnflight Reviews
- Affaire de Coeur Magazine: 5 Stars (out of 6) "Ms. Headlee shows her chutzpah as she writes a new telling of the legend and successfully freshens up the saga. Fans of historical romance and the Arthurian legend will cherish this work and demand more novels set in the same sphere." -- Harriet Klausner (Oct. 1999)
- All About Romance Grade: B+ "Put away your mental images of Queen Guinevere. Gyan doesn't resemble them.... She faces her challenges head-on.... Fans of the Arthur legend will like Dawnflight for its new perspective. I would also recommend this book for people who want a glimpse into a world rarely seen in fiction. Like Guinevere, the tribes of ancient Britain are often given short shrift; this book does a good job of humanizing those people." -- Anne M. Marble
- Arthurian Association of Australia Newsletter: Dawnflight, "Kim Headlee's first novel is such an accomplished piece of storytelling magic and lovely characterisation . . . a story both delicately and powerfully told. The atmosphere of the novel is rich in allusion and yet it is very much an original creation. A wonderful feast for the reader!" -- Carole Nielsen, newsletter editor (Sept. 2000).
Note: Kim helped the Arthurian Association of Australia decide upon a date for their annual Camelot Day, November 14, the feast-day of the Celtic Saint Dyfrig (or Dubric), whom some scholars, including Kim, believe was a prototype for the Merlin legends. The Association uses Camelot Day to promote reading in general and the Arthurian Legends in particular through libraries and bookstores across Australia. - Arthuriana, Quarterly Journal of the North American Branch of the International Arthurian Society, Fall 2000. "...the author goes to considerable pains to construct a credible Dark Age Britain where Gyanhumara (Guinevere) and Arthur meet, fall passionately in love, and marry.... The day-to-day historical context is vividly depicted... Gyanhumara is a fascinating combination of contradictory qualities." -- Raymond H. Thompson, Acadia University, Canada
Note: To download a full copy of the review, you must be a journal scriber. Click here for more information. - Barb's All-Romance Book Store: Dawnflight "is a very well written version of [the story of] Guinevere... Any lover of history should own this book. Kim Headlee is a ... wonderful writer and storyteller. I will be on the lookout for her next book." -- Mary Dunn
- Belles & Beaux of Romance: "I was fascinated from page one . . . Ms. Headlee does an outstanding job of bringing her extraordinary characters to life, and as the story progressed, I found myself enthralled as I became enmeshed in their lives." -- Suzanne Coleburn
- The Bookwyrm: "At its heart, Dawnflight is a love story, but don’t let that scare you away. This is no sappy, sentimental romance -- quite the opposite. It is actually a gritty tale of war and conquest, and not all of it is between nations." -- Fred Phillips
- CompuServe Romance Reviews: "First time readers of Arthurian legend will find Dawnflight packed full of action and adventure with a generous dollop of romance. Well read readers of this legend will find themselves enthralled, sitting back to contemplate the validity of this new theory on Guinevere's legend, as well as Arthur's. Dawnflight has been compared to Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley; no truer a compliment. All I can say is 'Wow!!'" -- Kemberlee Lugo. Also posted at What I'm Reading.
- Crescent Blues: 3 Crescents (out of 4) "By giving her heroine power, courage and wisdom, Headlee does for Guinevere what Marion Zimmer Bradley did for Morgaine and Viviane in The Mists of Avalon -- Headlee changes Guinevere from a victim of fate to a woman in control of her own destiny." -- Lauren Rabb
- The Dallas Morning News: "An appealing story about Arthur and Guinevere, this romance depicts fifth-century Scotland as one of warring tribes and marriages that unite enemies. Female warrior Gyanhumara is set to marry Urien when she first meets Arthur. Once met, never to forget: They love each other immediately. A compelling tale of war and allegiances, with a strong main female character and happy ending." -- Camilla Cowan
- Everything Romantic!: "Ms. Headlee's debut is a splendid tour de force of epic proportions ... she [wove] a complex, rich, and utterly fabulous tale of love and courage amidst history.... This book is simply superb!" -- Mrs. Giggles
- The Heroic Age: Dawnflight ". . . takes an interesting and at times, wholly original look at the Arthurian legends, managing to breathe new life into what is an extremely familiar tale." -- Karon Hollis. Also posted at wordarchive.com.
- Huntress Reviews: "Guinevere is as much a warrioress as Arthur is the warrior. Watching them together was breathtaking!" -- Détra Fitch (search the page to find this one)
- Interludes Romance Newsletter: "Ms. Headlee is an incredible talent. This was a very intriguing twist on the story of Guinevere and Arthur.... I look forward to [her] next efforts. I just hope it is not a long wait." -- Julie Kim (Oct. 1999) Ms. Kim very kindly chose me as the featured author for this issue and asked me to provide an essay describing why I wrote Dawnflight and its characters the way I did. For the complete text, please click here.
- Just Views: Recommended. "Dawnflight is an epic first novel ... and Gyanhumara ('Gyan' for short) is a vivid, exciting heroine. Arthur is definitely a hero worthy of her.... Dawnflight was a very enjoyable read, and I look forward to a sequel. " -- Jean Lamb
The 2005 Arthurian reference book, The Mammoth Book of King Arthur, states that Dawnflight is "...one of the more original of the recent historical re-creations" -- Mike Ashley, editor- Of Ages Past: Dawnflight "... transports us to an earlier, more savage time where the Right of Conquest really does change lives and everybody must fight for their own existence. A tale of bravery and daring, love and lies, betrayal and loyalty. Written superbly, Kim really does make it hard to put down this book."
- Phantastes: Dawnflight is "...[a] book that leaves you feeling good. Satisfied. The type of book worth the amount of hard-earned cash you've used to purchase it... Kim's book is a story of love and courtship between Arthur and Guinevere, told with grace of style." -- Judy Tucker
- Rhapsody Magazine: "Dawnflight is a must read. Ms. Headlee has brought her own interesting style to this new telling of the age-old story of Guinevere and Arthur, and the ancient people from whom most of our modern ethics, religion and laws came from." -- Joann Thompson (search the page to find this one)
- Romance Book Recommendations Grade: A "Dawnflight is unlike any other you've read about the Arthur legend ... a wonderful story full of adventure. This book cries out for a sequel and I will be first in line to read it." -- Bonnie Gilbert
- Romance Communications: "Dynamic characters, bold and well developed, fill the pages of Dawnflight. Ms. Headlee's unique talent is embodied in this, her first novel. Her characterizations, dialogue and descriptive passages ... [bring] to life the young Arthur Pendragon and his beloved Guinevere in a new and unique way.... I give Dawnflight a hearty two thumbs up." -- Sarah Anderson
- Romance Foretold: 4 Crowns (out of 4) "[T]he Arthur-Guinevere tale has continued to be a source of inspiration to some very gifted and insightful fantasy writers such as: Mary Stewart, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and now Kim Headlee with her debut novel Dawnflight." -- Patricia White
- Romancing the Celtic Soul: "Although it will appeal to those who love a good romance, Dawnflight harkens back to the traditional historicals from authors such as Barbara Erskine, Sharon Kay Penman and Dorothy Dunnett. It is about time a publisher is willing to take a chance on an intelligently presented and exceptionally researched novel of a legend that it so often steeped in the male perspective. Hats off to Sonnet Books and to Ms. Headlee for giving readers a wonderful feminist adventure." -- Jody Allen
- Romantic Times Magazine: 4.5 Stars (out of 5) "I for one applaud [Ms. Headlee's] inventive, exciting retelling of the myth. Her vibrant, pro-active and highly feminist Guinevere and all the other well-known characters (and the new ones) become very real and accessible people who move out of the lore and into our hearts." -- Kathe Robin (November, 1999)
- Scribes' World Book Reviews: 5 Stars (out of 5) "This was a different spin on the Arthur/Guinevere story, but every bit as enjoyable and thoroughly interesting. Ms. Headlee has a flair for incorporating her research into her prose so that the reader isn't being educated about history, but rather immersed so deeply into the setting that the sights and sounds and people seem to come alive." -- Lisa Ramaglia
- SF Site: "Like the [Arthurian] legend or loathe it, this book is going to pull you in. You can count me as living proof. This is the saga of Guinevere, but it is like no other chronicle of the queen that you have ever read. Headlee has dug deep into the history of this period and found a heroine who could kick the medieval [behind] of any of the fair maidens who have come before her." -- Lisa DuMond. Also posted on MEviews, and en francais on SF Site's French mirror site, Le Site SF Examen.
- The Romance Reader: 5 Hearts (out of 5) Dawnflight is "... an impressive tour de force that takes the familiar Arthurian legends and turns them on their heads... I sincerely hope that all those readers who chafe at the sameness of so many of the books that are published these days and who look back longingly at the rich, historical tapestry of earlier books will give Dawnflight the support it deserves." -- Jean Marsh
- The Royal Scribe: "Kim Headlee's Dawnflight: The Legend of Guinevere is such a refreshing entry into the Arthurian legend genre. You won't find a weepy, lovelorn Guinevere in this historical romance: Headlee's 'Gyanhumara' is a sword-wielding, [derriere]-kicking Pictish chieftainess who could give Xena a run for the money... I'm a stickler for historical accuracy and detail, and Dawnflight gave me exactly what I craved. I haven't enjoyed an Arthurian novel this much since Mary Stewart's 'Merlin' series, and I highly recommend it to lovers of romance and Arthurian aficionados alike." -- Moira Allen
- TipWorld's Tip of the Day for Science Fiction & Fantasy, 23 May 2000: Dawnflight is "... an unusually poignant love story... The author shows Arthur's strategies, military and political, as he is working them out, giving interesting ideas on what made him such an effective leader. The setting is very much 5th-century A.D., insofar as history knows it, rather than mock medieval... This is a more serious--and more gripping--story than one would expect from the frothy cover illustration." -- Emily Alward
- Under the Covers Book Reviews (review #1): Very Highly Recommended. "The story line of Dawnflight moves forward with plenty of detail that makes for a fabulous historical romance that begs for more novels from Ms. Headlee." -- Harriet Klausner
- Under the Covers Book Reviews (review #2): Very Highly Recommended. "Tantalizing history and amazing characters ensure Dawnflight a rank of excellence. Superb read." -- Holly Price
- What I'm Reading: "Sit back and prepare yourself to be amazed as first time author Kim Headlee recreates an amazingly believable tale of Arthur and Guinevere..."Dawnflight" is as seamless a story as they come. Historical and legendary facts blend as one with the creative use of Celtic terms to give this story a richness rarely seen in a recreation..."Dawnflight" has been compared to "Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley; no truer a compliment. All I can say is "Wow!!"
- Word Museum: 5 Stars (out of 5) "In the tradition of Mary Stewart, Kim Headlee ... captures the uncertainty of life in early Britain, and blends the cultures, their differences and their hatreds into a wonderfully fast paced story.... If you love stories of Arthur you will be entranced by this one.... I look forward to the next work in this series." -- Deborah Brent
- Word Weaving: Dawnflight "... is an extraordinary tale that leaves the reader breathless with the unique retelling of the love between Gyan and Arthur.... As the pace of the novel quickened, this was one of those few books that I deliberately slowed down to savor for fear of having to leave the wonderfully created tale too soon." -- Cindy Penn
Click on the following for more information about:
[Awards][Reviews][Interviews]
[Synopsis]
[Excerpt]
[Contests]
[Why I wrote Dawnflight]
Back to: [Top of page] [Index]
Interviews
Links updated 10/30/06; many interviews are no longer available (surprise)
- Okay, so this isn't exactly an interview, but you can view a snapshot and a few words about my involvement in the 1999 World Fantasy Convention by clicking on this report in Crescent Blues online magazine.
- Interludes Romance Newsletter, October 1999, Featured Author essay about why I created Dawnflight's characters the way I did.
- Read about my background and writing inspirations in The Romance Reader site's New Faces column.
- Click here for an interview about Dawnflight and fantasy/romance writing in a historical context, written by Moira Allen, posted in Phantastes online literary magazine's kick-off issue.
Click on the following for more information about:
[Awards][Reviews][Interviews]
[Synopsis]
[Excerpt]
[Contests]
[Why I wrote Dawnflight]
Back to: [Top of page] [Index]
Writing-related Articles:
[Become an Expert]
[Book Signings]
[Character Database]
[Historical Settings]
[How Long?]
[Languages]
[Literary Agents]
[Pitches]
[Prologues]
[The Beast Within]
[Viewpoint]
Revised 29 March 2009 
