oatmealpancakes
THE KING IS DEAD. LONG LIVE THE TRUTH.
The history books got it wrong. There was no mystical boat, no weeping queens, and no peaceful slumber on the shores of Avalon. There was only the sound of a carriage door creaking open, a shove into the dark, and the crushing impact of a king hitting the earth.
Arthur was the destined prince, the architect of a perfect kingdom, and the husband to a legendary queen. But destiny is a fragile thing. Betrayed by his inner circle during his weakest hour, he was tossed into the thorns of a nameless forest to be forgotten by time. When he finally opens his eyes, the world is a blur of grey mist and pain. He remembers the smell of iron and the chill of the rain, but his name-and the crown he wore-have vanished into the fog of his shattered mind.
Briony Meddyg is a ghost in her own village. A healer accused of witchcraft, she survives by staying in the shadows and speaking to the roots. She doesn't want a hero; she wants to be left alone. But when she finds a dying man tangled in the briars, she sees the royal signet on his finger and realizes she is holding the heart of Britain in her blood-stained hands.
Briony quickly understands a terrifying truth: Arthur's memory loss is the only thing keeping him alive. In a world where his enemies are already celebrating his demise, a King who remembers his throne is a King who will be hunted to his grave.
As Camelot tears itself apart in a frenzy of political uprisings, and as Guinevere and Lancelot retreat into lives of silent penance, the "Dead King" is learning to haul wood, plant seeds, and love a woman who is forbidden to him.
But a King's legacy is written in his very bones. As his memories begin to return like jagged shards of glass, Arthur is forced to face a devastating choice:
Reclaim a throne that has already moved on, or remain a nameless man in a world that finally feels like home?