[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Disney-Hyperion in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Summary
Arthur and Guinevere are best friends and constant companions. Sure, he’s an orphan – a peasant – and she’s a princess. But when the knights aren’t around, they can have sword fights and hang out and visit Merlin and just be friends.
Sophie and Stuart are best friends and constant companions. Well, at least they were…. They used to play Camelot’s Honor together all the time where they tried to defeat the sorceress Morgana. But Stuart has started playing soccer at school, and Sophie’s afraid things between them are changing.
When Guinevere accidentally sends a vital magical item into the 21st century, Arthur decides to go after it, arriving in Sophie and Stuart’s world. But Merlin pulls Sophie and Stuart back to Arthur’s time because of their successes at Camelot’s Honor. He wants Stuart to pretend to be Arthur and pull the sword from the stone so they can keep history on track. Then Sophie goes back to her own time to get Arthur and the magical object in order to send them back to where – and when – they belong. But when Arthur Googles his own history and sees how his story turns out, he’s happy to play football and stay in the future. Unfortunately, that future is changing every day that Arthur stays away and Stuart tries to cover. Will Sophie be able to get Arthur back home safely and get her best friend and her old life back? Or is it already too late?
Review
This was so fun!! I loved the characters. Sophie’s a great, strong lead. Stuart really understands his mission to stand in for Arthur and what that means in the big picture of history. And Arthur’s desire to stay in the future is absolutely understandable, but the reader can see hints already of the leader he could be.
The story was so fun – gaming, friendship, time travel, jousting and magic. I loved the fantasy elements. This is exactly the sort of middle grade novel I enjoy.
There’s no cliffhanger, and the story is wrapped up well. But the series – The Camelot Code – is just getting started. I’m excited to see where the author takes the kids next. Highly recommend. I can’t wait to tell kids about this story.