Mr. Cornwell,

I just wanted to write and sing my praises for your work.  I just finished The Winter King, and am so blown away and in love with your characters and take on the Arthur story my head is spinning.  I can’t wait to go grab Enemy of God and Excalibur next.  I’m obviously not alone in my Arthur obsessions, but what you did with Ceinwyn and Guinevere was probably the most amazing love story I ever read, and holy crap, I thought the end of my last relationship had a high body count, but I’ve got nothing on these folks!

I’m also an English man living in the US – in 2004 I moved to Rhode Island to get married to my American fiancee, (also a novelist) and we’re just about to celebrate our 9th anniversary!  Best thing I ever did by far, it has been a great adventure – I love Cape Cod too – have you ever visited Providence RI?  It’s probably an hour South of the Cape, and a very fun city with great restaurants.

I also absolutely LOVE Merlin, and was so tickled by your version of Lancelot I was laughing my head off with some of Derfel’s assertions about the ‘brave hero’ – especially his tendency to hang back in battle, rip his own cloak and sometimes even bloody his own face up so he’d be perceived as the true savior of the day!!!
My biggest thrill though was probably Nimue, and how you developed her character, from her first intro wearing the death mask to scare Gundleus away from Merlin’s sleeping chamber at Ynys Wydryn, all the way through her three trials to the Isle of the Dead and back.

Incidentally, the index of place names at the beginning and the modern-day equivalents really held my interest too – particularly Lundy Island.  My wife is a Lundy whose family originates there, so one day we definitely plan on visiting.  Have you ever been to the Isle of Lundy?  I have not – I’m a northerner from South Yorkshire, but do get homesick sometimes; this book definitely gave me a pang of homesickness.
Anyway, I do hope you get this note – your work is mind-blowing, and I can’t stop thinking about these people.  There is no better pleasure than reading, so thank you for giving me such joy.

If you ever plan on hitting Providence for a night out, please let me buy you dinner.

Best Regards,

Chris Cox