Lady’s Knight
Amie Kaufman & Megan Spooner
Allen & Unwin
The authors ask the reader to imagine a medieval castle, complete with towers spires and a moat with crocodiles. The town of Darkhaven surrounds the castle and this is where the Tournament of Dragonslayers is to be held for the first time.
There aren’t actually any dragons, as they haven’t been any sightings for over a century, but knights on horseback challenge each other in jousting competitions. The prize is the symbolic dragon sacrifice – Lady Isobelle of Avington, and her dowry.
Working as a blacksmith to make her own armour, Gwen of Ellsdale wanted the chance to challenge men twice her size who wanted to knock her off her horse with their sticks, even though she would be risking disgrace, imprisonment, injury or even death if she was discovered not to be of noble or male blood.
Isobelle is also a force to be reckoned with. She is used to getting her own way and has no interest in being possessed by one of the knights who would be fighting over her. Thor’s Day is ‘Ladyes Night’ at the local tavern and when Isobelle and Gwen meet, sparks fly and they become co-conspirators.
This medieval romp was written during the Covid pandemic – with Amie Kaufman living in Melbourne and Megan Spooner residing in North Carolina. Inspired by the film A Knight’s Tale, they parried back and forth to create a fiercely feminist and queer version of the story, with an aware narrator to add extra spice to the tale.
The narrative has many humorous jibes at the medieval patriarchy, dropping modern day sensibilities into the mix, and interrupting the narrative flow to offer insights on where the story could be heading.
Of course, like all good fairy tales, there are obstacles to overcome as well as people who make dreams come true, not matter how impossible they seem. The reader can’t help but to be swept away with the brave antics and marvelous queer re-writing of this traditional tale.
Lezly Herbert
