From Publishers Weekly
This manga adaptation of Cabot's 2005 novel tells the story of a perfectly ordinary high school girl—who happens to be dating the reincarnation of King Arthur. Ellie Harrison moves to a new town and a new school, and soon finds herself drawn to Will Wagner, the football star. Her history professor Mr. Morton—or is that Merlin?—believes that Will is the reincarnation of England's legendary king and Ellie is the newborn Lady of the Lake. He enlists her help to persuade Will to accept his duty and conquer evil. The rest of the Arthurian cast is here as well—Lance, Will's best friend; Jennifer, Will's ex-girlfriend; Morgan, the high school's queen bee and Marco, Will's half-brother—and they play out the classic story with a high school twist. The vivid manga style brings the novel to life, with all the characters svelte and beautifully drawn. Unfortunately, a third of the volume is spent recapping the story so far, making this feel like a later book in a series, rather than the first. The story turns are predictable to anyone familiar with Arthurian myth, and the characters one-dimensional, but this adaptation should appeal to fans of the original work. (July)
From School Library Journal
Grade 6 Up—The Merlin Prophecy brings to illustrated life the first bit of Cabot's Avalon High (HarperCollins, 2006). When King Arthur fell, the Order of the Bear rose to track each generation's incarnation of him. Now Merlin, otherwise known as Mr. Morton, has found a modern Arthur in Will, the captain of the football team at Avalon High. And it's up to new girl Ellie, otherwise known as the Lady of the Lake, to make sure that he survives an attack by his half-brother Marco, otherwise known as Mordred. Throw in Lance, his girlfriend Jennifer, and mean Morgan, and the round table is nearly complete. Coronado uses more of a traditional black-and-white comic-book format than a true Japanese-style manga (think Archie, not Oh My Goddess!). Though covering just a small bit of the novel, this book is a must for libraries with the usual wealth of Cabot fans.—Sarah Krygier, Solano
Booklist
Cabot's Avalon High (2005) is reworked as a graphic novel, with mixed results. Part of the charm of Cabot's writing is her ability be ironic without belittling her characters or her readers. Such subtlety is lost in this visual remake. Ellie has it all, including a hunky boyfriend—who doesn't realize he's the reincarnation of King Arthur. Coronado's art is playful and expressive, but less authentic manga than Western cartooning with Asian influences. Cabot fans will likely prefer the straight prose, but girls who read comics as a steady diet might enjoy this taste of the popular writer. Goldsmith, Francisca --
Book Description
[HEADLINE]Meg Cabot's magical Arthurian epic continues...MANGA STYLE![/HEADLINE]Being a new student at Avalon High has been exciting for Ellie, to say the least--she's an honor student, a star on the track team, and, oh yeah, dating the super-hot class president, Will. Who also happens to be the alleged reincarnation of King Arthur.Ellie couldn't be happier to have Will in her life, but she's also worried that his estrangement from his parents is tearing him apart. To make matters worse, Will's doubt that he really is King Arthur could prevent the Merlin Prophecy--an age of enlightenment--from occurring. Can Ellie convince Will to believe in something that even she isn't sure about? And more importantly, can she get him to give his parents another chance?With all the mythology and mysticism of AVALON HIGH, Meg Cabot's very first manga is indeed a tale for the ages. -
