I’m starting out small and alphabetizing by author:
J. Bedier’s retelling of The Romance of Tristan and Iseult (This is a book I’ve had since I was a kid, and it’s a very accessible, though condensed version of Tristan’s story)
Gillian Bradshaw’s Down the Long Wind trilogy (I’ve only ever gotten my hands on the second book Hawk of May, but it’s a dark story telling what the Arthurian legends were before Lancelot. It revolves around a psychologically damaged set of knights, particularly Sir Gawain and the other Orkney Brothers)
Sir Thomas Mallory’s Le Morte d’Arthur (This one kind of goes without saying, but Le Morte d’Arthur is an essential read if you want to get a good look at why the Arthurian mythos is the way it is today)
Gerald Morris’ The Squire’s Tales series(I’ve read 6 out of 10, recommend for easy, lighter versions of the Arthurian Legends and for fans of Sir Gawain)
Rosalind Miles’ Guenevere Trilogy (I only read the second book, The Knight of the Sacred Lake but it was a unique, but not spectacular take on the story. It talks a LOT about the role of The Goddess in ancient texts, and how the entrance of Christianity effected the male/female power balance. Miles really demonized Christians a lot in this one, and as with any demonization, that threw me off the story. Parts were REALLY good, but for the most part it wasn’t a great book)
Philip Reeve’s Here Lies Arthur (A little strange, but told from the perspective of someone whose life intersects periodically with the King’s. Arthur is very rugged frankly barbaric at times, as a warlord living in Britain shortly after the Roman withdrawal of the sixth century. Approach it with caution and it’s fine)
Alfred Lord Tennyson’s Idylls of the King (Another book that is an obvious must-at-least-skim-read, Idylls of the King has a lot to do with what Arthurian mythos was during the Victorian era and how it changed the way we look at the legends)
Vivian Vande Velde’s The Book of Mordred (A very interesting take on the Arthurian Universe with Mordred as the protagonist. Vande Velde’s works are always well-written, so don’t hesitate to give this one a try)
T.H. White’s The Once and Future King series ((I’m including the unpublished Book of Merlyn in this) The series was written in the same era as The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia and it shows in the writing/plot style. It’s quite good and I recommend it.
Madness and Arthuriana 