Book Review
Jul. 29th, 2018 09:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariThe Last Light of the Sun
by Guy Gavriel Kay
This beautiful novel follows the leaders of the Anglcyn (Anglo-Saxons) and Cyngael (Welsh), as they deal with a series of pivotal Erling (Viking) raids. Woven into the tale is the way members of both groups interact with the faerie, and the relationship of the fae to the humans peoples on the isle. Alun ab Owyn, young prince of the Cyngael, and Brynn ab Hwyll, elder leader and hero, find themselves thrown together to repel a surprise Erling raid, and then to deal with the tragic and dangerous repercussions of the raid's aftermath. Aeldred, king of the Anglcyn, and his four children, must also deal with an unexpected raid and all it means for them and their neighbors the Cyngael. Wrapped up in this are two Erlings, Thorkell and his son Bern, who are both faced with a series of conflicts and choices regarding their paths among their own people and in the Anglcyn and Cyngael lands.
It's a compelling narrative, where even the side plots and the secondary stories not only held my interest but added a great deal to the main plot. There are also a couple of nice surprises where the story seems to be heading inevitably towards a goal or event and then Kay sidesteps to avert that resolution. I also particularly liked the asides where Kay gives the reader the full story of a minor character's life. As always, Kay's prose is enchanting, his characterizations are very good, and his sense for the inner lives of his characters and the complexities of their relationships is spot on.
by Guy Gavriel Kay
This beautiful novel follows the leaders of the Anglcyn (Anglo-Saxons) and Cyngael (Welsh), as they deal with a series of pivotal Erling (Viking) raids. Woven into the tale is the way members of both groups interact with the faerie, and the relationship of the fae to the humans peoples on the isle. Alun ab Owyn, young prince of the Cyngael, and Brynn ab Hwyll, elder leader and hero, find themselves thrown together to repel a surprise Erling raid, and then to deal with the tragic and dangerous repercussions of the raid's aftermath. Aeldred, king of the Anglcyn, and his four children, must also deal with an unexpected raid and all it means for them and their neighbors the Cyngael. Wrapped up in this are two Erlings, Thorkell and his son Bern, who are both faced with a series of conflicts and choices regarding their paths among their own people and in the Anglcyn and Cyngael lands.
It's a compelling narrative, where even the side plots and the secondary stories not only held my interest but added a great deal to the main plot. There are also a couple of nice surprises where the story seems to be heading inevitably towards a goal or event and then Kay sidesteps to avert that resolution. I also particularly liked the asides where Kay gives the reader the full story of a minor character's life. As always, Kay's prose is enchanting, his characterizations are very good, and his sense for the inner lives of his characters and the complexities of their relationships is spot on.
