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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A portal fantasy where five Canadian university students are transported to another world to celebrate a king being on the throne for five decades, but soon after their arrival in that world, it is clear the world is plagued by political turmoil, drought, famine, and rising dark forces. There is such a lyrical quality to Guy's writing like poetry or music, and that shines through even in this, his earliest work. Kay can weave a magic like no other fantasy writer just with his words alone--how he strings his sentences together--in my opinion.
This story has a mythical feeling to it, and though sometimes the legends and the history of this world are dumped on us, it is still a world that has more depth and complexity to it than many fantasy worlds.
I especially was moved by the passages where Paul hung on the Summer Tree and the sections focusing on the plains people. Kay can always capture that elusive mystical vibe with the magic of his worlds where the magic is very much designed as a sort of higher, inexplicable power not to be understood by mere mortals.
I still recommend reading Kay's later books first because to me they are stronger, but Kay as a novice is still far more of a master than 99% of authors out there.
This story has a mythical feeling to it, and though sometimes the legends and the history of this world are dumped on us, it is still a world that has more depth and complexity to it than many fantasy worlds.
I especially was moved by the passages where Paul hung on the Summer Tree and the sections focusing on the plains people. Kay can always capture that elusive mystical vibe with the magic of his worlds where the magic is very much designed as a sort of higher, inexplicable power not to be understood by mere mortals.
I still recommend reading Kay's later books first because to me they are stronger, but Kay as a novice is still far more of a master than 99% of authors out there.
The Summer Tree is traditional epic fantasy. The kind where a small group of people get swept away through a portal into a fantasy land and become heroes and have to save the place from evil. I got lost in this book and couldn't stop reading.
The prose is lyrical and it was a pleasure to read every single sentence... I got lost in it. It was almost like sitting around a camp fire and listening to a poet. Marvellous experience.
I recommend this book to anyone who loves Tolkien and traditional epic fantasy. It does show its age (it's as old as me, eek) but I fell in love with all the characters and can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.
The prose is lyrical and it was a pleasure to read every single sentence... I got lost in it. It was almost like sitting around a camp fire and listening to a poet. Marvellous experience.
I recommend this book to anyone who loves Tolkien and traditional epic fantasy. It does show its age (it's as old as me, eek) but I fell in love with all the characters and can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.
This was a gripping tale of 5 young men and women who are transported to another world to fulfill a destiny none believed they had. The story was told well and was engaging all the way through but there was always something lingering and not quite right which stopped this book hitting 5 stars.
This is only the start though and I've yet to decide if I shall continue on.
This is only the start though and I've yet to decide if I shall continue on.
I really wanted to like this, but it felt too contrived. I gave up on it. It was one of the first books I ever gave up on.
Love it love it love it love it love it. Reminds me of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Appealing characters, fascinating world, unpredictable but thoroughly enjoyable plot. One of my favourite fantasy series!!
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was Guy Gavriel Kay's first Fantasy novel, and I expected it to be clumsier and less effective than his later books. It wasn't. There were some bits that could've worked better (I didn't love the first couple chapters, for instance), but there were shockingly sublime moments that had an incredible impact on me.