Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
I WANT to like this more than I do. It was honestly a bit of a struggle to get through. It was originally published in 1984 and it shows.
First of all, Kay is Canadian, and the contemporary setting of this novel is in fact Toronto, which immediately ticks a box for me. (Hey! Popular Canadian fantasy is few and far between! Even though Toronto is the biggest city in Canada I still get excited when books are set there!)
Sadly, other than that, I couldn't really suspend my disbelief. These five characters so easily accept being whisked from 1980s Toronto to a vast fantastic land in which their fates are up in the air. None of them seemed to struggle with a new reality.
I have not written off the series yet as I do understand it's a classic in the genre, but colour me unimpressed (with the Canadian spelling of colour.)
First of all, Kay is Canadian, and the contemporary setting of this novel is in fact Toronto, which immediately ticks a box for me. (Hey! Popular Canadian fantasy is few and far between! Even though Toronto is the biggest city in Canada I still get excited when books are set there!)
Sadly, other than that, I couldn't really suspend my disbelief. These five characters so easily accept being whisked from 1980s Toronto to a vast fantastic land in which their fates are up in the air. None of them seemed to struggle with a new reality.
I have not written off the series yet as I do understand it's a classic in the genre, but colour me unimpressed (with the Canadian spelling of colour.)
4.5 stars
**Buddy Read with the awesome Kay Squad at Fantasy Buddy Reads**
"There are many worlds," he said, "caught in the loops and whorls of time. Seldom do they intersect, and so for the most part they are unknown to each other. Only in Fionavar, the prime creation, which all the others imperfectly reflect, is the lore gathered and preserved that tells of how to bridge the worlds - and even there the years have not dealt kindly with ancient wisdom."
This is the tale of five twenty-somethings - Kim, Jennifer, Kevin, Paul, and Dave (The Five) - who find themselves transported from their Toronto homes to the world of Fionavar, a place steeped in the rich history of gods, goddesses, heroes, and last stand battles. A place where, eons before, the five peoples of Fionavar battled and defeated an ancient Power known as Rakoth the Unraveller. Since such a Power cannot truly be killed, he was imprisoned under a mountain and the five peoples were presented with wardstones, whose power was perpetuated by sacred fires, to keep him there. As long as the sacred fires burned, the wardstones would continue to hold Rakoth in his prison. But nothing ever really lasts forever, not war...not peace. When portents and dreams start to give warning that something dark is coming it is Loren Silvercloak, a powerful mage, who sets about bringing The Five to Fionavar. He’s not entirely sure why these particular five are needed, only that he feels led to do this. And so begins this magical portal fantasy.
It’s one of Kay’s early works, if not his first published effort, and, coupled with being published in the 80s, it lacks some of the later polish that his writing develops. Even with that being the case, however, the groundwork of Kay’s beautiful and lyrical prose is very much in evidence. One of our Kay Squad members, @Melissa, mentioned that Kay’s storytelling has a bard-like quality to it and I’m in agreement. And like any good bard, Kay spins a tale that will hook in its readers, holding them in thrall until well past the ending of the story. This tale is no exception and even though there are some very recognizable fantasy tropes at work, they are delivered with such exquisite prose - haunting, beautiful, soulful - that you can’t help but take it all in, like a favorite scent or a beloved memory.
We salvage what we can, what truly matters to us, even at the gates of despair.
This is the first part of a trilogy and it does a brilliant job of slowly meting out the history of Fionavar as our five travellers discover this new world. If you’re prone to making character and place name charts (me!), I’d recommend it because Kay throws a lot out there without making it feel like an infodump. There is light and dark in this world and some of the dark is pretty brutal, so much so that not all of the Five will be glad to have made this trip. But there is also healing to be found in Fionavar and some of our travellers may find their peace here. Overall, it was a wonderful beginning to a heartwarming and heartbreaking story that I can already tell will join the ranks of beloved books that I will be rereading in years to come.
If you are new to the writings of Guy Gavriel Kay, know that his writing only gets better, though perhaps more polished is a better descriptor. And if you are a connoisseur of Kay’s later works but have somehow missed this trilogy, know that the seeds of his genius and his bewitching prose are very much in evidence here.
**Buddy Read with the awesome Kay Squad at Fantasy Buddy Reads**
"There are many worlds," he said, "caught in the loops and whorls of time. Seldom do they intersect, and so for the most part they are unknown to each other. Only in Fionavar, the prime creation, which all the others imperfectly reflect, is the lore gathered and preserved that tells of how to bridge the worlds - and even there the years have not dealt kindly with ancient wisdom."
This is the tale of five twenty-somethings - Kim, Jennifer, Kevin, Paul, and Dave (The Five) - who find themselves transported from their Toronto homes to the world of Fionavar, a place steeped in the rich history of gods, goddesses, heroes, and last stand battles. A place where, eons before, the five peoples of Fionavar battled and defeated an ancient Power known as Rakoth the Unraveller. Since such a Power cannot truly be killed, he was imprisoned under a mountain and the five peoples were presented with wardstones, whose power was perpetuated by sacred fires, to keep him there. As long as the sacred fires burned, the wardstones would continue to hold Rakoth in his prison. But nothing ever really lasts forever, not war...not peace. When portents and dreams start to give warning that something dark is coming it is Loren Silvercloak, a powerful mage, who sets about bringing The Five to Fionavar. He’s not entirely sure why these particular five are needed, only that he feels led to do this. And so begins this magical portal fantasy.
It’s one of Kay’s early works, if not his first published effort, and, coupled with being published in the 80s, it lacks some of the later polish that his writing develops. Even with that being the case, however, the groundwork of Kay’s beautiful and lyrical prose is very much in evidence. One of our Kay Squad members, @Melissa, mentioned that Kay’s storytelling has a bard-like quality to it and I’m in agreement. And like any good bard, Kay spins a tale that will hook in its readers, holding them in thrall until well past the ending of the story. This tale is no exception and even though there are some very recognizable fantasy tropes at work, they are delivered with such exquisite prose - haunting, beautiful, soulful - that you can’t help but take it all in, like a favorite scent or a beloved memory.
We salvage what we can, what truly matters to us, even at the gates of despair.
This is the first part of a trilogy and it does a brilliant job of slowly meting out the history of Fionavar as our five travellers discover this new world. If you’re prone to making character and place name charts (me!), I’d recommend it because Kay throws a lot out there without making it feel like an infodump. There is light and dark in this world and some of the dark is pretty brutal, so much so that not all of the Five will be glad to have made this trip. But there is also healing to be found in Fionavar and some of our travellers may find their peace here. Overall, it was a wonderful beginning to a heartwarming and heartbreaking story that I can already tell will join the ranks of beloved books that I will be rereading in years to come.
If you are new to the writings of Guy Gavriel Kay, know that his writing only gets better, though perhaps more polished is a better descriptor. And if you are a connoisseur of Kay’s later works but have somehow missed this trilogy, know that the seeds of his genius and his bewitching prose are very much in evidence here.
First, a warning: this isn't really a whole book, it's the first part of a book, and it ends abruptly, no closure whatsoever. So if that kind of thing bothers you, I highly suggest not starting it unless you have the second book in the trilogy close to hand.
That said, I enjoyed this book, although it's Kay's first published novel and it shows -- there are issues with the pacing and occasionally with clarity, and he jams a lot of characters and stories into a pretty short space. My favorite part was the section where he focused on a character who was separated from the others, because he was telling just one person's story, and I found it much easier to follow and get sucked in. The setting draws pretty obviously from Norse mythology (and I don't even know that much about Norse mythology) with a heavy dose of Tolkien thrown in, but there is enough original world building that it didn't seem like a ripoff, more like a way to make the world more familiar by incorporating stories we already know.
That said, I enjoyed this book, although it's Kay's first published novel and it shows -- there are issues with the pacing and occasionally with clarity, and he jams a lot of characters and stories into a pretty short space. My favorite part was the section where he focused on a character who was separated from the others, because he was telling just one person's story, and I found it much easier to follow and get sucked in. The setting draws pretty obviously from Norse mythology (and I don't even know that much about Norse mythology) with a heavy dose of Tolkien thrown in, but there is enough original world building that it didn't seem like a ripoff, more like a way to make the world more familiar by incorporating stories we already know.
Not bad but not life-changing. I think I would've liked it more if I'd read it when I was younger.
I am a huge fan of Guy Gavriel Kay's writing, and this is the first book of his I ever read. I am just in love with the way he uses language, as well as the way he can take familiar elements of old stories and make them fresh and new again. I read all of his books over and over again, just to bask in his words and the worlds he creates.
3.5 stars - The first half of it was quite slow paced and I struggled a little with it but boy, does it pick up in the second half. I feel like all the set up of book one is really gonna pay off it the next books.
A strange book, especially with the occasionally omniscient narrator, but worth reading. I will be pleased to continue the series.
Flaws worth mentioning: this was obviously written by a male writer in the 80s. The women characters are...far less developed than their counterparts, and the scene at the end proved that in that era many readers thought that giving a girl an abuse back story makes her interesting. Also, none of the bland name main characters take any time before deciding to trust Loren and their instant adapting to Fionavar felt clumsy.
Flaws worth mentioning: this was obviously written by a male writer in the 80s. The women characters are...far less developed than their counterparts, and the scene at the end proved that in that era many readers thought that giving a girl an abuse back story makes her interesting. Also, none of the bland name main characters take any time before deciding to trust Loren and their instant adapting to Fionavar felt clumsy.
Okie the first half of this book was slow AF but when we got to the third night on the Summer Tree my mind just exploded all over the place into 10 million love chunks. Plus then we got to meet the Dalrei and I am in love with them. Davor is my babe 5eva. I am digging feeling like an OG fangirl again.