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erinsopran 's review for:
Under Heaven
by Guy Gavriel Kay
Reread, but apparently I never updated after the first time.
I think the reason I can't quite give this a full 5 stars is that I was dissatisfied with the role of women in this world. In most of his other books, Kay has found a way to include a woman as a main character whose life happens to not follow the allotted patterns of her world. Yes, there is one here, but she doesn't have a main narrative, so her effect on the overall feeling of the book is minimal. Plus, she's really overbalanced by the other women, who, regardless of the political positions they've managed to achieve, mostly got there through bloodlines or prostitution, and this fact felt more emphasized to me than in previous books. Even as I write this it feels like an unfair criticism, but it bothered me both times I read it. All of Kay's books have been set in worlds based on times when women had a rough go (see: all of history) and somehow past books counteract it more.
Nevertheless, as with all of Kay's books, the world is completely absorbing and I adored the political stuff as much as the personal and fantastical elements. I'm very excited for River of Stars, which is set in the same world but with a female protagonist.
I think the reason I can't quite give this a full 5 stars is that I was dissatisfied with the role of women in this world. In most of his other books, Kay has found a way to include a woman as a main character whose life happens to not follow the allotted patterns of her world. Yes, there is one here, but she doesn't have a main narrative, so her effect on the overall feeling of the book is minimal. Plus, she's really overbalanced by the other women, who, regardless of the political positions they've managed to achieve, mostly got there through bloodlines or prostitution, and this fact felt more emphasized to me than in previous books. Even as I write this it feels like an unfair criticism, but it bothered me both times I read it. All of Kay's books have been set in worlds based on times when women had a rough go (see: all of history) and somehow past books counteract it more.
Nevertheless, as with all of Kay's books, the world is completely absorbing and I adored the political stuff as much as the personal and fantastical elements. I'm very excited for River of Stars, which is set in the same world but with a female protagonist.