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davidjordan 's review for:
Under Heaven
by Guy Gavriel Kay
Kay is an entertaining writer. He has found a way to make ancient history even more appealing to me than usual in his fantasy/historical novels. Well, the two that I have read so far, Tigana and Under Heaven, have both been good enough to encourage a high level of interest that allowed me to stay invested in long books with dozens of characters. I wouldn't have imagined that I would be so fascinated by a story from (ostensibly) Tang Dynasty China, but this one did the trick. I don't know if it is complementary to say that I am even more impressed by the author's apparent scholarship than his skill as a novelist, but I find myself frequently marveling at the depth of his knowledge. Perhaps there are writers with greater literary gifts, but there are few who tell such fascinating stories.