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A review by veronica87
The Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay
4.0
"The flow of time and events is a large river; men and women are usually no more than pebbles in that, carried along. But sometimes, at some moments, they are more. Sometimes the course of the stream is changed, not just for a few people but for many."
This is the story of such moments. It’s the story of an Anglycn king who, having unified his land, looks for ways to preserve its peace for his children. Of an Cyngael cleric who dreams of uniting all people under a benevolent God. Of a young, Ehrling man who wishes to escape the life bequeathed to him by his father’s impulsive actions. Of that father’s search for a new path that has meaning and purpose. And of a Cyngael prince struggling in the wake of loss.
In the way that only he can, Guy Gavriel Kay invokes our own history and subtly weaves in elements of fantasy and myth. Here he takes the world of the Saxons and Danes circa the mid-to-late 800s A.D. and recreates it as the world of the Anglycns and Erhlings, with the Cyngael standing in as the Welsh/Celts. Having just come from reading the third book in Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon tales, [b:Lords of the North|68526|Lords of the North (The Saxon Stories, #3)|Bernard Cornwell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1440472759s/68526.jpg|891853], I was primed for this story and was able to slip into it with ease. If I have one complaint about this book it’s that it could’ve been a little longer so that the endings for the various characters could have had some space to breathe a bit more.
This is now my seventh book by Guy Gavriel Kay so I think it’s safe to say that he’s a favorite author of mine. He has a smooth and easy writing style, not simplistic by any means, that gently pulls readers onward through to the tale’s inevitable conclusion. Along the way he’ll make you think, he’ll fill you with yearning and wonder, and he’ll likely tweak your heart a time or two for good measure. His writing is a balm to my soul, offering familiarity and warmth as the sentences he pens wrap me up in cocoons of comfort. I eagerly look forward to my next journey with this word master.
This is the story of such moments. It’s the story of an Anglycn king who, having unified his land, looks for ways to preserve its peace for his children. Of an Cyngael cleric who dreams of uniting all people under a benevolent God. Of a young, Ehrling man who wishes to escape the life bequeathed to him by his father’s impulsive actions. Of that father’s search for a new path that has meaning and purpose. And of a Cyngael prince struggling in the wake of loss.
In the way that only he can, Guy Gavriel Kay invokes our own history and subtly weaves in elements of fantasy and myth. Here he takes the world of the Saxons and Danes circa the mid-to-late 800s A.D. and recreates it as the world of the Anglycns and Erhlings, with the Cyngael standing in as the Welsh/Celts. Having just come from reading the third book in Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon tales, [b:Lords of the North|68526|Lords of the North (The Saxon Stories, #3)|Bernard Cornwell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1440472759s/68526.jpg|891853], I was primed for this story and was able to slip into it with ease. If I have one complaint about this book it’s that it could’ve been a little longer so that the endings for the various characters could have had some space to breathe a bit more.
This is now my seventh book by Guy Gavriel Kay so I think it’s safe to say that he’s a favorite author of mine. He has a smooth and easy writing style, not simplistic by any means, that gently pulls readers onward through to the tale’s inevitable conclusion. Along the way he’ll make you think, he’ll fill you with yearning and wonder, and he’ll likely tweak your heart a time or two for good measure. His writing is a balm to my soul, offering familiarity and warmth as the sentences he pens wrap me up in cocoons of comfort. I eagerly look forward to my next journey with this word master.