06-27-2022, 09:22 AM
All The Seas of the World by Guy Gavriel Kay
Kay continues to tell the history of the Mediterranean through this fictional. At this point Sarantium (Constantinople) to the Asharites (Islam) and the Jaddites (Christianity) want a little payback for their loss. The Kindath (Jews) are in there, too. The story mainly plays out in Batria (Italy) and the big City States like Firenta (Florence) and Serrenise (Venice). But it's a small story that starts with a man and a woman hired to kill the Caliph in North Africa and the repercussions of that action.
I love Kay's writing style, but he does love to go off on tangents. He also likes to switch narrator in the middle of a chapter, some times in the middle of a page. So, it's bit quirky and always takes me a bit to get used to reading. I also play the game of mapping Kay's words to the actual world which can take me out of the story.
This book closely comes after A Brightness Long Ago which detailed mercenary companies fighting in Batria and has a lot of the same characters from that novel in supporting roles in this novel. Plus, he references the events that happened in The Lions of Al-Rassan and the Sailing to Sarantium set of books. So it would help to have read those books but it's not necessary. The book is self contained.
The only way you can kind of tell it is a "fantasy" novel is a small skosh of magic. Other than that it's a tale of medieval Europe and the religious wars.
Kay continues to tell the history of the Mediterranean through this fictional. At this point Sarantium (Constantinople) to the Asharites (Islam) and the Jaddites (Christianity) want a little payback for their loss. The Kindath (Jews) are in there, too. The story mainly plays out in Batria (Italy) and the big City States like Firenta (Florence) and Serrenise (Venice). But it's a small story that starts with a man and a woman hired to kill the Caliph in North Africa and the repercussions of that action.
I love Kay's writing style, but he does love to go off on tangents. He also likes to switch narrator in the middle of a chapter, some times in the middle of a page. So, it's bit quirky and always takes me a bit to get used to reading. I also play the game of mapping Kay's words to the actual world which can take me out of the story.
This book closely comes after A Brightness Long Ago which detailed mercenary companies fighting in Batria and has a lot of the same characters from that novel in supporting roles in this novel. Plus, he references the events that happened in The Lions of Al-Rassan and the Sailing to Sarantium set of books. So it would help to have read those books but it's not necessary. The book is self contained.
The only way you can kind of tell it is a "fantasy" novel is a small skosh of magic. Other than that it's a tale of medieval Europe and the religious wars.
As a matter of fact, my anger does keep me warm