Rating: 
Summary: Kay's first real disappointment
Review: This is the first book from Kay that has left me feeling hollow and disappointed. Admittedly, this is because I have such high standards for his books that when one fails, it makes it seem even worse than when other authors fail. The main problem with this book is that his protagonist (Crispin, the Mosaicist) is basically just used as a tool for all the "aristocratic" characters. So many loose ends were never addressed, that it feels like the book was written as it went along,without a plan. The whole "Zubir" sub-theme which drove the first book, was mostly dropped. The only reason I can see for it was to have Crispin "hear" the bird in the ending scene. It was never explained how Crispin could hear all the other birds,which made it seem like a cheap way to get him to know about that scene. Why was Cripin told to go to Rustem? Again, we never know. Plotline dropped. But my main complaint has to do with where the readers allegiances are suppose to go. If with Valerius and Alixana, then why are they shown to be callous murderers in the first book? I have a real problem knowing who to root for in this book. Problem 3: I call it James Bond syndrome. All these gorgeous, and extremely clever (I got tired of hearing that phrase)women want Crispin. He gets to sleep with one, loves two others even asking one to marry him, and then ends up with a third. YUCK! Is this a soap opera or a novel? The best part of this book was the chapters involving Scrotius and leading up to the exciting Chariot race. In these few chapters we have drive,energy and excitement. If only the rest of the book could live up to those chapters. Maybe it's time for Kay to branch out into a different kind of book, the plots are starting to mesh together. I would recommend you go back and reread "A Song for Arbonne" or "Tigana" which were tightly written, elegant, succinct books with no real loose ends. Here we have lots of minor characters who I want to know more about because they have more appeal than the main characters. Rustem, Scortius, Kasia, Shaski(for those who haven't read a previous book),Shirin, Strumosus and Kyros, Taras, even Cleander all of these beautifully written people are more real than the main characters and with every one of them we are left with a feeling that things are not quite finished. Kay's gift is in writing such 3 dimensional people, but that gift demands a high level of commitment to his readers. I'm afraid this Mosaic has come down!
Rating: 
Summary: Powerful work
Review: Upon hearing his reputation, the Emperor Varius summoned renowned mosaicist Crispin to come to Sarantium to ply his art. The master craftsman wants nothing, but to perform his miracle on the dome of Sarantium's personal relic symbolizing his rule. However, Crispin's pleasure in his work is destroyed when he hears rumors that his benefactor plans to take over Varena, his homeland. Crispin would prefer to ignore politics and war, but knows his family and friends could be in jeopardy from Varius imposing his rule on them. He also realizes that any effort to interfere could cost him more than the job of a lifetime, it could cost him his life. LORD OF THE EMPERORS, the second book in the Sarantium Mosaic, is a tremendous science fiction historical fiction work that proves that Guy Gavriel Kay is one of the genre's superstars. The story line is fast-paced, filled with action, and incredible layers of detail that transport the reader to Sarantium. Mr. Gavriel amazingly never bores his audience even with numerous layers of background materials. The characters actually make the tale, as they seem genuine, behaving like real people. The sequel to SAILING TO SARANTIUM is a triumph in its own account that will send fans scrambling for the first tale and other luscious works of a grandmaster author. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: pleased, but not impressed
Review: This book was a highly intelligent, poetic look Byzantium -- which Kay has called Sarantium. It blends aspects of history, legend, and just plain good story telling. It is one of Kay's great gifts to take history and mythology and create of their mixture a whole new, fascinating place between the pages of his books -- The Lions of Al-Rassan and the Fionavar Tapestry are the best examples of this. Having said that, The Sarantine Mosaic disappointed a bit. It didn't reach the same levels of Lions, despite equal coverage. The conclusion stunned me in its completeness -- but it seemed more a routine tying up of ends than the deft interweaving of storylines I have come to expect. And the grand tragedy that was supposed to have been The Empress never evoked any great emotion in me. (I can't read Lions without sobbing at the end -- literally can't see the words on the page.) In fact, although it was an engrossing and entertaining read -- I could put it down for days at a time -- and that's a first for Kay's works. The secondary characters seemed to have more potential than was ever realized. I wanted more of Rustem's family, of Shirin's internal world and the world of the racing factions -- what was Scortius' life like besides fast races and fast women. I wanted more of the Senator's son and the young bloods about the City and of internal palace politics. I definitely wanted more of Crispin and the craft of mosaic, of watching his great ouevre develop -- that definitely would have more of an impact on the ending, given us more of a vested interest in him and the dome. The main characters never seemed, until the very end, to be truly a part of the action -- just have it related through the narrator. I guess there seemed to be more distance in the storytelling, and so I was able to keep more distance from the story. I was never quite convinced that this was a plausible, possible True Story, like some others of Kay's books. But, as others have said, it was still very good. and Kay's very good beats just about any one else's hands down, even on a bad day!
Rating:
Summary: Kay does it again
Review: Each time I read a Kay novel, I am swept away by the grandeur, the beauty, the intricay of detail, and the magnificent subtlety of plot and character development. I am transported to a fantastic world which I hate to leave when I am forced to close the book. Knowing that I have it to go back to is a sweet delight at the end of the day. No writer has touched me as Kay has. Pure pleasure. Intellignt and thoughtful. I only wish that there was more. I have read and re-read Tigana and Song for Arbonne. I'll do so also with the Sarantine Mosaic.
Rating:
Summary: Love Kay
Review: I feel lumping Kay's work into the fantasy/sf genre does not do it justice. He deserves to be ranked among the greatest writers of fiction. Having said that, The Lord of Emperors, although supremely satisfying, fell short in three ways. First, I found the four female characters disappointly similar. Perhaps clever folks saw more there than I, but they all seemed supremely strong, independent and possessed of super-human emotional control. Somebody, somewhere, in this book should have cried. Second, although Kay is really talented at describing lovemaking without being crass, I felt his removal from such a discussion of the moral impact of indiscriminant sex, disconcerting. (It became mundane; Get up, shave, make the bed, have sex with three different woman.) It just doesn't happen that way. Such random itimacy, even with nobility (ha ha), I think (hope) for most of us, carries some psychological harm. That should have been addressed more directly I think. Three, I was very disappointed in the Bassinian doctor character. I felt we should have seen more from him, and, espcially, his son. Perhaps, Kay is saving them for later. Notwithstanding, the above, Kay is a better read that almost anyone on the planet.
Rating: 
Summary: Better than most, but not worth gushing over...
Review: Kay is a terrific writer. Perhaps that's why I'm so disappointed with this installment of the Sarantine Mosaic. The characters were not as well defined and the plot not as well constructed as in the first book. Some portions of the story line verged on soap opera melodramitics - not worthy of Kay. That said, this is still a book worth reading. Even a mediocre Kay is better than the rest of the books on the market.
Rating:
Summary: My heart is full...
Review: I just finished reading this book. I find it hard to speak; once again, Guy Gavriel Kay has brought tears to my eyes. These last two books are more mature, more subtle, more intricate than ever- but they still burn with the passion that infused the Fionavar Tapestry.
Rating:
Summary: Incomplete
Review: I have been an avid Kay fan for years. But this book was not up to his usual standard and was a rather disappointing end to Crispin and his other rich characters. This just smacks of a triolgy gone bad, cut short by either lack of interest or other pressures. In every other novel Kay expertly spools out different threads of his story, artfully pulling them together in unexpected ways, weaving a Tapestry for the reader, intricate, surprising and colorful. Sailing to Sarantium promised the same kind of adventure, but Lord of Emperors does not deliver. Read it, though. Just to know what happens to Crispin, if nothing else.
Rating:
Summary: Not up to Kay's previous efforts
Review: I was looking forward to the book hoping to see more of crispin and a more compelling story unfold as in 'Lions of Al-Rassan' and Song for Arbonne but it never happened. The core story never came off. there were two many smaller characters that had no where to go and main characters that went no where. As usual the writing style was absorbing and compelling, some of the characters were terrific but you just kept waiting for it to come together and it didn't. I bought the first book and thought it was good but expected more from the second. You have to wonder if Kay just lost interest. I did by the middle. I'm a huge fan of Kay but this isn't a patch on Lions of Al-Rassan, or Song for Arbonne.
Rating:
Summary: Not as well-done
Review: After reading Sailing to Sarantium about 6 months, ago, I was very pleasantly surprised to find that the sequel's release was right around the corner. Maybe my expectations were *too* high - I didn't think Lord of Emperors was as good. The characters, even the recurring ones, seem to have lost some personality. (It's hard for me to remember many of the names, which is not a good sign.) Even the talking bird was only a pale shadow of Linon! Kay himself seemed to become a bit weary of the book - the final scenes of Lord of Emperors seemed like just a way to put an end to it all. I enjoyed the book for the most part - the politics were certainly entertaining. But I can't give it any more than three stars, especially since I know what this writer can do.
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