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Summary: Wonderful conclusion of "The Sarantine Mosaic"
Review: This novel is the second part in "The Sarantine Mosaic" and follows "Sailing To Sarantium". Once again we follow the mosaicist Crispin and a host of other characters in the city of Sarantium, which is Kay's fantasy equivalent of Byzantium. Some new characters are introduced, most notably the Bassanid (Arab) doctor Rustem. Like Crispin, he arrives in the city to exercise his craft, but he also becomes entangled in the web of political and personal rivalries. Rustem's son, Shaski, provides one of the closest links to Kay's previous novels "The Lions of Al-Rassan". I enjoyed this novel even more than its already brilliant predecessor. The characters continue to flesh out. The plot becomes more and more complex. The conclusion of the novel is very satisfying, although the epilogue, in my eyes, seems a bit rushed. All in all, this is another brilliant effort by one of the best fantasy writers on the scene today. If you're new to Guy Gavriel Kay and you enjoy fantasy, buy Tigana, A Song for Arbonne, and the novels mentioned in this review immediately!
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Summary: The master does it again
Review: Kay has proven over and over that every other writer currently exploring the fantasy genre does so in his shadow. So subtle, so powerful. I also thought Sailing to Sarantium wasn't quite as engaging as his other books, but when coupled with this one, it is nothing less than stunning. You're left with an indescribable feeling afterwards - kind of a bittersweet ache. Is it a worthy goal to attempt immortality? Is it worth the cost in the present? Just phenomenal. Bravo. Now hurry, Mr. Kay, and write another one!
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Summary: Typical top-notch Kay writing!
Review: As in every book he has written, Kay delivers a believeable world filled with complex characters a reader can care for. Highly recommended!
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Summary: Great book. Minor nitpick.
Review: I really really really enjoyed GGK's latest accomplishment - the 2 books that make up the Sarantine Mosaic. Beautiful story-telling. My only complaint is that a resolution in the epilogue is a little too neat & sudden ... for me there was not enough reason for that final scene between protagonist & another character to take place.
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Summary: Yum!
Review: I just gobbled this up. What a fabulous insight into another world, so alike, but so distant. Wonderful scenarios and tangled webs. Mr. Kay just keeps getting better and better. Yasher Koach! Health and strength to him!
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Summary: What is there to say?
Review: Each time I read of of GGKs books I think "Thats it, thats the best, there is no way anything can be better." until I take up the next book. While Sailing was somewhat slow, or a rather long introduction, Lord of Emperors is all that sorrow, all that joy that makes Kays books to special. I cannot say how much those words in a book can mean, how much they can move the reader. One does not cry, but only because tears would be to trivial for that. I hope that GGk keeps writing, so beautiful, so powerful words.
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Summary: A moment of Silence
Review: I almost don't know what to write here. It has been said, many times, that the mark of a truly exemplary performance is not in the strength of the applause, but rather in the length of time it takes the audience to reclaim themselves from the mastery of the performance, to remember that it is a thing which demands applause. Never - and it is no presumption to say I am well-read - has the power of an author's skill moved me in the way this piece has just done. I am beyond tears, beyond any method of doing this work justice. It is a superb and lasting achievement, and its author has devined well the nature of art and its particular mortality. This work, like the works rendered by the people of its pages, is humbling, overwhelming, magnificent. I have now sailed to Sarantium, and its is true that this thing changes you, in deep, inexplicable ways. There is nothing else to say.
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Summary: Best of a briliant career
Review: Ok I am a jaded fantasy reader like the rest of you. This book, like the previous, is as good as it gets. Kay provides a supensful and more importantly a gripping tale. I hope his next book is as subtle and engaging as this. Horahh for Canadian sci-fi writers-horohh for Canadian writers.
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Summary: Kay's Best
Review: Ever since Tigana Kay has been producing consistent Grade A material. Sailing to Sarantium lagged a bit but this but more than made up for it. With intricate major characters and at least four different major and minor plotlines supporting the main theme of the book: How to be remembered after death. The chariot scene and descriptions of mosaic were beautifully done, and some of the comic scenes made me laugh so hard I nearly dropped the book.
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Summary: Absolutely Amazing!
Review: Guy Gavriel Kay just keeps getting better and better. This is by far, coupled with Sailing to Sarantium, the best book I have ever read. Kay is a master at subtlety and intrigue. The plot twists and turns pulling you deeper and deeper into the story. Kay uses all the tools at his disposal to keep you guessing. Character identities are kept secret until the last possible moment to heighten the mystery, cliffhangers abound from chapter to chapter elevating the suspense and scenes are replayed from different viewpoints to capture the richness and significance of the events taking place. Guy Gavriel Kay has also become wonderful at creating memorable minor characters by using dialogue and description that fully renders the character's past, present and future in a few brief paragraphs. In this way, you come to appreciate how some people can come, quickly in and out of your life but somehow completely change it. Lord of Emperors is also successful at triggering your emotions. From humour to sadness to excitement and joy, Kay plays with your heartstrings effortlessly. Lord of Emperors is about the individual struggle for immortality by leaving a legacy for everyone to remember. Whether it be by bearing children, moving and shaping the course of history or by creating a timeless piece to be admired for centuries. If you have not had the opportunity to explore the worlds of Guy Gavriel Kay, please do so. You will not be disappointed.
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