Tigana

Rating:
Summary: The depths of despair and the heights of joy...
Review: Occasionally in our lives we are so awake, alert to life that every cell in our body tingles in joy. When Guy Gavriel Kay crafted this novel, his every breath, every stroke of his pen were filled with this magic. Perhaps I have read a thousand novels by such fantastics authors as Tolkien, Niven, Bear and Card. None of them have moved me like Kay - yes the sorrow is deep, but the magic of his words - the story reads like poetry. After reading this wonderful novel I have only one regret - that I can never again read it for the first time. However, if you haven't you can. My envy knows no bounds. Go, discover the land which is Tigana.

Rating:
Summary: Flaws cloud a great work of art
Review: I rated it 10, not for "Best" but for "Definitely worth reading."

This is a book which with a decent editting job or a thoughtful rewrite would be one of the Fantasy's great masterpieces. There is a lot of undigested exposition, huge tracts of meaningless asides (how *are* the dream walkers tied into the rest of the story? What effect does their epic victory have?) and plot devices introduced immediately before they are used.

Also, the beautiful part of the story, the moral ambiguity as to the worth of the climactic victory is quite possibly unintentional on Mr. Kay's part.

When you reach the novel's end you will be able to contemplate several opposing leaders. One of them thinks nothing of ruthlessly enslaving people, slaughtering innocents to achieve his goals, and in general committing mayhem in the name of his pride and his throne. One of them delights in killing people sadistically and has facial deformities besides. One of them is a noble patron of the arts with a strong sense of justice and humour. Who wins out?

One might guess from the facial deformity and sadistic glee that characterization is not Mr. Kay's strong suit, but this is far from true. He does have trouble characterizing evil--one might almost suspect he doesn't at all understand it--and the consequent ambiguity of characters he probably intended to be evil is what lends this book its tremendous moral and emotional depth.

Rating:
Summary: Not arbitrary.
Review: Guy Gavriel Kay and Robin McKinley are my favorite authors; I love them for their very distinct styles and the depth of their books, which I sink into to the point of not knowing whose thoughts are in my head - Dianora's, Lissar's, mine? I do not know why everyone compares every "fantasy" book that comes out to Tolkein - read the reviews of To Green Angel Tower and The Sword of Shannara for illustration - when there will clearly never be another author who is the same. If Tolkein is your ultimate, stick with him, and please do not try to compare the lovely webs wound in my mind by Tigana to the detached myth-recreations in the Lord of the Rings; Tigana's story is not as important as its...feeling, and the Lord of the Rings had so much story that I felt lonely and isolated.

I believe that Tigana is a historical novel that happens to be set in a place that is not on Earth, and the setting and the magic (which is certainly not the primary focus of the book, although the plot works off the "disappearance" of Tigana through magic) are the only fantasy parts of it; looking for a standard fantasy with standard fantasy elements - or even some semblance thereof - is not going to find success in Tigana. It is not a "FANTASY NOVEL," if you like to use labels. It's a good book - one of few.

Rating:
Summary:

Overrated but grand epic of how a few can effect change
Review:

After reading through the other reviews posted here and being completely disgusted at all the arbitrary 10's lavished out, I simply must say this, even though I realize, it is incredibly portentious:

Unlike most people here who apparently give a rating of 10 if they liked the book or it somehow did something for them, I try to be a bit more discriminating. For me a 10 means a great and masterful work that will influence generations of writers. Whereas a 9 is very close in being all that, except for the generations of writers bit, and an 8 is still pretty damn good, but lacks the total coherence of all its elements to make it a great work.

Guy Gavriel Kay is quite good, but more on par with Mercedes Lackey, which is no insult, than the likes of Tolkein. I am sorry, but he simply is not the reincarnation of Tolkein.

I found this book to be incredibly well constructed at the mechanical level and to some extent the emotional level, but it lacked the plausibility to be believable enough for me to be swept into the story, or really care about what happened to the characters, since the whole concept behind the story that a few people could orchestrate such a perfect, elaborate and seamless plot to rid their land of two tryants in one fell swoop without any of the logical repercussions of such an act--such as say one of the home countries of those tryants retaliating if for no other reason than for sake of pride, which these people were of no shortage, let me assure you, was magically circumvented since everyone that could do something at the end conviently died! Hence, this book being fantasy, I suppose, which is fine, but I never had this problem with any of the great masters in this field.

Not only that, but this book was drearily unhappy with everyone except the central characters, of course, getting death wheeled--a favorite preoccupation of the tyrants to break a person's limbs and back, chop off their hands and stuffed them back into the poor unfortunate's mouth so they couldn't wail while slowly dying crucified on a wheel--until the end when everything fell out just right and everyone that wasn't death wheeled could go back to making beautiful art. Give me a break already! I felt like I was reading a historical fiction about one of the darker passages of the Roman Empire or Persians or even Gangis Khan than I was reading a fantasy novel.

Hence, the rating of 8 and not 9 or 10. Great fantasy leaves you wanting more, not glad that the story is finished.

Rating:
Summary: Emotionally wrung-out!
Review: I just finished _Tigana_, and had to comment, though I've never been quite moved enough to write a review before. Once I put it down, the only thing that seemed acceptable to do was to sit and think about the book, or log on and read/write about it. Seems silly, but I was so involved in that world that I don't want to let it go, and am drained by weeping through the ending and afterwards.

This book reminds me somewhat of _Ender's Game_ by Card, despite the differences in genre (Tigana much more fantasy, less sci-fi), story line, etc. They both, however, contained such powerfully created characters, including complex, deeply-woven inner lives, that even hurtful or truly evil deeds became understandable and even forgiveable. The tragedy in Tigana rivals Shakespeare, the master of unbearably sad but inevitable endings, but adds the complexity of additional story lines containing shocking twists, joy, and triumph. If you want a simple story of good and evil, forget this one. Otherwise, it's a must-read.

Rating:
Summary: Very good Fantasy!
Review: Fantasy at its best. A good example how a fantasy novel should be written without stealing from the Grand Master (J.R.R. Tolkien).

Rating:
Summary: Best single volume fantasy ever!
Review: If you are like me, you may be leary when you shop here or go to the bookstore, see a good looking fantasy book, and see it is part four of some series or cycle. This book is by itself, when you finish it, you are done. But believe me, it is so well written and such a great story, you wish it had a sequel. GGK has had people beg him for a sequel, but he has said no. Tigana has excellent, well drawn characters, an epic story, a great and well designed setting, and a few steamy love scenes to boot. It has one of the finest endings I have ever seen in any book, fantasy or otherwise. Easily his best work, though of course his other works are quite excellent as well. READ THIS BOOK! You can't go wrong with Kay!

Rating:
Summary: The single most beautiful of Kay's books
Review: Tigana is one of - if not the - most well-written and encapturing fantasy I have read. The language is fluent, poetic and at times so beautiful it truly captures both heart and mind. The story has many layers, both a tragic and captivating main plot, as well as lesser twists and turns involving some of the main characters, and is brought to an amazing and masterfully done conclusion.
The characters are deep and complex, and each of their destinies are woven into the greater whole with a harmony that only a truly great writer can accomplish. I find the story of Brandin and Dianora one of the most touching elements in the story, and a beautiful example of Kay's skill in writing. Skill-wise, I find Kay to be as good as Tolkien when it comes to creating the plot and weaving of the story and his language is more captivating and poetic, making the tale easier and more fluent than 'The Lord of the Rings'.
Compared to Kay's Fionavar trilogy, Tigana is less of a faerytale. It tells of a great and complex tragedy, encompassing people and history, if not worlds. It is a book of great beauty, vivid and deeply moving. Definitely the best of Guy Gavriel Kay.

Rating:
Summary: Simply the Best
Review: It was a joy for me to read the other reviews of this book, as I find that as a reader, not that many people share my taste, and as a fantasy reader, surprisingly few people have even heard of Guy Gavriel Kay. Suffice to say, that Tigana is Kay's best work in my opinion, and has been read and reread more times than I care to remember. I'm currently on my third copy of the book - 1 being a treasured hardback copy that was a present from someone I hooked on him.

Tigana is so full of life and depth of feeling, that it seems real. It is complex, at times despairing, but ultimately triumphant. Kay's style is so beautifully evocative that I find myself walking around with phrases ecchoing in my head "both moons were high, dimming all but the brightest of lights", "Tigana, let my memory of you be a blade in my soul". The sheer authenticity of the character's experiences,e.g. Devin's inability to truly react when he finds himself in Tigana, shows the true depth of the crime against the soul that Brandin commits, and yet Kay allows us the intelligence to sympathise too with Brandin's plight. Definitely the best book I have ever read.

Rating:
Summary: AMAZINGLY WELL CRAFTED
Review: THIS IS STRONG DRINK. THIS IS NO SIMPLE STORY OF GOOD AGAINST EVIL, RIGHT AGAINST WRONG. EACH CHARACTER IS GOOD AND BAD, EACH MOVES WITH THEIR OWN MOTIVE, AND EACH REASONS THAT THEY ARE RIGHT. THE STORY IS THOUGHT PROVOKING AND EMOTIONAL. KAY'S ABILITY TO TRANSLATE HIS CHARACTERS FEELINGS AND MOTIVATIONS IS UNCANNY. THE PUNSHIMENT TO WHICH TIGANA IS SUBJECTED, THE COMPLETE ERASURE OF A CULTURE AND HISTORY, IS A PRIME EXAMPLE OF THIS AUTHORS VIVID IMAGINATION.