Tigana

Rating:
Summary: Not really my cup of tea...
Review: but the book Guy Kay wrote is probably just about what he wanted it to be. I read this book within a couple weeks of Frank Herbert's masterpiece "Dune", which was exactly as I would wish for a book to be. And it contrasts absolutely with Tigana.

Both books have a similar premise. Revenge against a foe who has tried to destroy your legacy. Dune is a tale deep in politics and physical combat, where you are actually made to understand the machinations of each character's mind. But in Tigana, the hows are left to the imagination, and the writer focuses instead on the sensation of the what. One doesn't understand what the characters are doing, but he can understand how they feel, which one often could not do with the alien cultures of Dune.

This depth of romance carries into all facets of the book. Every character is guided by waves of passion, and only the uncompromising villain shows the long contemplation and calculation of Dune's mentats. In my opinion, it is the writer's voice coming through Brandin's words when condemns this logical man for just that. If you yourself are a person of rationale rather than romance, this book was *not* written for you. But there is still an engrossing story and fairly likeable characters that may be enough for you to enjoy it.

Rating:
Summary: More than historical fantasy, this is a world. Kay's best.
Review: Comparing Tigana to Tolkien or the rest of the brainmush that is pulp fantasy badly misses the point. While Kay's previous trilogy the Fionavar Tapestry competes in those realms (and does it well), Tigana is instead a construction of a lush psuedo-Italy in which magic plays a role, but much less than pride, history, culture, love, might, economics, and lastly but most importantly, brainpower. Clearly, Kay's best novel by far as the plot compels and the characters are believable.

Essentially, there are two very simple plotlines here. First is that a band of rebels from a conquered land, Tigana, go throughout the other 8 provinces to raise support against the two conquerors of the psuedo-Italian provinces. Second, a concubine in a foreign court weighs love against revenge for her homeland. On the surface, neither is the grand tapestry you expect in a fantasy. However, it works spectacularly.

Why? The depth of the characters and plotline. Kay must have had reams of notes on each character before writing the novel; from good guy to bad guy, every character has flaws and every character has valid motivations. An example: Alberico, the psuedo-Viking sorceror/conqueror of the 4 eastern provinces and probably worst of the bad guys. He's certainly malevolent, but from his perspective, he makes sense. Oversimplified, he's simply lining up to make a run at his Emperor's throne, is permanently frustrated by getting nowhere despite having brought a new land into the realm, and dashes between greed, fear, and simple malice against those who get in his way.

Likeable? No. But combine the interaction of about 20 characters this complex and the two plots take care of themselves. No one is prenaturally gifted with foresight or following a prophecy - in fact, Kay takes an amusing potshot at that in the disussion of the natural right of the princes of the provinces to rule - but what moves it is common sense and common passion. The world is similarly well constructed. As you'd expect, where would a psuedo-Italy be without wine, music, poetry, and love?

As warned, this is more an alternate history than a fantasy. Nature spirits and legends make appearances, as well as some really interesting speculation on the cost and sources of magic, but the only evil doers here are human. If you're looking for good-guy-zapping-dragon-with-magic-to-save-world-from-Dark-Lord, wrong book and something you'd probably give one or two stars. For everyone else, the best of this genre (and sadly given how many other novels he's published since) easily Kay's best work.

Rating:
Summary: Forget Tolkien, just read this book!
Review: Since so many have reviewed Tigana, I won't bother with a typical review. Just know this: in the last few months, when people have asked me to recommend a good book, I've recommended this one. When I finished it, all I could think was, "I can't wait to read everything Kay has ever written." Ironically, it's been several months, and I've only read one other work of his. I'm not starting the next one until Christmas break (I'm a teacher), when I can clear my mind and spend some time with it. Tigana is, in fact, like LOTR; it's a story to savor, to enjoy slowly, even if you typically read books in a day or two. It starts slowly, but it unfolds so beautifully, and it will stay with you for a long, long time. Be patient with it; it's worth it.