Rating: 
Summary: Interesting---but Kay can do better
Review: A bunch of Toronto law students are taken to a Tolkienian world by magical means---and they are only slightly surprised. In this world they proceed to take the places they seem to have been born for without misgivings.I have no problem with yet another Dark Lord, elves, orcs and the whole tribute to Tolkien but I simply could not bring myself to believe this. So I laboured through the first part of the book, quite unconvinced. And all of a sudden, the writing became so good that it really *hit* me. Unfortunately, this impression receded a bit towards the end of the book, but those chapters (Dave's) made reading it worth my while. I also liked the way Kay slowly reveals the background of Fionovar, even if this contributes to the blandness of the beginning. This is not a book I'd recommend as an introduction to Guy Gavriel Kay. He's a really great writer, but his later works are much better in my opinion. In short, while I'll be reading the two remaining books of the Fionovar series, my recommendation would be to get _Tigana_, _A Song for Arbonne_, and _The Lions of Al-Rassan_ before _The Summer Tree_.
Rating:
Summary: Hints of greatness¿but a tired old, story in the end.
Review: This is my second attempt to read a Kay epic, and so far I have yet to be taken by his work and finish a series. (I quit somewhere in the third novel here.) However, I can't say I hated them, because every once and awhile, they glowed. For oh-so-brief moments, the story shed its done-before-flat-plot and stunned me with the author's talents for character-building, imagination and brilliant writing. (The first scenes of Dave in the Plains is an example of this.) But these glimmers of greatness are quickly buried by old storylines and tired themes (Arthurian legends, Tolkien orcs and elves with different names - gods analogous to Greek mythology. Ultimate Good vs. Ultimate Evil.) If you love that sort of thing - you'll probably enjoy this series - it is well told if not too ground-breaking. But if you are yearning, as I was, for beautiful escapist novels that will thrill you with vivid characters and new ideas - you'll have to wade through a lot of the aforementioned stale material to get to it. In all - not an unpleasant experience, but not very satisfying, especially considering all the lavish praise that littered the book jackets. I was expecting something much more - and have the feeling the author is capable of it. Hoping to find it in some of his more recommended works.
Rating: 
Summary: Fabulous Fantasy
Review: "The Summer Tree" is a wonderful adventure into the relm of fantasy. Once one grows accustomed to Kay's style and grasps his train of thought the series takes off. The characters are fantasic and you really feel as if you know them. I couldn't wait to get my hands on books two and three and when I came to the last chapter of the Book 3 I found myself saddened that the journey was almost at an end. Bravo Kay! What can I say, I laughed, I cried, I loved it!
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing
Review: An inspired piece of work that does not cease to amaze me. From epic sweeps of grandeur to poignant moments with individuals, Guy G. Kay has created something that will rank as one of the best fantasy trilogies ever written.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing..
Review: I loved this book. I only really have one complaint. Kay's writing style is a little difficult to get into. He is writing in a high fantasy style for a high fantasy world. I really did appreaciate that, but it does make the book a little less accessable to the reader. The characters are interesting and engaging. There are some true personalities in these books and they beg to be written about more and more. It's a great start to this series.
Rating:
Summary: Not better than Tolkien but what a fantastic epic!
Review: Wow, filled with sorrow, action, magic, and battle, this was an amazing book!
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I have read
Review: I admit - I picked this book out because of it's cover. The drawings were amazing, and I felt that I just had to read the book to see what it was like. I was breathtaken at the richness and complexity of Kay's work. I could feel myself getting to understand every character - even the ones Kay only mentions briefly. True, there were elements of cliches with the world and ideas, but the way that Kay wrote the book was so amazing that I overcame my first distrust of the overdone good vs. evil idea, the battle between the gods, the people come to save another world, etc. But I have to say that I am astonished that anyone could dislike this book. This is the first book of Kay's I have read, and I am definitely planning on finishing the series.
Rating:
Summary: These are some of the best books every written.
Review: I read these books the first time they came out. I had to special order The Darkest Road because my bookstore never got it in. From the first I found these books to be beautifully written, perhaps only a woman can understand the tortured beauty of Jennifer or the sacrifices Kim made to become a seer. To say that any of Kay's characters lack depth is to show yourself not well read or a bigot of some kind. I am an English teacher and every year I recommend these books to my students. Those who read them, come to me to thank me every time. I think these three books are more emotionally satisfying and adult than Tolkien. I read them at least once a year, myself. All of Kay's books are lovely and I await them anxiously. But, The Summer Tree trilogy is Kay's best and most satisfying work!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: If you're willing to cut him some slack...
Review: I was looking for a story where the characters move back and forth between the mundane world and a fantasy world. I picked this one up, intrigued by the idea of five Canadian college students being transported to another world called Fionavar. (Although I was warned that this book was Kay's first, and not one of his best.) A lot of elements in the story are derivative of Tolkien. Kay has his own version of Tolkien's creatures (orcs, elves, dwarves), characters (Gandalf, Sauron, Saruman), and plot elements (the return of the king, the war against Mordor, the riders of Rohan). If I let that bother me too much, I would really be limiting my enjoyment of fantasy literature in general. Besides, there was a good bit of originality here, too. I found the characters and their situation to be somewhat unbelievable right from the beginning. They unquestioningly accept the existence of this other world, and, once there, fit right into their roles. They have an immediate grasp of the the mythology and politics of the place. Even though they are referred to as the "strangers", they might as well have been from Fionavar to begin with for all the difference it made that they were from Toronto. The female characters are especially weak - I had no feeling at all for their personalities, motivation, or relationship to the other characters. (I had trouble getting past their cutesy names, too. Spoils the mood.) I did like Dave, though. I understood what he was all about, and he was a very believable regular guy from the beginning of the book to the end. Those were the parts I liked best. Some of the writing, especially the dialogue, is a little bit awkward. I sometimes found it hard to follow the frequently changing point of view. Although it is mostly delineated into separate sections, sometimes the point of view seemingly changes in the middle of a paragraph, making it difficult to understand whose thought you are reading now. Based on recommendations, I do plan to read some of Kay's other books (maybe "Tigana" next), but I don't think I will finish the Fionavar series.
Rating:
Summary: I envy you
Review: If you have not yet read Guy Gavriel Kay, I envy you. I discovered the Fionavar Tapestry on one of my ceaseless quests for a fantasy author I had not read. I found this one. There is a passage in another book where a violinist is invited to play a violin. She sweeps the bow down across the strings and realizes she is holding a Stradivarius. She forgets even her own name for the next several hours. Our world goes to their world. Done often, yes, but so what. I have never seen (the best books you do not merely read) a world where shamans are blinded when they take their shamanate, where magic requires a person as "source" to the mage, where Ring a Round the Rosie is a prophecy almost older than time. And did you ever notice that however evil the Dark Lords supposedly are, they never rape anybody? They do here. Kay does not give graphic detail yet he conveys what a "rape" is, the connotative meaning being "violate", which the term "sexual assault" loses. Kay's characters are as vivid as his descriptions and as deep as his plots. Without giving anything away, I can only say that I have read many many sixpacks. This is 5 star brandy.
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