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Rating: 
Summary: Quite simply a masterpiece; possibly the best I've ever read
Review: A superbly researched and written book. Anderson transports the reader to a historical period with wholly plausible possiblities. A should-read for any who appreciate a well written book with the ability to grab and hold one's interest with an iron grip. A must-read for any who enjoy historical-fiction/fantasy
Rating:
Summary: High praise!
Review: I usually don't care for fantasy, but this is certainly an exception. The story, like most of Anderson's, starts slow, but by the time you get to Book 3: Dahut, you will see the horrible events coming but will be unable to put the book down. Not only fantasy, but possibly also a classic of horror literature.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent - not just a fantasy, a psychological portrait
Review: This is a stunning series. It has a wonderfully complex plot that weaves actual late-Roman Empire events with Breton myth, but one of its greatest attributes is the way the characters are brought to life. By the end of the books, what you remember most isn't the plot but the emotional struggle of the main character, Gratillonius, as he loses everything that was ever dear to him, and has to go on. The final scene is only a few pages long but is gut-wrenching because you feel every bit of pain it brings him. I normally don't enjoy fantasy because many books seem like a pale attempt to imitate Tolkein. This series is completely different but yet has the same ability to pull you into the story until you feel like these events actually happened. A word of warning: like the Lord of the Rings, it is written in slightly stilted, 'epic' English, which may bother some readers.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent - not just a fantasy, a psychological portrait
Review: _The King of Ys_ enchanted me. It started as one of the very best fantasy series I've ever read. The setting is historical and meticulously detailed, containing a wealth of both magical and mundane details. Heck; the Andersons actually include an extensive collection of endnotes to each chapter detailing the factual elements of their story. In every way, this is a real world. These people are not modern people stuck into a fantasy setting. They have the values of 4th-and-5th century people, exactly as they should. The gods aren't wimpy, ever-loving, beneficent friends; they're savage and demand obedience brutally. Bad things can happen to good people. That's how I felt for the first three books, anyway. The fourth is kind of a letdown. The elements above are kept, but... I don't know. I can't go into exactly *why* it's a letdown, because I don't want to spoil the plot, but the story loses cohesion and really falls apart, if you ask me. However, I still have to give it a "9" because, even though the last quarter was a disappointment, the first three quarters kept me riveted as few books have. Highly reccommended. And heck, you might even find more of worth in the end than I did.
Rating:
Summary: Huge, Magnificent, and Just a Shade Too Long
Review: _The King of Ys_ enchanted me. It started as one of the very best fantasy series I've ever read. The setting is historical and meticulously detailed, containing a wealth of both magical and mundane details. Heck; the Andersons actually include an extensive collection of endnotes to each chapter detailing the factual elements of their story. In every way, this is a real world. These people are not modern people stuck into a fantasy setting. They have the values of 4th-and-5th century people, exactly as they should. The gods aren't wimpy, ever-loving, beneficent friends; they're savage and demand obedience brutally. Bad things can happen to good people. That's how I felt for the first three books, anyway. The fourth is kind of a letdown. The elements above are kept, but... I don't know. I can't go into exactly *why* it's a letdown, because I don't want to spoil the plot, but the story loses cohesion and really falls apart, if you ask me. However, I still have to give it a "9" because, even though the last quarter was a disappointment, the first three quarters kept me riveted as few books have. Highly reccommended. And heck, you might even find more of worth in the end than I did.
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