Publishing information: Paperback; 528 pages
Publisher: Eos; 01 July 2005
ISBN 10: 0060733497
ISBN 13: 9780060733490
Standalone
Copy: Out of Pocket
Reviewer: Tyson
Back of the Book: " The ruling Asharites of Al-Rassan have come from the desert sands, but over centuries, seduced by the sensuous pleasures of their new land, their stern piety has eroded. The Asharite Empire has splintered into decadent city-states lead by warring petty kings. King Almalik of Cartada is on the ascendancy, aided always by his friend and advisor, the notorious Ammar ibn Khairan – poet, diplomat; soldier – until a summer afternoon of savage brutality changes their relationship forever.
Meanwhile, in the north, the conquered Jaddites’ most celebrated – and feared – military leader, Rodrigo Belmonte, driven into exile, leads his mercenary company south.
In the dangerous lands of Al-Rassan, these two men from different worlds meet and serve – for a time – the same master. Sharing their interwoven fate – and increasingly torn by her feelings – is Jehane, the accomplished court physician, whose own skills play an increasing role as Al-Rassan is swept to the brink of holy war, and beyond.
Hauntingly evocative of Medieval Spain, The Lions of Al-Rassan is both a brilliant adventure and a deeply compelling story of love, divided loyalties, and what happens to men and women when hardening beliefs begin to remake – or destroy – a world."
I have a few Guy Gavriel Kay titles in the pile and I was told by my fellow Speculative Book Reviewers that The Lions of Al-Rassan is the best place to start. Since this book has been staring at me for nearly a year, I thought that it was time I finally man up and see what Mr. Kay was all about.
The three main characters in The Lions of Al-Rassan represent the three religious factions: Asharites, Jaddites, and Kindath. These three groups represent Islam, Christians, and Jews. The three characters are all very charismatic and are considered to be the perfect specimen of their given factions. Ammar ibn Khairan is a well-known warrior and poet who represents the Asharites/Muslims, Rodrigo Belmonte (El Cid) is the champion for the Christians/Jaddites, and Jehane is the beautiful and intelligent Kindath/Jewish doctor that the two men fall in love with. I did enjoy each of the characters and it was refreshing to see the Asharites/Muslims shown in a favorable light even if it was a more romanticized version. Ammar was a character that you could respond to. Belmonte was also a great character, except he also had a huge flaw, in that he was married to one, if not the most beautiful woman in the realm and he found himself in a love triangle with Ammar and Jehane. This was a lot to swallow as his introduction showed him as honorable and loving no one else aside from his wife. For the story to work you had to buy into his love for another woman. The other woman, Jehane, was also a great character. She was very strong and did a great job of moving the story forward. Even the supporting cast had great parts to play as the story unfolded. Kay does an excellent job with characters, although there is a small need to stretch the imagination and buy into Belmonte's love for Jehane but as I said it is a small stretch even if it tarnishes his honorable image.
The world building is a little less than average as Kay has taken medieval Spain and renamed all of the cities and locations to his world. The map in the beginning of the novel should give you a clue as to what time of topography you are going to encounter in the book. For me I simply pictured Don Quixote. The Lions of Al-Rassan has very little magic within its pages. There is one child who has visions of the future which is more of a plot device than anything else. The book is more of Kay's take on the world at that time in history without actually calling it Spain.
The Lions of Al-Rassan is a tad slow as there is a lot of ground to cover before any action occurs. Much of the book has the characters traveling to a new city or discussing strategy. While I know that Kay is not a huge action writer it may have helped me get through this novel a bit faster if the pace had picked up. That is not to say that the book was bad, quite the opposite, but there are a lot of slow moments. However, even though it was much slower than other fantasy books I have read it was a fairly good read with some amazing characters and an interesting take on the Spanish medieval period (It reminded me a lot of Daniel Abraham's books). While I have not read anything else by Kay at this point in time I am willing to give him another try as the book was interesting and a nice change of pace from what I normally read. It should also be noted that The Lions of Al-Rassan was chosen as the 2010 World Scholar's Cup novel, as it coincides with their theme of "A World Divided."
Plot 8.5
Characters 10
Style 8
Overall 8/10
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar