This is the third book I’ve read by Guy Gavriel Kay and although it was good I wouldn’t recommend it unless you are interested in the historical backdrop of the novel. The book is inspired by the world of the troubadours, which were like poets or bards who performed for people and courts. Kay’s imagined land of Arbonne is greatly influenced by France, and many French themes are in the novel. The land of Arbonne is a land of passion, food, wine and the wonderful sounds of performing troubadours. To the North lies the land of Gorhaut which had very Germanic influences. With a corrupt king ruling in the North allied with a radical priest as his council they decide to purge the heathen “women-ruled” land of Arbonne of its vile blasphemy.
In Arbonne we get to know several barrons, as well as the political group that governs the citizens of Arbonne. Amonst this group is a Barbarian who has forsaken his corrupt King in the North. Blaise de Garsenc eventually reveals that his father is the pious priest that is giving council to the King in Gorhaut. He stakes a claim to the throne in Gorhaut and rallies the people of Arbonne to his cause. Overall the book is written beautifully and like previous Kay novel’s he weaves the story lines together flawlessly. The book is a standalone and overall had a good pace, although I did feel like the ending was a bit rushed. The other issue I had with it is the fact that certain parts of the books were just…boring! There isn’t any other way to put it! Some parts of the story also felt very cheesy and even soap opera-ish! This being a romantic land reminiscent of France I suppose that might have been the point, but as a result I ended up rolling my eyes half the time.
I’m not saying this was a bad book. If you like French history, music or poetry related to Joglars and Bards then you will undeniably enjoy this book. This certainly won’t be the last book I read by Kay, I suppose I just had such high expectations following The Sarantine Mosaic books that moved me to tears several times. Also important to note is the fact that this book has very little to no fantastical elements. Other than the names, and places this feels like Historical Fiction more then fantasy. So unless any of these themes interest you I would stay away from A Song For Arbonne.
This is one of the few Kay books I've yet to read, and I can't say that it interests me all that much. I'll pick it up off store shelves every now and then, but it never really catches me.
ReplyDeleteFor my money, The Lions of al Rassan is his best work.
I still need to get to Lions, and I've also heard that Tigana is pretty damn good too...
DeleteSong was an OK read, but Tigana and The Lions of Al-Rassan were much better. I'm only about a quarter of the way through Under Heaven, but so far it's really impressing me too (a nice Oriental flavor to the fantasy this time).
ReplyDeleteYeah like I said I'm not giving up on him by ANY means, I still thought this book had its moments. I got a really good feeling about Tigana though;) I almost wish his stuff was a little bit darker...
DeleteI'm going to have to read The Lions of Al-Rassan, aren't I? :)
ReplyDeleteStrange to hear a negative perspective on A Song For Arbonne, though. Your review is well put, as ever, but I've hardly heard a bad word said about it otherwise. Different strokes for different folks, I suppose. Then again I've never been a fan of France and Frenchness in general myself; maybe this isn't one for me either.
Thanks for the comment Niall. It's not that I didn't like the story I just think I had such high hopes following The Mosaic books. Still very well written and enjoyable, just not AS GOOD as the Sarantine duology.
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