- Hardcover: 400 pages
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd; New edition edition (5 April 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0743252489
- ISBN-13: 978-0743252485
- Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 16.2 x 4.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 826,191 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Last Light of the Sun
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
Praise for THE LAST LIGHT OF T HE SUN:
‘History and fantasy rarely come together as gracefully or readably as they do in the novels of Guy Gavriel Kay… [THE LAST LIGHT OF THE SUN] is an ambitious entertainment that transcends the historical record, offering cogent observations on fathers and sons, on the power of grief, on faith, courage, loyalty and the inevitability of change’ Washington Post
Praise for Guy Gavriel Kay:
‘A fine, intelligent series. Probably the best of its kind’ British Fantasy Society
‘A remarkable achievement. The essence of high fantasy’ Locus
‘Kay has delivered such a magnificent conclusion – I can’t praise it enough. THE FIONAVAR TAPESTRY will be read and reread for many years to come’ Fantasy Review
‘Packed with action…’
The Times
Product Description
There is nothing soft or silken in the northlands, where for decades there has been bitter, bloody war between the Vikings, the Celts and the Anglo-Saxons. But times change, even in the north, and for a generation there has been peace...And yet, what has changed once can always change again...Alun ab Owyn, grieving for his brother's death at the hands of the raiders, leaves his lands to become embroiled in the politics of the great. Bern Thorkellson, punished for his father's sins, commits an act of vengeance that brings him face-to-face, across the seas, with a past he's been trying to leave behind. And the shrewd King Aeldred shores up his defences with alliances and diplomacy - and with swords and arrows. The death of a prince, the new life of an exile, and the dreams of a king will be the threads from which the tapestry is woven, and the world is changed forever...
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Anyone who's had the pleasure to read a novel by Guy Gavriel Kay will knowwhat to expect from "The Last Light of the Sun", namely a wonderfullymoving fantasy based around a certain time or culture in our own history.As this is Kay's "Northern" book, it is easy to identify the Erlings,Cyngael and Anglcyn from the novel to our own Vikings, Welsh Celts andAngles of England. Each and every character has their own believablemotives, history and depth, no matter how minor or incidental to the mainstory, and Kay has never been afraid to put many of them through theemotional wringer or to kill off main characters as an integral part ofthe story.
Kay has always been one of the few authors who can generategenuine lump-in-the-throat moments for me, who could forget the finalscene between Paul and Jaelle in "The Darkest Road", and this one iscertainly no exception, especially in the more magical scenes.
Though certainly a lesser work in scope and size than "The SarantineMosaic" or "Tigana" I still have no hesitation in giving this top marks.
Kay has always been one of the few authors who can generategenuine lump-in-the-throat moments for me, who could forget the finalscene between Paul and Jaelle in "The Darkest Road", and this one iscertainly no exception, especially in the more magical scenes.
Though certainly a lesser work in scope and size than "The SarantineMosaic" or "Tigana" I still have no hesitation in giving this top marks.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
One of the best fantasy books. It is better than Tigana imho. Tigana was sort of epic fantasy with wizards, etc. This one is a dark fantasy reminding me of Black Company by Glen Cook but in some ways it is even better. I am not very good at reviews, so I can only say that I really really liked the book. I would most definitely recommend this one. Love, death, heroes, loyalty, battles, ugliness of the war, unpredictable events and mystery. I am stunned. I never expected so much from a single volume fantasy work. 10 out of 10 without a cloud of doubt. The only slight drawback is a missing map.
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I have finished this book in 3 nights, and that says a lot for a full-time working mother of a small baby ... This is Kay at his best, the only one of his books I loved more than Tigana.
Every time I pick up one of his books, I am amazed how the writer has managed to create an imaginary world similar enough to our own to be realistic, but completely different and fascinating at the same time. The Last Light of the Sun has the proper mix of familiar places and everyday people on the one hand and magic creatures and violent battles on the other, to satisfy any serious fantasy reader. I also personally enjoyed a lot the references to places and events of previous books (e.g. Sailing to Sarantium) that create a sense of familiarity, while at the same time the story and characters are completely original. I wish more writers of "series" could be inspired by this example, and avoiding repeating themselves over and over.
Every time I pick up one of his books, I am amazed how the writer has managed to create an imaginary world similar enough to our own to be realistic, but completely different and fascinating at the same time. The Last Light of the Sun has the proper mix of familiar places and everyday people on the one hand and magic creatures and violent battles on the other, to satisfy any serious fantasy reader. I also personally enjoyed a lot the references to places and events of previous books (e.g. Sailing to Sarantium) that create a sense of familiarity, while at the same time the story and characters are completely original. I wish more writers of "series" could be inspired by this example, and avoiding repeating themselves over and over.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Another wonderful tale
Another wonderful story from Guy Gavriel Kay. This book reminded me of 'The lions of Al-Rassan' where he took a familiar place and history and then twisted it to make a fantastic... Read more
Published on 9 April 2010 by L. Braybrook
Stock writing from Kay
This is a solid but unspectacular offering from Kay. It is set in the same alternate earth with which we are familiar from his other novels, and it benefits from many of the same... Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2006 by Ben W
Excellent as always
A great book. Agree that geography was a little disorientating at times but not enough to put me off enjoying it. Read more
Published on 27 Jun 2006 by Chris Evans
Remind me again - which one is Alun?
Definitely not as good as Tigana, Arbonne, Sarantium or Al Rassan. But passable though. And far superior to the trilogy that he wrote all those years ago. Read more
Published on 15 May 2006 by dangermash
Enjoyable, if Long, Historical Fantasy
About ten years ago I read Kay's "The Lions of Al-Rassan" and enjoyed it a great deal, so when I was looking for something fairly long to settle in with, this caught my eye at the... Read more
Published on 18 Mar 2005 by A. Ross
Lyrical, literate fantasy - what else from Kay?
Like each of Kay's books since Tigana, Last Light views history through a prism of fantasy, drawing rich inspiration from early medieval northern Europe - specifically the... Read more
Published on 29 Jan 2005 by N. Clarke
Kay sure knows what he's doing...
...and as always, the story is wonderful, the style mesmerizing and the characters lovable. Kay is a master of style, and in this book he pushes the boundaries of keeping the... Read more
Published on 1 July 2004 by "svesk"
Kay Does it Again!
For those of you who know of Kay's writing, it will come as no surprise that there is no disappointment with The Last Light of the Sun after such a long wait. Read more
Published on 19 May 2004 by J Rutterford
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