Tier Ranking Guy Gavriel Kay's Fantasy Novels
Вставка
- Опубліковано 6 лип 2024
- Guy Gavriel Kay is a fantasy author who has never written a bad novel. Here I rank all 11 (or 14) of his books from those that are very good to the ones that are his masterpieces.
Although he started off writing high fantasy early in his career, most of his works are what he describes as "historical fiction with a quarter turn to the fantastic."
In my opinion, he's the greatest living fantasy author working today, which I discussed in my previous video linked here: • [OLD VERSION; Please w...
0:30 Overview
1:11 The Fionavar Tapestry
4:52 Ysabel
6:54 Tigana
9:02 A Song for Arbonne
11:15 The Lions of Al-Rassan
12:32 The Sarantine Mosaic
14:55 The Last Light of the Sun
16:08 Children of Earth and Sky
17:45 A Brightness Long Ago
18:45 Under Heaven
20:30 River of Stars
Other videos featuring different parts of my book collection are linked below.
Review of Stephen R. Donaldson's Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever series:
First Chronicles: • Are the Chronicles of ...
Second Chronicles: • Are the Second Chronic...
Last Chronicles: • The Final Chronicles o...
Brandon Sanderson's Most Overlooked Series: • Brandon Sanderson's Mo...
Channel Overview: • Welcome to the library...
Children’s Books Overview: • 150 Years of Classic C...
Science Fiction Overview: • Rare and Classic Scien...
Fantasy Overview: • Classic Fantasy Fictio...
Mystery Overview: • Classic Whodunits and ...
Adventure Overview: • Classic Thrillers and ...
Horror and Weird Fiction Overview: • Classic Horror and Wei...
Literature Overview: • Classic and Modern Lit...
Antiquarian Nonfiction Overview: • Antiquarian Books Abou...
Illustrated Books Overview: • The Golden Age of Book...
#booktube #booktubesff
We are in need of more people like you around the internet. Keep up the good work and keep inspiring others to enjoy those amazing worlds hidden in some pages
Thank you! Will do!
Because of you, I'm about to read my very first GGK novel, the Lions of Al-Rassan. Thank you for these videos.
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
It’s my favorite!! I cried! You’re gonna love it!!
I think I will too
Just come across this wonderful channel, and the Kay videos. You've inspired me to read him. I'm a Welsh speaker, so know the Mabinogi (correctly) in the original language. Thank you.
Sometimes the UA-cam algorithm for recommendations does a damn good job: I stumbled across this channel (to date completely unnoticed by me) only through curiosity and a YT recommendation. And here I am, with subscription and alert activated! Came for GGK, stayed for the soothing voice and the content (-;
Jokes aside: This video was most helpful. GGK has been my favorite author (maybe along with William Horwood) for a very long time. Unfortunately, most of his books are out of print in Germany (and none of them except "Under Heaven" are available as German ebooks).
Thanks! That's really unfortunate about the German editions. One of my main motivations for starting this channel was to try to build enough interest in overlooked authors and books to bring them back into print (or keep them in print, in the case of GGK).
William Horwood's Duncton Wood series is a masterpiece! In fact, I intend to make a video about it (and a few other animal-centric classics) later this year.
There's no way you aren't a museum voice narrator. That voice! Also, thanks for the content. I've read Tigana and Lions and you've convinced me to read Arbonne as my next.
A Song For Arbonne is simply one of the best books I have ever read.
It ranks high on my list as well. Thanks for watching!
I found your channel today and saw most videos. Your work is really great. Thank you so much. The Videos about Thomas Covenant, Alcatraz and GGK are amazing (so much Information in short time and high quality format). Please continue your wonderful reviews.
Thanks for the kind words. I appreciate the feedback. I have a lot more videos planned like the ones I’ve uploaded recently. Up next is Michael Moorcock’s Eternal Champion multiverse.
Wow, I stumbled across this channel…somehow, and totally agree with your assessment of Kay as the greatest living fantasy author. My brother and I have often had the conversation about his lack of awards. It’s stunning to me really.
Love that you ranked his books for new readers. My ranking would be slightly different, but as you said, the differences, especially in the top two tiers is minimal. The one big difference I would had is with River of Stars. I think this is his masterpiece. I love the narrative changes he made over his other works. I’ve read this one more than any other, except maybe Lions (which is how I discovered Kay).
You have a new subscriber, and I’ll be sharing these videos around my circle!
Thank you! I agree that Kay's books are so consistently good that it's easy for various aspects of them to resonate strongly with different readers, leading to different rankings of his works.
I hadn’t read a book in years and then in the summer of 2012 I read Under Heaven… mainly because I thought they cover looked cool (it’s a black cover with a sword). It brought the joy of reading again and I went from that to Al-Rassan and then most of his other books. I def agree Al-Rassan is his best work and still my fav book. Under Heaven though is a close second for me and holds a special place in my heart for introducing Kay and helping me read again.
Update: just finished Tigana Incomparable prose.
Dionora’s story was some of the most gorgeous prose I’ve read. Magnificent 🐾
Wonderful! I'm so happy to hear that. What will you tackle next?
Definitely the Sarantine Mosaic!🐾🎃🐾
This was such a wonderfully enjoyable video to watch.
I have been going through Kay's works and just finished Lord of Emperors a couple days ago and it blew me away, such a profoundly beautiful story.
For the ones I have read I am almost in complete agreement, although I think I slightly preferred Tigana to A Song For Arbonne, despite being less even, I thought the highs were slightly more impactful.
I can also totally relate to feeling like you are tearing apart Fionavar while still thinking it is very good.
Thanks! The Lions of Al-Rassans and Tigana were the two books I had the most difficulty ranking because it's been many years since I last read them. I had to rely on my imperfect memory and the residual sense of satisfaction I still have from those long-ago reads. I can remember being completely satisfied by Lions, while Tigana's flaws left me with a slight feeling of dissonance despite its magnificence.
Fionavar is such a frustrating read for me, because it's so close to being brilliant that its flaws really stand out. I don't pay as much attention to the same flaws in run-of-the-mill fantasy books, because those works typically aren't on the cusp of achieving brilliance. I tend to hold them to a lower standard. I still highly recommend the Fionavar Tapestry (as I do all of Kay's books).
Thank goodness for your recommendation...how I missed Guy Kay in a lifetime of fantasy reading I'll never know but I was beginning to worry that I had read all the good fantasy books!
You're in luck! There are at least 15 good fantasy books waiting for you to read them. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Just finished A Song for Arbonne , 😭there’s a an unexpected bittersweetness in the last few pages,
Wish he would’ve written a follow up story.
Also felt a deep connection to majority of characters, and agreed, he’s an under appreciated writer.thank you again!
You’re welcome! That bittersweet quality is present in many of his novels, which adds to their emotional impact, in my opinion. Thanks for sharing!
A great analysis and one that has deepened my interest for Kay's works. As a history major, I've always wondered why I couldn't get into fantasy more than I have so far. Tolkien and Martin did the trick for me, probably because the draw heavily upon myth (Tolkien) and history (Martin). Kay is not widely mentioned in the fantasy communities nowadays, but I was curious enough to buy the Fionavar Tapestry for $8. He sounds like an author who might trike that balance between fantastical elements and a historical setting which I still vibe with more than the modern "staffs blazing" fantasy. Guess I should get Fionavar out of the way and move on to Kays heavier hitters.
Thanks! If you enjoy history, I think it's highly likely Kay's books will resonate with you. He's an author I can reread without ever growing tired of the books. While reading Fionavar, keep in mind that most of the books he wrote after it are significantly better and have deeper historical roots.
@@thelibraryladder will do, thanks!
This is therapeutic for me, lol. Kay is diamond, and this video (and channel) is such a great find. LoA and the Sarantine Mosaic are my twin peaks…I think 😅. And Under Heaven, upon my most recent re-read, might have topped them both. Smh bravo, Bridger (sp) 👌🏿
Thanks! I found it very hard to differentiate those books in my GGK top tier in terms of quality and enjoyment. I enjoyed them all immensely.
Kay is one of my favourite writers! My favourite novel of his is Lions of Al-Rassan
I've been doing a deep dive into Spanish history lately - a fascinating country with a fascinating history - and I remembered your Kay videos and decided to pick up the Lions of Al-Rassan as my last book to close out a really good year of reading - and I am loving it immensely. Very very good - will almost assuredly make my top 5 of the year. I really like the way he writes - draws me right in. Thank you so much for the recommend - I will be sure to add more Kay to my reading lists in the New Year.
Best holiday wishes and a Happy 2023 to you and all visitors to this Channel
Wonderful! That's exactly what I hoped to accomplish with the video -- to convince readers to give Kay's books a try. (And like a Pringle's potato chip, one Kay book is never enough.) Part of the fun of Kay's books for me is trying to figure out which elements of his stories are inspired by real historical people, places and events, and which ones are purely fictional (recognizing that the historical ones are only very loose analogues of the originals).
Thanks for sharing, and I hope Santa brings you plenty of good books for the upcoming year!
@@thelibraryladder Oh my!
I laughed... And I cried. And it held me until the very last page.
I can't really ask for anything more from a book.
Your voice and background music are five star, my guy.
Thanks!
Your voice cleanses my soul
A Song for Arbonne is one of my all time favorite books. Sadly, the narrator for the audiobook is VERY English, and absolutely murders the French-inspired names and French words. *facepalm* “Jongleurs” - a word which appears dozens of times in the story - comes out as “jog-lers”. It’s absolutely maddening … especially since the narrator also sings, and does a great job with that singing. It made me cry, and also made me rather wary of trying other GGK works in audio format.
Although now that you’ve mentioned that there’s a new (to me) GGK book out, I will most certainly be heading to Audible to see if it’s there yet! (I have an eye condition that causes me to read mostly audiobooks these days.)
Thanks for your enjoyable tier ranking!
Thanks! Simon Vance has recorded many of GGK's audiobooks (including A Song for Arbonne). I think he does a terrific job with the emotional nuance of the books, although you're right that his English accent is prominent throughout them. Perhaps the narration will be less jarring to you if Kay's book takes its inspiration from a country other than France. Vance's narration of Under Heaven and River of Stars are outstanding, in my opinion. He also narrates the latest book, All the Seas of the World, which is set in analogues of Mediterranean Europe and North Africa.
Thank you for sharing !!! I have been loving Kay’s books for decades !!!! 😉👍👍👍👍👍
Me too!! Thanks for watching!
I am also one who stumbled upon this channel. I was thrilled to discover your acknowledgement of Guy Kay and his brilliant work. I truly have no understanding why he does not receive more recognition. I read the fionavar tapestry I love high fantasy, then plunged into his work with joy. Tigan is still my favorite followed by A song for Arbon. Thank you so much for all that you do.
I love the obvious passion you have for reading and thinking about the material. And the effort you put into your scripting is top tier. Ive only come across this channel recently, but you're already one of my favorites. The Dan Simmons videos grew my appreciation for the author of one of my favorite series, and Kay's work is on my tbr already, so this is nice. Thanks for the vids!
Thank you for your very kind comment! I have many more videos planned like the ones you mentioned. I hope you enjoy Kay's works as much as I do.
Your videos are as good as it gets
I started reading Kay because of your first video, I’ve gotten through a handful and I am so thankful I stumbled across your channel
Wonderful! I'm so glad I recruited you to the GGK fan club and that you're enjoying my videos! Thanks!
your videos are simply outstanding, Bridger. I discovered your channel earlier today and I must say, everything you've put out is a joy to watch. Please keep up the great work and just know that whatever you'll be uploading, I will be watching!
Thank you! I appreciate your kind words and feedback. Stay tuned, because I have many more videos to come.
Thanks for these recos. I've read Tigana and Fionavar, and will use this list when I next read one of Kay's books!
I'm glad you found the video helpful! Thanks!
Thanks. I'm bulldozing through his novels and I genuinely believe that he's one of the best writers of our time. And like many great poets and painters of old, underrated, only really 'discovered' later. This means a lot to us GGK fans who know how great he is. Finally getting the praise and recognition he deserves :)
How's your GGK read going? If you've gotten to them, how do you think his more recent books compare to his masterpieces of the 1990s?
@@thelibraryladder I just bought A Brightness Long Ago a few days ago, haven't started yet because of uni. The Sarantine Mosaic is my favourite GGK book - I see it as one unfolding story - and I can't see anything topping that. I'm really excited for this though. Can't wait to dig in. And his new book is releasing in May 🥳 I reckon it will be something special.
@@TheEternalElir I think you'll really like A Brightness Long Ago. To me, it felt a lot like A Song for Arbonne and The Lions of Al-Rassan in tone and structure (and that's very high praise, because I think those two books, along with Sarantine Mosaic and Under Heaven, are masterpieces).
I have high hopes for his next book coming out soon. It appears to be a loosely connected continuation of the story told in A Brightness Long Ago and The Children of Earth and Sky, so I'd recommend reading those two books first, and in that order (which is chronological rather than publication order). Some of the peripheral characters in The Children of Earth and Sky take on added significance if you read A Brightness Long Ago first.
Your videos are quite impressive and your delivery is mesmerizing. Keep up the great work!
Thank you for your very kind comment! I have many more videos planned.
Thank you for this. A few of these books jumped up to the top of my TBR list.
You're so welcome! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Your video about best living fantasy author came up yesterday, so I watched it, curious if it was anyone I've read. Imagine my surprise when the answer is Guy Gavriel Kay, one of my absolute favorite authors in any genre. Being a senior, I can't normally buy new books, but every month or so I make it to the city and go to Valu Village. Since virtually all of the second hand bookstores have vanished, this is about the only place I can buy books.( I know I could go to the library, but if I find a book I love, I keep it and reread every year or 2). The first GGK book I found there was 'Under Heaven' and the second was 'Song for Arbonne'. I loved both of them so much, I immediately reread them as soon as I finished them. I haven't managed to find many of the others, but I will!! An outstanding and under-rated author!!!
Thanks for your wonderful comment! I can empathize with the difficulty sometimes of finding Kay's books. Many libraries don't have him in their collections, and if they do, then it might be only one or two of his books (which is the case with my own local library system).
Have you tried searching online on eBay or in Amazon's used book listings for inexpensive used copies? If you're patient and willing to wait a few weeks (or months), you might be able to find a collection of his books for sale as a bulk lot on eBay at a reasonable price. Best of luck finding them!
You have such a nice voice! Glad I clicked on the video.
I'm a big fan of Kay after discovering him through Daniel Greene's recommendation of Tigana (I think back in 2020). I've read Under Heaven, Tigana, Children of Earth and Sky, and the Fionavar Tapestry.
I think it's worth mentioning something about the Fionavar Tapestry, which is that there's a big trigger warning needed (at the very end of the Summer Tree). Truly one of the most traumatic things I've ever read. It almost made me abandon the series, or even him as an author. I'm glad I kept at it, because he wrapped the story up during the subsequent two books and brought things to a satisfying conclusion.
Glad to see Kay getting more attention, and looking forward to watching more of your videos.
Thanks, Kevin! A few of Kay's books (particularly early ones, such as Fionavar and Tigana) contain some problematic scenes, which is one reason I don't recommend them to people just starting to read his works. Instead, I suggest A Song for Arbonne or A Brightness Long Ago as better entry points.
@Maester Gryphon Rape/sexual assault of a couple of female characters. The scenes connect to the larger plots of the books and aren't gratuitous, but they can be disturbing for some readers.
I stumpled upon your channel by chance. Read The Fionavar Tapestry (in Danish) when I was sixteen, but remember very little of it. Your very thoughtfully constructed reviews make me want to read some of Kay's other books now, so thank you for the inspiration!
Thank you for your very kind comment! Inspiring people to read Kay's books is exactly what I hoped to accomplish with my videos about him.
A couple of months ago, this video inspired me to finally take the plunge and read through Kay's works. I had been aware of him for a while, but had yet to read him. Since then I have read Fionavar, Tigana, and A Song for Arbonne, and I'm super excited to continue on! Thanks for highlighting authors that many of us were less familiar with!
Thanks! I'm so glad you're enjoying Kay's books (and you're just getting started--there are more great reads in store for you)!
@@thelibraryladder Update - I just finished All the Seas of the World, and with it all 15 GGK novels. What a journey! Lions and Sarantine were my favorites, but I loved them all! Thanks for getting me started!
Now that is an amazing review! I am definitely keen to read Kay's books.. And sure would like to see your review of different books from different writers.. Glad I came across this channel.. :)
Thank you! I have many more book reviews planned, including career retrospectives like this one for authors who are my favorites or who had a significant impact on different fiction genres.
I enjoyed your video very much. I’m definitely going to investigate this author further. I’m sure others have told you already ~ your voice and delivery make you an excellent narrator/announcer
Thank you! I'm glad I convinced you to give him a try.
I just wanted to thank-you especially for this video, otherwise I would not have been introduced to this author and just completed Song of Arbonne. Just an amazing story with great characters and dialog. I have to just say I was surprised that I could be so delightfully surprised by such a gripping writing style. I usually prefer the shorter sentence styles, but here, the variance, the clever craftsmanship of so many sentences in this book makes it such a great work to read and certainly re-read. I am truly grateful for the introduction here. (It seems so hard to find work like this!)
Wonderful! I'm so glad you're enjoying Kay. The artistry in his writing is truly remarkable. Thanks for sharing!
Wow! This was an extremely helpful video. I’ve always been a little lost with where to start. Since I read a lot of fantasy I will probably start with Tigana, and then check out Lions of Al Rassan. Both sound right up my alley.
Glad it was helpful!
I really enjoy how you did this, and you made a very good case for the placement of each and every novel.
I liked "The Lions of Al-Rassan", and would put it with "Tigana" in my outstanding category. I enjoyed them both immensely. I actually rate "Sailing to Sarantium" and "Lord of Emperors" lower than you did. Although beautifully written, the drama and conflict was a bit too dethatched for me from Caius narrative. I also agree that "A Brightness Long Ago" was only marred by its length. I listened to the audiobook of this one and Simon Vance did such an amazing job that I felt a sense of loss when that novel ended. His cadence and tone captured the longing and bittersweet aspects of that book flawlessly.
However, I believe that "Under Heaven" might be one of the best books I have ever read. As such, I was caught unaware by many of the aspects that have become his hallmark in recent years (namely the fantastical ones) and the ending had me pacing around my house for days. I was so upset by the conclusion that I ended up explaining the entire book to my wife late one night so that I could voice my feelings about it. Never had I read a book where I felt that the ending was just and fit, and at the same time sad. Being torn between those aspects hits me differently as an adult, and GGK manages to lay that bare.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I had a really difficult time ranking Kay's top books. They have so many excellent qualities that appeal to me in different ways. My top four are nearly interchangeable, and A Brightness Long Ago would be up there with them if the story had been a little more fleshed out. It didn't help that I was relying on more than 10-year-old memories of some of them (such as Lions and Under Heaven),
so my rankings could change slightly upon rereading them.
So glad I came across this channel! GGK is probably my favorite working author, and Under Heaven is my favorite standalone fantasy novel ever
Under Heaven is a great choice. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Kay is my favorite author. I enjoyed this video. Tigana is my favorite but there are no wrong answers.
I agree. There are no wrong answers when choosing among Kay's books.
Brilliant! Thank you! I have A Brightness Long Ago and now have a good introduction to it.
Great choice! A Brightness Long Ago is one of the two books I recommend as good starting points for reading Kay's novels (the other is A Song for Arbonne).
This video was beyond helpful, I was looking for something new to read and heard some blurb about All the seas of the World. Thank you so much for posting this and I agree with everyone that you have a fantastic narration voice. Now I'm going to comb through your backlog and see what you thought of the King Killer Chronicles ^_^
Thanks! To make your search a little easier, I think I've only made two brief references to Rothfuss in my videos -- one in my first GGK video, and the other in my initial fantasy fiction overview video I uploaded last year. That's partly because I prefer to discuss completed series, and partly because my primary emphasis here on this channel is on authors and books that are often overlooked today or that don't get a lot of attention on UA-cam (and Kingkiller has already been discussed extensively by many other channels).
Short answer, though: Book 1 I enjoyed immensely; Book 2 was a very mixed bag for me, with some great elements and some other elements that were a self-indulgent mess; Book 2.5 I refuse to read until he finishes Book 3.
Thank you for the fantastic overwiew of the books.
I have wached this video after i read Tigana. It was my first Kay's book and my first fantasy book. I was thrilled and i wanted to read more of his books. This video gave me a great perspective in what to expect.
I have wached this video several times.
And i love the way you talk and how your voice sounds! 😃
Thank you! I'm so glad you found my overview of Kay's books helpful. I envy your opportunity to read his novels for the first time. It's quite an experience to look forward to. Cheers!
@@thelibraryladder i can understand that! And i really am lookong forward to it! 😃
Thank you for a great video, it was a very pleasant surprise. Having re-read The Last Light Of The Sun not to long ago I got a better appreciation of it than I had previously, although I agree that it's not Kay's finest work. I'll raise a glass of blue wine to your health while I wait for the next video to come out.
Thank for the kind words and the toast!
I just stumbled across your channel and really enjoy your overviews of fiction. I now want to seek out Guy Gavriel Kay's work.
Welcome aboard and thanks for watching! I hope you enjoy reading Kay's books.
Since your introduction to GGK, I began A song for Arbonne. I trudged my way through the first 50 pages or so.
Now past page 70 I’ve gotten to that crossroad where it must be continued because I do want to know more.
Thank you again for your recommendations.( indeed , he’s a soft spoken lyrical author, and I can’t wait for the plot to thicken!🤩🐾😇
It took me three tries with A Song for Arbonne before it finally clicked with me, and I'm very glad I followed through on it. Something about the first few pages just didn't grab me.
The GGK novels with perhaps the best opening scenes are A Brightness Long Ago and Under Heaven. His latest book, All the Seas of the World, opens strongly as well.
why i needed to watch 3 videos before i subscribed is something i don't understand. your videos are very good, thanks!
Thanks! I'm so glad you enjoy them!
A great video!! Really helpful!!
I'm very glad you found it helpful! Thanks for watching!
Thanks for this narrative. I do plan to check out his books. I’ll start with A Song For Arbonne and work my way up from there.
That's an excellent starting point. Thanks.
Wow! I really like this video. You have a beautiful voice. Thanks for your work.
Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed the video.
A year ago, I commented under that other video, and now I've finally gotten into reading his works. Of course, I did exactly what you advise here not to do and started with the Fionavar Tapestry just because I thought it a good idea and read his books in release order. And while I share those minor quibbles you're talking about here (and I also have a major quibble regarding Diarmuid's behavior) I overall really enjoy reading those books, so if Kay is improving from there, I already know that I'm in for a treat. So thank you for pointing me towards that author, because while I still feel I had known about him for a very long time, I certainly have to admit that I had completely forgotten about him in the meantime.
Wonderful! I'm so glad you've taken the plunge. I think you have a lot of very enjoyable reading of GGK's novels ahead of you. I still think A Song for Arbonne and A Brightness Long Ago are the two best entry points to his works if you're looking for a suggestion what to read next. :)
@@thelibraryladder Duly noted. :) My main problem with Kay's books at this point is that I can't decide which of the different historical settings I want to dive in first. So I might just continue reading them in the order he wrote them just to have not to. Anyways, my TBR pile has grown substantially thanks to your recommendations (and it already had reached an intimidating size before that).
The synchronicity is astounding, I just found out about GGK but couldn’t find a lot of content about him on here. I just watched your Thomas Covenant videos the other week and subscribed. Really enjoying your content!
Thanks! I'm trying to highlight wonderful books and authors that don't get as much attention these days as they once did.
@@thelibraryladder Can you do Niven? Would love a deep dive into Known Space!
@@buddythewonderdog4360 Great suggestion! I've read a lot of Niven's works (the Ringworld series, many of his collaborations with Jerry Pournelle, and the first two Dream Park books), but the Known Space is broad and deep, and I doubt if I've read enough of it to produce a meaningful video on it at this point.
I plan to start doing more videos focused on SF classics. I'll add Niven to my list of future topics (and to my TBR list).
Excellent video. I've never read Kay, but I love historical fiction. I have many of his novels in my audiobook library. I look forward to them.
Thanks! I envy you getting to experience them for the first time (and with the added bonus of Simon Vance’s narration).
Thank you for both of your GGK videos. I'm starting to hear more about him as an author and thought I'd explore. I don't think I'll get to him soon, but now I know a few great starting points!
Thanks, Josh! I'm glad you found the videos helpful, and I hope you enjoy Kay. It's tough making room on an already-crowded TBR list. I'm primarily a mood reader, which I find useful in dealing with my ever-growing list of books to read (I often ignore the list and pick something on impulse instead).
I swear my TBR never moves! And I have read 66 books so far this year! And it's still around 400 books!
I had to watch this book again, as I just finished my third Kay book this year (Lions of al-Rassan, Under Heaven and A Song for Arbonne). He has quickly become a new favorite author for me!
I love love love this video and your rankings of Kays books are spot on. I personally would place Tigana as his greatest work of all time, however, as you pointed out in the video the difference between them is crazy small. I believe my love for Tigana has a hefty dose of Nostaligia built in. I am looking forward to your review of All the Seas of the World. Thank you and Best Wishes
Thanks! I'm so glad you enjoyed the video. I hope to have a review of Kay's new book uploaded sometime in June (first I have to read the book, though, which I plan to do next week.)
Wow..incredible post. I enjoyed this a lot. You really knows this author's work. I read 75% of his books, and I agree with you on most of them. I started with the Tapistry and I would have put it in outstanding, but like you said, his worst book is better than other authors best one. And your soft radio voice is a delight to listen.
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it. At times while I was thinking through my rankings of Kay’s books, I wondered if I was grading them on a curve that forced some books a little lower on the scale. I tried not to do that, but it was difficult to differentiate between the books when I truly enjoyed every one of them.
Thanks for the run down. This helped me pick my next choice, Under Heaven.
Great choice! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
Agree with most of this, apart from Song for Arbonne which just didn't work for me and Tigana. To me Tigana remains the best of his books and is the greatest single volume fantasy novel I have read.
Read all his books in chronological order, purely as I picked up the Summer Tree when it was first published and have followed his work since then.
Great video.
Thank you! It's nice to find more devoted fans of GGK.
@@thelibraryladder I adore Tigana and am very surprised I haven't seen it on the many best fantasy books videos. Tigana is the only book of his I have found so will definitely be on the hunt now that I know there are others.
Just finished Lions and will be moving on to Arbonne thanks to your review!
Thanks! I envy you getting to read Kay's books for the first time. I wish I could go back and experience them fresh again (although they're still excellent re-reads).
Definitely looking forward to starting my first GGK novel!
I'm glad to hear that! A Song for Arbonne and A Brightness Long Ago are the novels I recommend as entry points to his works.
I discovered your channel because you are part of 'The Science Fiction Alliance', and what a delight that I have. This is a wonderful video, I am an admirer of Kay's work, having stumbled across 'Tigana' because someone recommended it as a great standalone fantasy epic. As it is the first of his novels that I read it holds a special place in my heart (this is my polite way of suggesting you ranked it too low :)). I have gone back and am working my way through the rest of his novels chronologically by release date - not all in one go, I mixing them up with other novels to try and ration them, because I will be heartbroken when there are no more Kay novels left for me to read. I have finished 'Ysabel' and am delighted to find out that I still have some of the best of Kay yet to come. Thank you for your efforts in making this extremely enjoyable video, which was an absolute pleasure to watch. I look forward to viewing more of your work (especially as I have also watched and enjoyed your Neal Stephenson ranking video).
Thank you! I appreciate your kind remarks about my channel. I feel much the same way about Kay's works, and for several years (from 2008-2014) I actually delayed reading some of his novels just so I'd always have some of his books to look forward to reading for the first time. I think very highly of Tigana, but you might find that you enjoy some of his other works even more. :)
I just read my first Kay book, A Song for Arbonne, and it was a profound experience for me!! Couldn’t have agreed more with what you said about it here, and I’m excited to make my way through the rest of his oeuvre!!
Awesome, Ben! You have some really great reading ahead of you. I envy your opportunity to read his novels for the first time.
Excellent video mate, I can see that you are very well versed in Kay's writing. I think he will have to one of the very next author I check out. Thank you for the suggestion.
You're very welcome. I hope you enjoy Kay. It's a low risk proposition with the potential for a high reward, because most of his books are standalones and don't require a multi-volume commitment to fully enjoy them.
@@thelibraryladder I like the sound of that. Nothing more frustrating than a series that has great potential yet never truly lives up to your hopes.
You have a top tier voice, I could hear you all day long.
Thanks! Feel free to put my videos on an endless loop/repeat cycle. :D
Awesome thank you! I’m starting with Sailing to sarantium
That's a terrific starting point for reading Kay. Thanks for watching!
I've just recently discovered your channel. I love your videos. You've totally sold me on GGK's novels. I can't believe that I haven't heard of this guy. Right now, I'm reading Tad Williams' MST trilogy (another fantasy series that I've ignored for too long), but Tigana is sitting on my bookshelf and I can't wait to read it.
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy Kay's books as much as I do. You might consider starting with one of his other books, rather than Tigana, though. Tigana is excellent, in my opinion, but aspects of it can be problematic for some readers.
I generally recommend A Song for Arbonne or A Brightness Long Ago as great entry points for his novels, and I have an earlier, spoiler-free video that briefly reviews and ranks his books, if you'd like more suggestions.
Also, you might be interested to know that I'm working on a video that will provide an overview of all of Tad Williams' works. He's one of my favorites, and I hope to have the video uploaded next month.
@@thelibraryladder Nice! Looking forward to it.
The whole reason that I got interested in Tad Williams' Memory of Sorrow and Thorn was because I heard that it's basically the precursor to George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series. I'm really worried that Martin's series will remain unfinished, so I was looking for something similar. Now, however, I'm just glad that I finally got around to enjoying this wonderful trilogy. At some point, I'd like to read the sequel series that Williams has been working on as well as his Otherland series, which I've heard described as his magnum opus.
I envy you, that you're about to experience GGK's work for the first time.
It's very interesting to see the synopsis of Guy's works. I will read them all regardless, but I'm glad someone is paying attention to this awesome author.
Thanks! I'm very glad you enjoyed it. As I mentioned in the video, in my opinion, Kay has never written a bad book, so even his lesser titles are still very good.
Thanks for this video. Interested in GGK, but didn’t know where to dive in. This helped.
This video has encouraged me to revisit Kay. I bounced off of Fionavar and Tigana a decade ago, mostly as a result of the flaws you highlight. I’ll be reading Lions and Arbonne soon.
Thanks for sharing! I hope you enjoy the books as much as I do.
Thank you for this. I've read "A Brightness Long Ago" and "The Sarantine Mosaic" and enjoyed them a lot and was wondering where to go next
I'm so glad you enjoyed the books (and my video). I usually recommend A Song for Arbonne and A Brightness Long Ago as good entry points for reading GGK. Since you've already read Brightness, Arbonne might be a good next stop.
@@thelibraryladder Thank you very much. Keep it up!
so glad I saw your video, I just bought my first GGK book, Tigana, really looking forward to it!! I hadn't even heard of him before and I read a lot of fantasy, so it's great to learn of a hidden master
Wonderful! I think highly of Tigana, but I think A Brightness Long Ago and A Song for Arbonne might be better starting points for reading Kay's works. Tigana can be a little off-putting for some readers, due to a couple of scenes in it.
@@thelibraryladder I'll check those too thanks! Im just reading R Scott Bakker's masterful second apocalypse series, truly, there are no longer any troubling scenes i cannot read for he has redefined the term
I think you're good to go then. :D
I appreciate your comments about Kay's books. I have a hardback copy of Lions of Al-Rassan that I haven't read, yet. Your review has me planning on reading it soon
I envy your opportunity to read it for the first time! Cheers!
Thanks. Very interesting review. This author probably really appreciates these reviews of his work.
Thank you! I have no idea if Kay is aware of my videos. I hope that he is, but I’ve never had any contact with him to confirm it.
@@thelibraryladder I bet his kids, nephews, nieces, or someone looked him up and found your videos. If not, sooner or later they will.
Thank you for introducing me to this fine author. I have now started on my first Kay read and am enjoying it very much, particularly the lyrical prose. When you spoke of Kay and his style, I immediately thought of Roger Zelazny, whose gorgeous prose sometimes comes close to matching that of F. Scott Fitzgerald.
I'm so glad you're enjoying Kay's writing! Zelazny is another with a distinctively beautiful style. I plan to do a retrospective of his works next year.
Wanted to pop back in to thank you for introducing me to Guy Gavriel Kay! I just completed Under Heaven ( could not resist to start with a book that includes a version of Li Po as a character), and enjoyed it immensely. Kay tells the story in a lyrical prose that, as we discussed, rivals Zelazny and the Epilogue is reminiscent of that in Lord of Light. Having now purchased both A Brightness Long Aga and River of Stars, I am now debating which to read next. 👍
Wonderful! You can't go wrong with either choice. A Brightness Long Ago is one of two books I recommend as entry points to GGK (the other being A Song for Arbonne), but since you've already read and enjoyed Under Heaven, I'd suggest reading River of Stars next, as it's set in the same world and will feel like a continuation of the story (several hundred years later).
Great channel, thank you. Never read any Kay but your description of him sounds right up my alley so look forward to checking his books out. He better be good if he edited the damn Silmarillion hahahaha.
Thanks! Two starting points for Kay that I suggest are A Brightness Long Ago and A Song for Arbonne. I don't recommend starting with Tigana (I do think highly of it, but it can be a little polarizing).
@@thelibraryladder noted, thank you, I will be keeping an eye out for these and more on my bookstore visits which are a near daily occurrence hahaha. Kay is definitely my next unread author to tackle after I finish R. Scott Bakker's prince of nothing trilogy which I highly recommend and would love to hear your take on should you review it. Masterful prose and great in so many ways, yet such an utterly bleak and repressive world, so perhaps not for everyone. Inspired by the first crusade and perhaps the Byzantine Empire so perhaps it shares some love of historical inspirations with Kay's work.
I am glad I discovered this. A Kay fan here since the 80s when I picked up The Summer Tree. Watching his evolution as a writer has been fascinating. Although, as you eloquently hint at, even his downs aren't bad.
I do think he is seriously underrated by a lot of the modern fantasy audience who are expecting something else in their fantasy these days. Kay seems to have carved out a niche somewhere between fantasy and historical fiction and probably not pleasing fans of either genre.
I preferred Children of Earth and Sky more than A Brightness Long Ago, but that's just me. And while I would have wanted both longer, these days I am not expecting that. Kay has reached the equivalence of an old master painter, where deft brush strokes in the right places conveys the entire picture rather than overworking it in layers of paint.
I am surprised to learn that Under Heaven and River of Stars is not set in the same world as AlRassan et al. I thought I had caught oblique references to Sarantium in Under Heaven. As River of Stars is still to be read by me, maybe that is where that becomes apparent.
Great comment and thanks! I love your metaphor of the master painter, which is apropo, given Kay's affinity for writing about artists of various types.
If I remember correctly, the most significant clue that Under Heaven and River of Stars have their own separate world is the number of moons in the sky. I believe one world has only a single moon, while the other world has two (and I don't recall off the top of my head which world has which).
I missed that totally. Thanks.
I'm not familiar with this author at all, but after watching this video I will definitely check him out. The fact that he writes standalone books makes me want to cheer! 😃Everybody seems to be trying to write seven book series, which they then can't finish. Kay sounds like just what I've been looking for! Love this channel!
Thanks! I share your frustration with authors trying to milk as many volumes out of a story as they can. It makes what Kay is able to achieve with his standalones all the more remarkable.
Great video. GGK is tied for first as my favorite author. I can't wait for his new book coming out later this year.
I totally agree that Lions, Arbonne and Sarantine are his best work and are my favorites and Ysabel and The Last Light of the Sun are my least favorite.
My enjoyment of A Brightness Long Ago was a bit less but I think it's because I didn't reread Children of Earth and Sky before it.
I want to reread all of his books but don't know when. I've reread all of them multiple times up to the Viking one.
Also, I have to ask if you work as a voice actor? If not, you should. Lol.
Thanks! Rereading old favorites is a real luxury for me these days when my TBR list keeps growing. My goal for this channel is to introduce those favorites and classics from various genres to new readers.
And, yes, I've dabbled in VO work as a hobby, primarily audiobook narration. It's a lot of fun (and hard work!). I have several audiobook projects in the works, but the challenge is finding the time to devote to them.
Thank you for this informative video. I am currently reading the Fionavar Tapestry and am finding it "a slow go". But I will persevere and am eager to try his other historical fantasy novels.
I have a request; have you done a video of the novels of Richard Adams? Watership Down was one of the first novels I read as a child, but my all-time favorite is Shardik. I have read it several times. I recently read The Plague Dogs which is also outstanding. I would be interested in your views on these novels and his others.
The first book in the Fionavar trilogy is a bit of a slog, but the story gets better in the final two books as Kay's writing matures. It doesn't rise to the level of his other books, though, which is why I don't recommend Fionavar as a starting point for reading his books.
Great suggestion about Richard Adams! I was already planning to spotlight those books later this year. Watership Down is one of my all-time favorites, and Shardik and The Plague Dogs are remarkable too.
I am so happy I found you, and found your wonderful videos. Kay is one of my favorite authors, I don’t remember how I found Under Heaven but I picked it up within the last ten years and fell deeply in love. Also, one of my most profound reading experiences was reading A Song of Arbonne. It was so difficult and different to start with but I experienced such satisfaction with the book. Thank you for your videos.
P.S. I’m curious if you have read Mervyn Peake, if I had to guess I would say he aligns with your tastes. Your style of video would be wonderful for his books and tragic life story.
You're very welcome! I'm so glad you're enjoying my videos. I have many more planned. I just wish I could produce them faster. The Gormenghast trilogy is definitely on my list of future video topics. It's likely to play a small role in an upcoming retrospective video I'm planning about fantasy fiction before Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. I also plan to do a dedicated video on Peake at a later date. Thanks for the suggestion!
Great video!
Thanks! I'm very glad you enjoyed it.
@@thelibraryladder Yes, I liked it very much! Can I just say that you have an amazing narrative voice.
I have read The Lions of Al-Rassan four times now. Each time, at the end, I have been openly crying. He is that powerful of a writer.
I know exactly how you felt. It brought me to tears as well.
Probably the most memorable book ending in his catalogue, imo. I “see” that ending, still, even now. Perfect
Great ranking. It's so hard to choose between the top GGK books. My ranking is very similar. My personal favorite is Under Heavan but they are all so close.
Thanks! I had a lot of difficulty ranking the books in Kay's top tier. His best books are all fantastic and the quality and enjoyment differences between them are negligible, in my opinion.
Every book sounds great! I'm so glad I watched this.
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy them at least as much as I do!
@@thelibraryladder Thank you :D
I got recommended the Lions Of Al-Rassan a buddy after finishing Wolfe's Latro series for something along those lines. And man, it was an absolute masterpiece. Outstanding prose, fun characters, a setting that feels very believable, and enough historical nods to make me feel smart for noticing them.
I'm absolute hooked on GGKs writing style. This is a super helpful reading list, thanks.
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy the rest of Kay's works at least as much as I do. Thanks for watching and commenting!
As someone who hasn't yet read any of his work I'm a little saddened that The last Light of the Sun is not one of his better works as that was the one that caught my attention the most - perhaps I'll start with it regardless so I won't be disappointed if I get to it later and it doesn't live up to his other work.
Thanks for your comment! Please don't let my brief review discourage you from reading The Last Light of the Sun. I think it's a very good book and well worth reading, and I know others who consider it one of their favorites. It just didn't resonate with me as well as his other books did.
Kay has written so many great books, that it's easy to disagree about how to rank order them.
I've been a fan of Kay's ever since a friend recommended the Fionavar Tapestry sometime in the late 80's. I largely agree with your rankings, they seem to be reasonably well balanced, though I would put Sarantium Mosaic out in front as Kay's absolute finest work.
Given your interest in Kay's work I thought I'd share a private theory as I'm curious to find out if it appears plausible to anyone else.
The first four volume of Kay's Kindath, Jaddite Asharite world seem to echo Shakespeare's Second History Tetralogy in both structures and themes.
The Lions of Al-Rassan mirrors Richard II, with it's exile of it's crucial characters near the beginning of the story which cause the fall of a weak king by the end.
The Sarantium Mosaic has a similar closeness to the two parts of Henry IV (there so many small similarities that this already long post would become utterly unwieldy if I were to really explore them) I'll just mention that both end with a clever monarch being replaced a by an even more martial one.
The Last Light of the Sun and Henry V each tells (to a certain extent, this is probably the weakest analogically speaking in my pet theory) stories of great English warleaders (Alfred as opposed to Henry V).
Anyway, I'd be interested in anyone else's views on this idea.
Fascinating! I can see the parallels you mentioned. I’ll give it some thought. Thanks for the great comment!
I have neve read anything by Guy Gavriel Kay before - though some of his books had been recommended to me several times. I picked up and just finished Lions of Al-Rassan based on your rankings here and - oh my, what a wonderful and deeply impactful book it was! During the very beginning I thought 'I see why people recommend this - the writing style is well executed, but don't think it will be a story for me' ... by chapter 2 I was completely hooked. What a wonderful tale with meaningful characters and masterful story-telling. Thank you for the recomendation!
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I envy you the opportunity to read more of Kay's books for the first time.
Kaye is the best. Tigana is the reason I'm a writer now.
Yeah, I got all of his books and was planning to go in order... hmmm maybe I'll revise that idea. the Song of soandso sounds like a good place to start :)
Good choice! That one and A Brightness Long Ago are the two books I most recommend as starting points for reading Kay. Thanks for watching!
@@thelibraryladder I had started reading the first couple of chapters of the Summer Tree and I did notice a few of the criticisms you mentioned, especially the POV switching and the Telling vs. showing. I guess that once I am more familiar with his later works, going back to the earlier ones will have a reservoir of 'tolerance' for the way his journey began. I had thought that, perhaps, I'd have enjoyed seeing how his style evolved, chronologically, but I need to be able to get through the books to do that and I will have more staying power once he's got a place in my mind as a skilled author.
I agree Guy Gavriel Kay deserves much more recognition than he receives! I think Tigana is my favorite, but I can understand why you would rank other books higher. I had the exact same experience with A Song for Arbonne--the first time I read it I wasn't that into it, but upon a re-read I absolutely loved it! Maybe I need to re-read it again...soon.
GGK has so many terrific books, it's really hard to rank them. Any one of a half dozen of them could take the top spot if his readers were surveyed, and the ranking might change over time with re-reads. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Tigana was my gateway book to GGK and while it starts out slow, the reveals in the last third (especially one particular moment near the end) absolutely floored me. That ending also was unexpected and I really loved Dianora and felt for her. It was also my first fantasy novel that I read in which the villains weren't quite so black and white, which was intriguing. Read almost every book since (except Ysabel and the Fionavar Tapestry series) and Guy Kay still continues to knock it out of the park. Currently reading "All the Seas of the World" and just had to flip back to an earlier book of his to verify something, because I hadn't picked up on the clue dropped until it was stated in the novel. Blew my mind and it's one of the reasons why I love his stories.
Also, Sarantine Mosaic duology is so beautiful. Those two, along with the Chinese-inspired novels, are really stand-outs for me.
GGK has so many excellent books, I found it really difficult to rank them. At times, I felt like I was splitting hairs and nit-picking to find faults with some books just to be able set them apart.
In my most recent Kay video reviewing All the Seas of the World, I was a little tough on the book, because I was judging it against other books Kay has written. I really enjoyed the book, though, and I think it's better than a great many other fantasy works published these days. It definitely pays to read A Brightness Long Ago (and to a lesser extent, Children of Earth and Sky) shortly before reading All the Seas of the World. I think the connections between them are important to fully grasp what Kay is trying to do with his latest book.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@thelibraryladder So I finished reading "All the Seas of the World" and immediately jumped right back into reading "A Brightness Long Ago." Out of the three, including "Children of Earth and Sky", I have to rank Brightness as #1 (it just hits all the right emotional spots and certain parts just linger), Children as #2, and Seas as #3. Seas at least did give me what Tigana didn't regarding a certain situation with siblings (thank goodness for that), but it felt kind of rushed with the pacing. A bit more time spent to flesh out certain characters and events would've been nice (like with a particular kaliph towards the end).
It sounds like your experience with those three books largely paralleled my own. Brightness is such a terrific book, my only significant complaint about it is that I wish it was longer. And like you, I was a little dissatisfied with how the kaliph plotline in All the Seas was resolved. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for this video and for sharing your opinion about its author. I didn't know Kay but I will read one of these masterpieces soon ;-)
In French, we have some very good authors too. I don't know if it was translated but the books of Jean-Philippe Jaworski are just extraordinary and more precisely "Win the war" (literal translation of me ^^'). It is a little book of 1000 pages in a pseudo Italy city in the Renaissance where we follow an oaf but talented sword fighter who works for a politician managing a part of the city... It's a "song of ice and fire" made in French, in short.
Merci! I'm not familiar with Jaworski, but I just looked up his Gagner la Guerre, and it sounds amazing. I wish there was a translated edition, because my French is 30 years out of practice.
Just to say thanks for introducing me to some of the best books I have read
You're very welcome! I think they're some of the best books I've ever read, too.
This is reminding me so much of all the books I read decades ago and enjoyed enormously but for some reason have not read in many years. My Aunt was a big fan of fantasy writing and she introduced me to Guy Gavriel Kay, Anne McCaffrey, Sherri Tepper, Raymond Feist, Charles de Lint along with Michael Scott Rohan's Winter of the World and a few others besides. So many fabulous storytellers but GGK's work stood out for me partly because of his beautiful writing and I am looking forward to reading his books, some for the first time. I have to admit that I am a fan of Patrick Rothfuss's books and that is partly why I've had not read anyone else recently as I am stuck in a loop of reading his, over and over and over and over... partly because I think his writing style is particularly beautiful. Having been spoilt in this way, some other current fantasy writing seems clunky and contrived in comparison. So, I love your video, and can't wait submerge myself in The Summer Tree. (It was the first of his that I ever read).
Thanks! That's a great list authors. The only one I haven't read is Rohan, despite him being on my radar for more than 30 years.
On re-read, you might find The Summer Tree to be a little clunky, particularly in the early parts, which I chalk up to being his first attempt at writing a novel. Books 2 and 3 are significantly more polished, in my opinion.
I think very highly of Rothfuss' Kingkiller series, but I don't think I could binge it repeatedly. I need more variation in my reading, although I have to say that I'm far less tolerant of inferior writing than I used to be. It's not uncommon for me to read the first book in a series and then never read the second book, if the storytelling isn't up to snuff.
This was a great introduction to GGK's works!
I am just a little sceptical of the reading order - if i read his best works first, will it set the expectations too high which his other works might not meet
Thanks! In my opinion, Kay has so many excellent novels that you could read them in _almost_ any order without a significant risk of disappointment. Also, although most people tend to agree on which of Kay's books are among his best (and his weakest), they might rank them differently within those broad groupings. As a result, my top four books might be someone else's 3, 6, 4 and 1.
However, I do recommend starting with two of his most accessible books: A Song for Arbonne and A Brightness Long Ago, both of which have compelling protagonists and great pacing. I also suggest avoiding The Fionavar Tapestry and Tigana until you've read at least a couple of other Kay novels. Those books contain a few scenes that can be difficult for some readers. I hope that's helpful.
Kay is an amazing writer. The Sarantine Mosaic changed the way I look at fantasy. It's his masterpiece. Under Heaven is a close second.
I agree with you that they’re both masterpieces!
I'm five chapters in to Under Heaven (it's the first one I've read!) and I am entranced. GGK uses the Romantic Era poets trick of using sensory details to draw you back and forth in time. I can't wait to read more!
I'm so glad you're enjoying it! Kay is known for his lyrical writing style, and Under Heaven might be the most lyrical, in part because of the role poetry plays in the story.
Amazing video. Kay is such an unique author. Lions of Al-Rassan and Song for Arbonne are truly masterpieces. I quite disagree with the order in the Sarantine Mosaic. I think Sailing to Sarantium builds such a great atmosphere but Lord of Emperor's fell a bit short to my expectation. In my opinion these books could've been comprised into one novel and it would've be probably his best.