The Last Light of the Sun Audiobook

" This book jumps around alot. It is sort of hard to follow and there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of plot to it. Nonetheless, I will finish it (slowly). "

" My best friend loves this author. I'd never read anything by him, but a back cover blurb that compares this novel favorably to Stephen King and Shakespeare doesn't exactly make the strongest case for me (I have idiosyncratic tastes, I know.) Regardless, I took my time with the book, wanting to make sure I was fully engaging it, to find in it what my best friend, whose opinion I respect, sees. It troubled me somewhat that it was slow-going -- it's been noted that I tear through books at a very brisk clip -- and even given that I was savoring the novel, I was a bit surprised at the slow pacing of the book. A lot of stuff happens, but I never at any point felt invested, as if I had to know more. And there was something else that bothered me, though it took me the entirety of the book to figure out what: the women are all too certain. They are too wise and too restrained and too accepting of their fates, and even though this was the lot of women of those societies, it did not read well for me. They felt more like convenient plot contrivances than actual people. To be honest, I felt little more empathy for the men. I found Bern's horseback battle on the surf somewhat thrilling, and Thorkell's combat at the end was affecting, but little else aroused my interest (though the revelation of the true nature of the spruagh was nicely done.) And then I understood the real problem I had with this book: it's written in a manner that strongly evokes the structure of classical texts. Too bad I have little patience for such. Beowulf bores me, and the rest of the lays are even more tiresome. Give me the blood and fury of the Greeks and Romans any day, with their understandable passions: the coldness of the North chills my blood. I enjoyed Mr Kay's meditations on fate and the bonds of family and love, but I found his characters as interesting as the roll of names in your typical classical saga. I have a feeling that this isn't the book to judge this author on, though (e.g. with Neal Stephenson: if I'd read the dreadful Cryptonomicon first, I would never have bothered reading the utterly dazzling The Diamond Age, one of my favorite books.) So, on the whole, a worthy read, but not for the human emotion, and certainly not for any excitement. It kinda made me want to re-read Sutcliffe's The Eagle Of The Ninth, with its own complicated tale of a son seeking to redeem his father's name. "

" Finally got around to reading this and loved it. "

" This is the first of his books that I have read and I really love his style. Depending on the characters the style changes completely giving the book a completely different feel depending on the voice. There's a lot going on in this one and I'll be really sad when it ends. "

" This was a great novel by Kay. I usually enjoy his novels, this was no exception. "

" Some aspects of Mists of Avalon. Echoed are interplay between the sexes, the balance between the otherworld or "halfworld" and the dawn of a new age. Appearing are the major players of our own western euro early civilization. The women are complex and feminist in an age where most are only existing. Fascinating... really good. "

" Unfortunately, I don't remember a lot about this book. I can't recall any of the characters' names or what happened mainly. I just remember enjoying it. It's a fantasy about vikings. "

" Vintage Kay. "

" I enjoyed the book, though I found it to be somewhat less engaging the the other books I've read by this author. "

" Not bad because I love the historical fiction blood and guts thing, but he sounded as if he had just read Bernard Cornwell's Saxon/Viking series about King Alfred at el. "

" Not as good as I hoped. This writer has much better work out there. "

" When I started this book I thought it was an historical novel - Vikings, Anglo-Saxons and Gaels but then his mention of two moons and faeries made me realize that it was something more - a fantasy. It actually worked really well and was a well-told tale. GGK is, indeed, a good story-teller. "

" This is what a fantasy novel should be. Beautifully written and an amazing scope. Highly recommend if you like fantasy with a historical twist. Or maybe history with a fantastical twist. "

" Vikings, England, early Christianity & Fairies. He does it all well without actually doing it -- that's the magic of Guy Gavriel Kay's brand of historical fantasy. "

" Nowhere near as good as Under Heaven, or even Ysqbel, and seriously over sexed, but with an author of this caliber, even his bad work is pretty good. "

" As usual, a well written story with interesting characters. Not everything ends in a happy ending and the story evokes many different emotions. "

" Good! Not up there with "Lions of Al-Rassan" or "Under Heaven," but thoroughly enjoyable and still on the "good Kay" side. "

" A marvelous story from Kay. Filled with musings on those casual turnings that shape destiny. Being in the wrong or right place at the wrong or right moment, has the power to shape a life or lives. Made me want to read more of his books, and the more sagas. "

" Not his best, certainly, but enjoy anything by Kay. "

" Funny, I have loved all the other books by Kay. This one was dark, depressing, and hopeless. I dumped it half way through. Read something else by Kay. "

" Great book. Loved it. Wonderful detail about the analagous societies (Norse, Celtic, British). Great characters, esp. the young Viking, Bern. Loved the inclusion of the Celtic faerie lore. "

" Not one of my favorites of his but still really compelling and something I couldn't put down. "

" I loved this book. He can be a hit and miss author, but when he is good, he is great! "

" This was an unexpectedly good read. It was an incredibly immersive tale and would have received a 4 from me, but the sexuality seemed forced and Kay's style (e.g. dropped pronouns and occasionally unusual sentence structures) took some getting used to. "

" I read a kindle sample of the book and it was ploddingly OK, but there was an unintentionally funny gratuitous sex scene and I said no, I am not going to pay good money for this kinda crap "