The Lions of Al-Rassan
A Spoiler Free Review
Every once in a while, we readers and writers cross paths with a tale so…wonderous, it reminds us why we are obsessed with these paper, glue, and ink sandwiches. A tale that makes our skin tingle, sweeps us off our feet to a faraway land, all while forcing us to change our perspective of this big blue marble we call Earth.
This past weekend, I finished such a tale.
And while I normally would wait until the end of the year to release my favorite reads of the year, in the year of our lord 2024, I can already tell you what will top that list.
The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay is simply one of the best books I've ever read.
The Characters are dense, real, and complex.
The conflict leaps off the page, inspired by actual events that echo right through history to the headlines of today. A lesser story would have relied on this, but no, this author uses the tide of history to deepen the conflict brewing within each one of the ensemble.
The prose is effective, and Kay’s use of slow reveals keeps you turning the page (even when you know you should go to bed).
The setting, a thinly veiled medieval Iberian peninsula, is immersive while managing not to distract from the story, even for someone like me who wanted to pull up Wikipedia and map every little town and castle to their real-life counterparts.
If I can find a complaint about this book, it’s that I wish there were about one hundred more pages in it, not because it was missing ingredients, but because I wished to spend more time with it. The only critical complaint I have is that the ending comes up abruptly, compacting the larger world/faction conflict down to dispense a logical and coherent conclusion to the core intercharacter conflict. It left me wanting more only out of gluttony.
I've seen some complaints that it is not true historical fiction, and thus can come across as a cheap historical retelling. I disagree with this take wholeheartedly. The historical framing device, for me, gives the entire tale a fable-like veneer which deepens the key themes. Honestly, looking at the negative reviews, I can say most of them missed what I would call the key thematic takeaway--what does one do when forced to confront the end of their comfortable world.
If you like The Stormlight Archive, you will like this book. In fact, it was Mr. Sanderson who turned my attention to it during an episode of his podcast.
If you like The Lord of the Rings, you will enjoy the world Kay has built.
If you like A Song of Ice and Fire, you will enjoy the alliances that shift like the sands of Al-Rassan.
If you enjoy historical fiction, you will be drawn into this world instantly.
Even if you enjoy romance, you will find yourself wanting for naught.
It is one of my favorite books I’ve ever read.
It is one of the best books I’ve ever read.
96/100
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A/N:
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About the Creator
Matthew J. Fromm
Full-time nerd, history enthusiast, and proprietor of arcane knowledge.
Here there be dragons, knights, castles, and quests (plus the occasional dose of absurdity).
I can be reached at [email protected]
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Comments (4)
Thanks so much for the review and recommendation.
Guy is one of my favourite authors, I have not read this one though. So Thank you. Great to read articles like this.
How did you come across this one? Your high praise of it intrigues. And 96/100 means you'll probably read it again in the future. Congrats on finding it.
I wrote Kay a rather fawning fan letter when I was a pimply adolescent. It was ignored. What a relief!