Written on the Dark

I've been giddy ever since I was offered an early read of Guy Gavriel Kay's forthcoming Written on the Dark!

Every couple of years, Kay comes up with a new novel that never fails to amaze me. With such unforgettable titles as Tigana, The Lions of al-Rassan, Under Heaven, River of Stars, Sailing to Sarantium, and Lord of Emperors, Kay has set the bar rather high throughout his career. And if Children of Earth and Sky, A Brightness Long Ago and All the Seas of the World are any indication, it appears that like a fine wine, the author only gets better with time. These books showcased a master of the craft writing at the top of his game. Yes, Kay is that good!

Understandably, I had lofty expectations for Kay's newest work. And for the most part, Kay met them. But something's missing, even though Written on the Dark follows the same recipe as his last three novels. The main problem is that it's an incredibly short novel. Regardless of what pagecounts the various editions state online, my e-ARC was only 265 pages long and I have a feeling that this hurt the story in several ways. I often complain that books are too long and padded with filler material, but the opposite can also affect a tale in negative fashion. The long and the short of it is that events and characters featured in Written on the Dark aren't fleshed out the way they were in the Middle Sea works that came before. If I'm not mistaken, this could well be Kay's shortest novel to date and I'm wondering why some events are just glossed over or why he didn't feel the need to elaborate more on certain facets of the story.

Don't get me wrong. It's a very good read. I devoured Written on the Dark in just three sittings. Still, I was left wanting once I reached the last page, which came way too quickly for my taste. Its short length precluded the sort of depth that usually makes a Guy Gavriel Kay novel so satisfying.

Here's the blurb:

From the internationally bestselling author of Tigana, All the Seas of the World, and A Brightness Long Ago comes a majestic new novel of love and war that brilliantly evokes the drama and turbulence of medieval France.

Thierry Villar is a well-known—even notorious—tavern poet, intimately familiar with the rogues and shadows of that world, but not at all with courts and power. He is an unlikely person, despite his quickness, to be swept into the deadly contests of ambitious royals, assassins, and invading armies.

But he is indeed drawn into all these things on a savagely cold night in his beloved city of Orane. And so Thierry must use all the intelligence and charm he can muster as power struggles merge with a decades-long war to bring his country to the brink of destruction.

As he does, he meets his poetic equal in an aristocratic woman and is drawn to more than one unsettling person with a connection to the world beyond this one. He also crosses paths with an extraordinary young woman driven by voices within to try to heal the ailing king — and help his forces in war. A wide and varied set of people from all walks of life take their places in the rich tapestry of this story.

Both sweeping and intimate, Written on the Dark is an elegant tour de force about power and ambition playing out amid the equally intense human need for art and beauty, and memories to be left behind.

Long-time fans will be pleased to learn that the tale takes place a few years before the fall of Sarantium to the Asharites. Richly detailed as only a Guy Gavriel Kay work can be, Written on the Dark captures your imagination from the get-go. Probably due to the extensive amount of research he puts into every project, the author came up with another evocative narrative and an arresting imagery. It usually takes him a while to set the tone and draw you into his tale, but in this one he sucks you in from the very beginning. Like the majority of his books, Kay's latest is another interesting blend of history and fantasy. As surmised from the blurb, the historical backdrop is about Charles VI suffering from bouts of insanity, the Duke of Burgundy, Joan of Arc, Henry V, the Hundred Years' War, and more. As you well know by now, Kay takes lots of liberties and twists events and protagonists to fit the story he's trying to tell. Hence, as always, expect the unexpected.

As mentioned in previous reviews, around the time when Children of Earth and Sky was about to be published, Kay told me that as much as anything, he wanted that novel to be about non-powerful (not same as ordinary) people on borderlands in a time of war, trying to shape their lives (very differently) in difficult times. They intersect, some of them, with power, but that isn't the heart of the story. For the most part, the same could be said of A Brightness Long Ago and All the Seas of the World. The difference was that the protagonists were "less important" people in the greater scheme of things who get caught in the periphery of influential men and women whose actions will cause world-shaking ripples that will change the world as they know it. In that regard, Written on the Dark is more akin to these last two.

It's no secret that Guy Gavriel Kay possesses a deft human touch. Which is why his past novels are all filled with memorable characters. Indeed, it's the superb characterization that makes his books impossible to put down. Not surprisingly, the author came up with another group of disparate men and women whose paths will cross unexpectedly and whose fates will be spun into a vast tapestry of love and tragedy. But it's in the characterization that Written on the Dark leaves a little to be desired. Thierry Villar is as well drawn as any of Kay's past protagonists and makes for a great main character. The same can be said of Robbin de Vaux, the king's provost in Orane, and Sylvi, one of the poet's friends. And yet, a number of characters would have benefited from a bit more depth, chief among them Medor Colle, a serjeant, Gauvard Colle, his uncle and a man acquainted with the half-world, as well as Marina di Seressa, the court poet. Given their importance in the greater scheme of things, I believe they deserved to be further fleshed out. Lots of fans are curious to see what Kay will do with the Joan of Arc analogue. This is by far the biggest pop culture figure he as ever tackled. Alas, don't get your hopes too high, for she gets about as much air time as Ser Patrek of King's Mountain (the character George R. R. Martin based on me in A Dance With Dragons) did. Seriously. But in the end, what probably hurts the characterization the most is the portrayal of Laurent de Barratin. As the main antagonist of this tale, I feel that he deserved a bit more focus. Though his storyline looms over the entire plot, he never becomes a fully realized character.

Although all of Guy Gavriel Kay's works can be slow-moving at times, their pace is seldom as uneven as it is in this one. Yet after a great start, by the middle part of the book everything begins to meander and lose a bit of focus. It's never dull, mind you, but weighing in at only 265 pages (at least that's the length of the e-ARC I got), Written on the Dark is way too short to allow itself to drift a bit aimlessly the way it does in the last 100 pages or so.

Even if the characterization is weaker than what the author has accustomed us to and even though it's meandering in terms of plot, with Kay's lyrical prose the narrative is a joy to read from start to finish. And let's be honest. Even a subpar book by Kay is better than 90% of what's out there. I'm well aware that what I consider shortcomings might be seen as nitpicking by some readers, so your mileage may vary regarding this one. In any case, don't miss out on a chance to return to the world of Sarantium!

The final verdict: 7.75/10

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