Description

‘The greatest living author of epic fantasy’ – Brandon Sanderson

‘The finest in his field’ – Tor.com

‘Guy Gavriel Kay’s A Brightness Long Ago is a masterpiece; perhaps the finest work of one of the world’s greatest living storytellers’ – Fantasy Book Review

***One of Goodreads’ Most Anticipated SFF Books of 2019***

Internationally bestselling author Guy Gavriel Kay’s latest work is set in a world evoking early Renaissance Italy, with an extraordinary cast of characters.

In a chamber overlooking the nighttime waterways of a maritime city, a man looks back on his youth and the people who shaped his life. Danio Cerra’s intelligence won him entry to a renowned school, though he was only the son of a tailor. He took service at the court of a ruling count – and soon learned why that man was known as The Beast.

Danio’s fate changed the moment he recognized Adria Ripoli as she entered the count’s chambers one night – intending to kill. Born to power, Adria had chosen a life of danger – and freedom – instead.

Other vivid figures share the story: a healer determined to defy her expected lot; a charming, frivolous son of immense wealth; a religious leader more decadent than devout; and, affecting these lives and many more, two mercenary commanders, whose rivalry puts a world in the balance.

Further praise for Guy Gavriel Kay

‘Contemporary fiction’s finest fantasist’ Tor.com

‘History and fantasy rarely come together as gracefully or readably as they do in the novels of Guy Gavriel Kay’ Washington Post

‘One of the (if not the) premiere fantasists of our time’ The Financial Times

‘Compulsively readable . . . Kay is a global phenomenon . . . a storyteller on the grandest scale’ Time Magazine (Canada)

Publisher Review

By making the familiar ever so slightly strange, GGK breathes new life into historical fantasy. Beautifully faceted, jewel-like scenes carry us beyond the doublets and daggers to create an emotionally charged, high-stakes world of love and hate, threat and reward. * Daily Mail * The greatest living author of epic fantasy * Brandon Sanderson * The finest in his field * Tor.com * Believably and with great vividness, Kay recreates the past not as it was, but as it might have, perhaps should have, been * Financial Times * A Brightness Long Ago is a masterpiece; perhaps the finest work of one of the world's greatest living storytellers * Fantasy Book Review * No matter what the era, the themes, the characters, or the plot, a Guy Gavriel Kay novel is always a marvel of narrative construction * Beauty in Ruins Blog on A BRIGHTNESS LONG AGO * The single best reason I can think of for reading a Guy Gavriel Kay book is the supreme elegance and grace of his writing. ... A Brightness Long Ago is yet another gorgeous, moving novel from a master craftsman * Fantasy Literature Reviewer * Guy Gavriel Kay has a wonderful talent. He tells stories in an invented world that is so rich in historical echoes that I found myself smiling with pleasure as I heard the echoes, while engrossed in the story. Warmly recommended * Edward Rutherfurd, author of SARUM * Another brilliant novel from a literary giant * HNS Magazine * Guy Gavriel Kay ... may now hold the best claim to being the greatest living writer of fantasy fiction... Kay's novels take real historical events and then weave a fantastical new shape out of them, creating a rich tapestry of characters, events and emotions that is never less than affecting, and, at his best, can be deeply moving. A Brightness Long Ago (*****) is another superb novel from an author who may be fantasy's most reliably excellent, thoughtful, atmospheric and humane writer, and one whose powers remain notably undimmed. It's a book about lives, how people live them and the events that shape them, and how everything is connected * The Wertzone Blog on A BRIGHTNESS LONG AGO * Guy Gavriel Kay writes magical books ... He takes a plot and cast of characters, ones that would be interesting enough even in the hands of lesser authors, and turns them into something extraordinary through his lyrical and profoundly thoughtful storytelling, his insights into human character and motivations, and his musings on life and its meaning * Fantasy Literature Reviewer * A surefire hit for historical fiction and fantasy readers, A Brightness Long Ago further cements Kay's reputation as a wise and beguiling storyteller. * Shelf Awareness * It's the Italian renaissance brilliantly shot through with fantasy. Finely faceted scenes dazzle as strong, wilful characters create a high-stakes world of love and hate, threat and reward * Daily Mail * I love all Guy's novels, but this one is something really special: gorgeous and wise and incredibly generous of spirit * James Bradley *