A Song for Arbonne

ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

Blaise, a sellsword from Gorhaut (a violent and chauvinistic northern country), has moved to the warmer country of Arbonne. Blaise doesn???t have much appreciation or tolerance for Arbonne???s womanly culture which is highly influenced by the Court of Love. He also doesn???t have much hope that Arbonne ??? which values singers over soldiers, and troubadours over troops ??? will put up much of a fight if Gorhaut decides to try to eradicate Arbonne???s goddess worship. But what is Blaise doing in Arbonne anyway? Is he hiding, or is he spying?

I immediately fell in love with Blaise who we meet as he???s commanding a small group of soldiers who are sneaking onto Arbonne???s goddess???s holy island. They plan to kidnap a troubadour who is sulking after being humiliated by his employer???s wife who screamed loudly when he tried to make good on her disingenuous flirtations. Blaise thinks all of this is incredibly ridiculous and he has little confidence in the men he commands. How can they be manly when they live in this gentle culture?

I guess I liked Blaise because I was thinking the same thing ??? these guys are a bunch of wusses and this courtly society is shallow and immoral. But Blaise and I learned that when their lives and lifestyle are threatened, the passionate people of Arbonne respond.

Much of the novel???s background information is delivered by several characters??? emotional interior monologues, a technique I like when it???s not overdone to the point that it really slows the action. It was nearly over-the-top in A Song for Arbonne, but I liked Blaise so much that it worked for me when we were in his head. I can imagine, however, that this style won???t suit all readers. Kay invests his work with a lot of passion, and sometimes I can sense the manipulation of my emotions with his fervid prose. A writer is supposed to elicit feeling from me, but I don???t want to notice it happening.

The plot of A Song for Arbonne was original and interesting though some of the antagonists??? motivations, revealed at the end, seemed contrived. I might have believed them if they???d been hinted at earlier, and this would also have helped the bad guys not seem so one-dimensionally bad.

But overall, A Song for Arbonne is a beautiful, sumptuous, emotional novel. I listened to this on audio, performed by Euan Morton. This was the first time I???d heard Mr. Morton and I thought he was perfect for this title. He did a terrific job.

GGK has not yet convinced me. I had to drop the first book in Fionavar Tapestry. A Brightness Long Ago was great. This was ok. The first 400 pages were ok. Meandering here and there. I didn't really connect with the characters. Few typical of GGK scenes were great every once in a while. The last 100 or so pages were great and pulled everything together beautifully. But I want to enjoy the whole ride, so therefore an OK/ good rating.

4.5 out of 5 stars

After Tigana and now A Song for Arbonne, it is clear that Guy Gavriel Kay can weave a complete, satisfying story in one standalone book. This novel is a beautiful tale of love and loss in the land of Arbonne. Kay's character development and worldbuilding are outstanding and his lyrical prose is a perfect match for a sweeping story of troubadours amid a unique medieval world.

See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf.