Stephen. King. com - Written Works - A to ZThe Library. Top 2. 5 Best Fantasy Books. Kay has made this list in the past with his outstanding Tigana (arguably one of his best works). Up until recently, I felt Tigana was Kay's magnus opus a work that he would never surpass. I was wrong. It turns out that Kay's recent book, Under Heaven, an alternate history set in a mythical China is every bit as grand as Tigana, and perhaps even better a more tightly weaved, more focused, more exotic tale. Under Heaven is Kay's first foray into Asian history and culture, his other efforts centered about European history. Under Heaven takes place along a mythical China set around 8th century during the Tang Dynasty and follows a fictionalized version of the An Shi Rebellion (one of the most brutal wars in history before World War II). For readers who actually love to read, who enjoy luscious prose and value outstanding characterization, Kay's books are pretty much made- to- order just for you. There are a few talented wordsmiths in the fantasy genre who not only can mesmerize you with a rich tale but mesmerize you with their prose. Kay is one of these, up there with the handful of poetic authors with the likes of Sean Williams, China Meiville, and Neil Gaiman. Kay's works sit near the top of the historical fantasy genre and he's a master at it. His tales are almost always set in a in fantastical alternate history richly based on real world cultures, locales, and historical period. I was first enticed by Kay's literary spell casting (because that's what it is, Kay casts a magical net with his writing and draws you into his worlds; once you feel the enchantment, you are forever bound to his works) with his flawed masterpiece, Fionavar Tapestry. The trilogy was Kay's conversation with Lord of the Rings, and while derivative also had its own unique identify and was deeply imbued with Kay's deep understanding of European folklore. His later work and masterpiece Tigana was so stunning and so startling a take on the ostensibly simple tale about a band of rebels fighting an evil wizard delivered a startlingly emotional tale of love, hate, hope, and ultimately redemption. Kay has had a lot of good books since then (never quite touching on his former glory, though some of his romps through alternative versions of Venetian Europe and Medieval Germany were provocative). Kay's heroes are not the traditional heroes of fantasy they are not always the talented swordsman, the heroic soldier, the all- powerful wizard, but rather men of knowledge and wit not of martial skill. Kay's heroes are in fact poets and jongleurs, the masters of word and song. Kay shows these types can be every bit as dangerous, courageous and heroic as the swashbuckling hero. Finding funny novels is very, very hard. Every publisher describes any book with even a single joke as "funny," and being funny in print is much more difficult than. Top 10 best graphic novels becoming movies. I always find myself drawn to film versions of graphic novels and nearly always end up diappointed. The Monster Librarian Presents: Reviews of Killer Animal Horror Fiction. A Necessary End by Sarah Pinborough and F. Paul Wilson Shadowridge Press, 2014. And like his heroes who excel in the arts literary and celebrate language, Kay's works always reflect his love affair with language. Kay shows us that as far as Asia and Europe are in distance and culture, the peoples are still yet the same the love, they hate, they betray, they hate, and they find redemption. People, as the saying goes, will always be people. And in the complex web of these interactions from peasant to emperor, from poet to politician, Kay shows draws a stunning portrait of a Kingdom on the verge of collapse and the people who seek to destroy it and to save it each with realistic motivations. Kay has written many outstanding books. But Under Heaven is his masterpiece. Read if you want to be captivated by lambent prose, dripping with poetic beauty. Do you have a list for the 60’s.80,s or 50,s,90,s books we love even today. San Diego in 70’s and I enjoyed best classes where we were. The best spy novels from the 20th and 21st centuries. Swan Song by Robert McCammon - McCammon is a marvel. He began his career writing fireballing horror books, morphed in midcareer to writing realist tales. A list of Stephen King's Novels, organized alphabetically. The List of Forgotten Realms novels is a listing of the many works of fantasy fiction that are based in the role-playing game setting of the Forgotten Realms. Read if you want to be drawn into a fantastical tale of emperors, of soldiers, of nobles, and ladies, farmers and peasants each impacting in some significant way the flow of events that direct the course of Kitai, the mystical ancient Chinese kingdom. Even better, there is a sequel River of Stars which tells a different yet equally poignant tale in the same world, but 4. If words could tell a story just by the sound, then Kay's prose does just that. Read if you love to read.
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