Hardcover, 571 pages
Published May 10th 2016 by NAL
Rating: ★★★½
I enjoyed Children of Earth and Sky while at the same time wondering exactly what the point of the story was. Guy Gavriel Kay is a quality writer, so the near-600 pages felt quick and easy. Settings that echo the geography and history seem to be popular in the fantasy genre, though I admit I haven't read an overabundance of fantasy. Children of Earth and Sky is much the same; the Osmanli empire originates in the scorching deserts of the east, conquering cities like Sarantium (a clear Constantinople stand-in) and the city-states are reminiscent of Mediterranean city-states. I actually liked that aspect the most, as I found it fun to find the pieces from real history.
The things I liked were plentiful. I really enjoyed the main characters, particularly Danica, Marin, Drago and Leonora. They, along with Danica's long lost brother Damaz and the painter Pero Villani. I only wished we got more of their perspectives because they were all interesting. I particularly liked how Leonora and Danica became instant friends despite being such polar opposites: Danica is a tall teenage warrior, who simply wants to kill infidels in retaliation for kidnapping her brother a decade before, and Leonora is a young woman abandoned by her family, her child torn away from her and hired as a spy for a city-state.
I did find myself questioning what the point of the whole novel was. There's no great battle, no real plot or even a real resolution. Rather Children of Earth and Sky seems to be a slice of life, the politics of empires and city-states, following a short period in the lives of characters integral to a few different threads spread throughout the continent.
I also question the usefulness of the sheer number of perspectives included, at times giving the plot a quasi-Rashomon feel. Were they filler? A way to establish the disparity between the city-states? I would have greatly preferred more of the main characters than a few paragraphs of a random character's point of view of their own death.
Overall, I enjoyed the book a lot. It was interesting and compelling, and it definitely made me interested in reading more of Kay's books.
The things I liked were plentiful. I really enjoyed the main characters, particularly Danica, Marin, Drago and Leonora. They, along with Danica's long lost brother Damaz and the painter Pero Villani. I only wished we got more of their perspectives because they were all interesting. I particularly liked how Leonora and Danica became instant friends despite being such polar opposites: Danica is a tall teenage warrior, who simply wants to kill infidels in retaliation for kidnapping her brother a decade before, and Leonora is a young woman abandoned by her family, her child torn away from her and hired as a spy for a city-state.
I did find myself questioning what the point of the whole novel was. There's no great battle, no real plot or even a real resolution. Rather Children of Earth and Sky seems to be a slice of life, the politics of empires and city-states, following a short period in the lives of characters integral to a few different threads spread throughout the continent.
I also question the usefulness of the sheer number of perspectives included, at times giving the plot a quasi-Rashomon feel. Were they filler? A way to establish the disparity between the city-states? I would have greatly preferred more of the main characters than a few paragraphs of a random character's point of view of their own death.
Overall, I enjoyed the book a lot. It was interesting and compelling, and it definitely made me interested in reading more of Kay's books.
