Top 20Internet Top 100 Short Stories Novellas, NovelettesHomeHugosNebulas P.K. Dick Locus Grand MastersNewberyWorld Fantasy

"I came across your article on Guy Gavriel Kay and in particular his novel Tigana. I was so taken by the novel and its portrayal of the adult ambiguities on such themes as good and evil that I am beginning a Play By E-Mail roleplaying game based on the novel. I came across your article whilst I was surfing for additional information on this topic, such as copyright law and perhaps even the author's e-mail address.

The notion that Brandin is an evil wizard is I think flawed. If Brandin has a defining trait it is that he loves too much. This is hardly an evil trait. That he lays a curse upon an entire country is an evil act. Nevertheless he does this to annihilate completely any noble sentiment that would pass down into history despite the death of his young son. Many losers are romanticised. I am Scots and for Scots losing is romantic in a maudlin kind of way especially in soccer. Also, look at the feeling in the USA surounding the Confederacy. Brandin's act is a parents rage taken to an extreme. However to simply label him as evil is an oversimplification as, on any issue not related to the death of his son, he is portrayed as a wise and thoughtful ruler. The term "evil wizard' would however be an accurate description of Alberico the Sorcerer whose invasion brought Brandin to the palm in the first place." - Ian Gordon 3/7/00

"I don't understand where you developped this thing about Guy Gavriel Kay and J.R.R. Tolkien. I did not find _Tigana_ remotely Tolkienesque. If you want to stretch that much, you could easily find a Sauron, Gandalf, Mordor, Gollum, and even a Tom Bombadil (sp?) in Stephen R. Donaldson's _Chronicles of Thomas Covenant_. If you really want a Tolkien knock-off read Terry Brook's _The Sword of Shannara_. I found _Tigana_ to be very captivating. Having the two separate empires battling against each other and the protagonists added a unique flavor. Also, Kay is highly skilled at running multiple story lines, as seen in both _Tigana_ and _The Fionavar Tapestry_. I very much liked the characters in _Tigana_, with the exception of the Tiganan Prince who irritated me. Brandin is actually among my top five fantasy characters. I would not call him an evil Wizard at all. Enemy Wizard is much more fitting. I thought he would have made a better ruler of the Palm than wassisname -- the Tiganan Prince. Brandin is the best main character I have ever encountered with that level of power, who could draw sympathy from the reader. It is a refreshingly novel example of somebody being in control of so much power, yet still being powerless.

You also sell _Tigana_ short on its depth. I think there are _major_ statements made about revenge (Brandin) hatred (The brother of Brandin's consort) and ambition (Alberico (sp?) who is the true evil wizard) Kay's theme of love -- Brandin's Consort -- is one of the most believable I have encountered. Ideas on true love seem to enter all his works (Arthur, Guen, and Lancelot plus Diarmuid and the Princess in TFT, the two Dukes and wassername in _A Song for Arbonne_) Hmmmm, I seem to be using 'best', 'most', etc quite a bit. I will agree with you that the main plot is rather predictable, and there is the the occassional bit of unnecessary sexual explicitness, but the other story lines, and Kay's writing style easily makes up for that." - Charles Bertrand 11/11/98

I didn't really think Tigana was like the Lord of the Rings , it was The Fionavar Tapestry. It seemed almost the same situations with the characters in modern clothes. I liked Tigana much better as well as The Lions of Al-Rassan.

There is a reason why all his books made your top 100.

Yes, but The Top 100 list is based on votes and there often seems to be a discrepency between what's popular and what's really good. (cf. Robert Jordan)