Ysabel

Ysabel

This book is so brilliantly written that I couldn't put it down. The author was able to weave history and fantasy together so precisely that you actually believe that the story is real.

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

What a Book!

this story has everything!!!!! at the beginning I was not expecting much, but as soon I started reading I was not able to stop for a second...

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

French Da Vinci Code

This was an interestingly original book with twists & turns. Not as deep as the Da Vinci Code, which makes it an easier & quicker book to read. I loved it because of it's originality.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

terrific contemporary fantasy

Renowned Canadian photographer Edward Marriner takes his teenage son Ned with him as he shoots the medieval constructed Saint-Sauveur Cathedral in Aix-en-Provence. Though enjoying their Southern France locale, the male Marinners worry about the females in the family, Ned¿s mom and Edward¿s wife Meghan, a Doctors Without Borders volunteer, currently serving in the dangerous Sudan. While exploring a centuries old cathedral without a guide, Ned meets American exchange student, Kate Wenger, a ¿Wikepedia¿ of local historical information. The self-proclaimed female geek takes Ned on a tour of the cathedral, but whereas she sees mystery and beauty he sees a mess of old rocks. However at the baptistry, circa 500 AD, a man who does not belong there holding a knife warns them to leave, as this not a safe place for children to play. However, unable to depart, Ned and Kate become entangled in an ancient love triangle that could prove deadly to the two teenage twenty-first century intruders. --- YSABEL is a terrific contemporary fantasy with a historical base that grips the audience once the teen explorers meet the man with the knife and never slows down through a series of clever twists until the final event involving two sisters directly related to Ned. The story line is fast-paced and filled with historical depth especially involving the Cathedral and the love triangle, but also contains a strong cast whether they lived in ancient times or today. The final spin will stun the audience as Guy Gavriel Kay ties everything brilliantly together in an enthralling enlightening epic. --- Harriet Klausner

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Fabulous read!

Things are interesting from the get-go! Guy gives you an obscure few pages at the beginning, but then plunges you right in! It's hard to take a breath once Ned discovers what he should or shouldn't have in that wonderful cathedral!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Original & Amazing

This author's imagination & mind never ceases to amaze and enthral me. Another great work!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A Treasure for Kay Readers

Oh, what a gift. For those of us who have read and re-read the Fionavar Tapestry and wished for more, this was such a lovely gift. Anytime Kay publishes a book, it's a celebration of prose, but this was all of that and a long-awaited homecoming as well.

The story is freah and interesting, and we are enveloped in intrigue and mystery on a contemporary plane while becoming intimately involved in an eternal saga. The emotions in this book were rare and invited us to be empathetic with all of the characters.

Heart-breaking and astonishing, this was absolutely the most perfect conclusion to the Fionavar tapestry that I could never have imagined.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

At first, I thought this book would be another DaVinci Code like story (which, quite frankly, is the reason I bought it), but I was soon disproved---at least for the most part. Regardless, I was not only captivated, but totally enthralled by it's engaging plot. I recommend this book to everyone.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Uninteresting characters, silly plot.

I'm struggling to finish this book, due to it's poorly plotted story and few of the characters are interesting enough to care what is in their future.

I have a grandson this age, and the author has failed to make his protagonist believable as a fifteen year old boy. Further, his female characters lack dimension and likability.

Based on some of the reviews, I thought this would be a much better book then it actually is, and although I really like original fantasy, I don't believe I would read any of this author's other work.

You got to read!

This was an amazing book. I love the mystery, suspense, and love. I love when a book throws you for a loop and surprises you at the end, and everything just falls into place! Great book!

Excellent!!

The author has a wonderful writing style that draws you right into the world of this book, with vivid imagery and wonderful characters. Although this book reveals, through the seen and unseen worlds, the beauty of the Provence area as well as its gruesome and bloody history; it is ultimately a story of a love that lasts lifetimes and a family. A family with ties to both worlds and an intensely complicated history stretching back millennia.

disappointing

THis book sounded as if it had all the potential for a very interesting read mixing historical fiction, time travel, Provence, and magic. However, after 150 pages I found that I no longer was interested in what would happen to the main character. It felt long-the story never seemed to really "take off". The main teenage charcter left me turned off. There were some interesting and amusing scenes but not enough to hold my interest.

1st Kay read-not impressed

This was the first Guy Kay novel I have read and I was disappointed. Th book does engage the reader and moves at a quick pace, although I felt confused at the purpose of many events in the book. The story felt unorganized, the character development to me was poor. The story and the characters were not believable for me. The dialogue was awkward to me as well. I think this book was translated so that may be why some of the dialogue seemed off. I didn't feel that the ending explained the relationship to the present and past characters very clearly. You get the idea, but you feel like you need more of an explanation.

Interesting, but I expect more from Kay

After reading many of Kay's previous novels, I had high expectations for this book. I was disappointed though by its lack of depth. Characters from his previous novels do surface, but I felt like those who had not read the other novels would miss out on a lot of the nuances of the novel. The author seems to try a little to hard to force himself into the mindset of a teenage boy, and the effect was detrimental to the story. It felt like every other line the boy was listening to some mainstream band on his ipod. The plot was interesting though, and I found myself most interested in the characters from the past, and not very connected to the main characters of the present. All in all, a good read, but not his best.

maybe good for young adult genre

I expected a more intricate and exciting Roman/Celt historical drama. Character development was not strong on the past side. Writing style which seemed to help character development on the present side unfortunately did not suit my taste, which though might appeal to younger readers (teenagers). But of course "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon" by Steven King would have by far excelled as a young adult read.

Loved it

Great book, just read it =)

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Not my usual fare, but I tore through it.

This is a Highlander-like story set in Provence. I was hooked by the historical fiction aspect as well as the setting, and the book moves very fast. It's odd that I am not rating it higher considering how fast I tore through it, but as much as I enjoyed it, I found it a little lacking. Consider it a good, light escape, but don't expect literary genius.

An Entertaining Read

This is one of those books that is not an all-time favorite, but is an entertaining read if you're an avid reader who always must have something going. It started off a little rocky for me - jumped into things very suddenly, I felt - but is worth sticking with it because it turns into a really good story. And once I got far enough in, I couldn't put it down because I wanted to find out what would happen.

A good rainy day read

The plot was good but a bit weak. The characters were interesting and there were enough (most predictable) twists to the story line. I'm happy it was a bargain book, I would have been upset if I had paid full price. Still, it was a perfect one day read in the stormy weather we were having. This was my first purchase from this author.

A reviewer

Kay's 'Fionavar Tapestry' trilogy are three of my favorite books ever - I can read them over and over. That being said, Ysabel is terribly disappointing. The plot is non-existent and the characters are completely plastic - no personality or life at all. Kay found perfection with his earlier works - and perhaps should have stopped there.