Publication Date: May 27th, 2025
Hardcover. 320 pages.
Thierry Villar is a well-known—even notorious— tavern poet, familiar with the rogues and shadows of that world, but not at all with courts and power. He is an unlikely person, despite his quickness, to be caught up in the deadly contests of ambitious royals, assassins, and invading armies.
But he is indeed drawn into all these things on a savagely cold night in his beloved city of Orane. And so Thierry must use all the intelligence and charm he can muster as political struggles merge with a decades-long war to bring his country to the brink of destruction.
As he does, he meets his poetic equal in an aristocratic woman and is drawn to more than one unsettling person with a connection to the world beyond this one. He also crosses paths with an extraordinary young woman driven by voices within to try to heal the ailing king—and help his forces in war. A wide and varied set of people from all walks of life take their places in the rich tapestry of this story.
A new masterwork from the internationally bestselling author of All the Seas of the World, A Brightness Long Ago, and Tigana, Written on the Dark is an elegant tour de force about power and ambition playing out amid the intense human need for art and beauty, and memories to be left behind."
I have been meaning to read Guy Gavriel Kay's work for an incredibly long time, but I have yet to actually read one of his books (I know, I know). When I had the opportunity to read and review a copy of his latest release, Written on the Dark, I jumped at the chance to finally get my feet wet and dive into his work. And I was not disappointed. I feel like this was a very solid fantasy with splendid writing that didn't necessarily bring anything new to the genre, but still felt very much like a strong story that provided an interesting plot, compelling characters, and an intriguing world.
I think what I found myself really loving was the historical and fantasy mix. Kay really captures that historical fantasy feel, and it's clear that he has spent many years honing his craft, which also makes me even more excited to try out more of his work (finally). I have a feeling that this is not Guy Gavriel Kay's best work, and that's okay because I think it just means his other work is even better.
We follow Thierry Villar, who is somewhat drawn into something a bit bigger than he anticipated. Thierry Villar is a poet who uses his words and wit to make statements and share his experiences in life. He has no real experience with politics and power, but as he is drawn more and more into this plot, he finds himself learning more and more about this world, and also about the rest of the world at large. I loved seeing him interact with an entire varying cast of characters and seeing how he navigated all of the new situations he found himself in.
I also noticed that Kay seems to really be interested in characters that are not just his main characters, and by that I mean that he spends time on various minor characters. He describes them in ways that I felt brought life to the world and the surrounding setting, making it more than just one story following a few characters. Everything feels fleshed out and intricately created in ways that I felt really enhanced the reading experience. The only downside is that I found myself feeling a bit confused or lost at times because of how many different names seemed to be thrown around at first and it took a while to get to my grounding in this world. But even with that, I really don't have too many negatives to throw out that took away from my reading experience.
Guy Gavriel Kay's writing is not at all inaccessible, but it is thoughtful and written in such a way that I found it critical to really pay attention to each word presented and notice small details here and there that brought the story to life. He is very much a wordsmith and I appreciated getting to experience his world and mind through his writing.
Overall, Written on the Dark was a great introduction to Guy Gavriel Kay's writing for me, and I'm sure longtime readers will also appreciate it.
