Why is The Sarantine Mosaic by Guy Gavriel Kay on my TBR?
Guy Gavriel Kay
Guy Gavriel Kay is one of the more recognizable authors in fantasy. He is quite prolific fantasy author and he is a quite inspiring author, since may refer to him as their inspiration for fantasy.
I promise myself to read more Guy Gavriel Kay, ever since I read Tigana from him a few years back. I have been falling short of this commitment, despite reminding myself of this on a regular basis (for instance, I kept adding A Brightness Long Ago, a Renaissance inspired story, with a clever man as a protagonist). So, I have been making an effort on a constant basis.
Why the Sarantine Mosaic?
I recently watched Madison Goodyear’s episode about her mid-year review. In this video, she shared her love for the Sarantine Mosaic and, what I mostly remember, is that this is a duology that should be read back to back to fully enjoy the experience.
So which books belong to this duology? Sailing to Sarantium and Lord of Emperors.
Additional reasons for this choice?
Ratings: the stars on these books are incredible, both about 4 stars (out of 5). The only downer is that there is a relatively small amount of reviewers (each are, independently, below 1000 reviews on Goodreads and it is disappointing).
The blurb for Sailing to Sarantium also shares a few interesting nuggets.
Sailing: I am making an assumption that there will be sailing and ships and I have been searching for stories about sailing and sailors for a while.
Master artisan: Crispin - I assume being the protagonist - is a master mosaicist, according to the blurb. Until recently, I have not realized that I like the idea of exploring the lives of experts in creative fields. I wonder how one can describe a person as a master mosaicist, next to just stating it; so I am excited to read how this skill can be described it!
Alchemy: it seems that Crispin is on a secret mission from an alchemist. So does it mean that there is alchemy in this story? If so, this makes the story even more interesting for me; a pseudo science that was considered science for the longest time and it is a pretty interesting magic system to explore in any fantasy setting!
Political intrigue: it seems that there is political intrigue woven in this story; a wonderful city that hides a darker side of itself and it becomes a dangerous place? I do not need to hear much more than this!
Have you read this series? If so, comment down below with a sail emoji and let us know what are the highlights of the story and/or world building and/or characters for you!
If you did not read the Sarantine Mosaic, are you about to include it in your TBR? Is your interest sparkled?
