The Darkest Road: The Fionavar Tapestry, Book 3

It's a shame Guy Gavriel Kay didn't write his version of the Arthur legend. It's here, along with so many other bits and pieces of other mythologies (familiar and not so familiar). And that's the problem with "The Fionavar Tapestry" trilogy; there's just too much! It's impossible to completely follow or fully feel involved in the myriad threads of this tapestry. The reader (or listener) finds hints of Arthur, of Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, of Greek, Norse, Roman, and Celtic myth.

Kay's language, always poetic, ranges from moving and high-flown to faintly ridiculous. Simon Vance presents it all with conviction, but the relentless drama and absolute lack of humor in this saga makes it, in the end, tedious and a little pretentious.

I will remain a fan of Guy Gavriel Kay, but I cannot recommend committing to "The Fionavar Tapestry".

The mission to Cader Sedat was a success. Metran, the traitorous former First Mage of Brenin, has been slain and the Cauldron of Kath-Meigol has been destroyed. But the war against Maugrim is still ongoing. The Armies of Light have barely beaten back the first assault and only then with the intervention of the unpredictable Wild Hunt, led now by the child Finn. Meanwhile te voyagers from Cader Sedat must still sail back to Fionavar. Finally the quest of Kim Ford, that being to rescue the besieged Paraiko, the peaceable giants of Kath-Meigol, seems overtaken by disaster. And even if she wins through to the place where the giants are slowly and bloodlessly being put to death so as to avoid the ancient Blood Curse protecting their race, she may not be able to save them without also undoing them.
Into the midst of all this comes Darien, the child born of Jennifer Lowell, now revealed to in fact be Queen Guinevere of Camelot, and Rakoth Maurim himself, Devastated by Finn's unexpected departure and convinced that nobody wants him, the newest Andain seems bent on journeying to Starcadh, where he hopes his father will welcome him. Te board is set and te pieces upon it are moving toward the last move that will spell the end of the war one way or another. Can the Armies of Light withstand the overwhelming might of Maugrim? And what of Darien? Will he choose the Light and possibly save the lives of everyone else? Or will he embrace the darkness and make his father's victory complete?
Once again this was an excellent tale and a worthy conclusion to the Tapestry. And Simon Vance as usual does an excellent job bringing it to life. I wholeheartedly recommend it.

After listening to and enjoying the first two books in this series, I was looking forward to hearing the conclusion of the story. Unfortunately the author seems to have become tangled in all the intricate plots and sub-plots to the point where almost nothing happens but the characters just stand around while he explains what they are thinking and why they are thinking it and what they might do if they thought that they were thinking about something other than what they were thinking, etc., etc. It's too bad because the story has plenty of potential for action and I suppose that if I were more patient I would be rewarded by finishing the book, but I can't bring myself to listening for another five hours in hope of that. It's not easy to write a critical review, but you would be better to forget this book and enjoy some of his others.

This trilogy is not on a par with "Under Heaven" --also by Kay --but it is quite good. This is the best of the 3.

A fitting end to an entirely bardic and BIG sort of tale.