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The Lions of Al-Rassan

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The Lions of Al-Rassan

Written by: Guy Gavriel Kay
Narrated by: Euan Morton
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The ruling Asharites of Al-Rassan have come from the desert sands, but over centuries, seduced by the sensuous pleasures of their new land, their stern piety has eroded. The Asharite empire has splintered into decadent city-states led by warring petty kings. King Almalik of Cartada is on the ascendancy, aided always by his friend and advisor, the notorious Ammar ibn Khairan - poet, diplomat, soldier - until a summer afternoon of savage brutality changes their relationship forever.

Meanwhile, in the north, the conquered Jaddites' most celebrated - and feared - military leader, Rodrigo Belmonte, driven into exile, leads his mercenary company south.

In the dangerous lands of Al-Rassan, these two men from different worlds meet and serve - for a time - the same master. Sharing their interwoven fate - and increasingly torn by her feelings - is Jehane, the accomplished court physician, whose own skills play an increasing role as Al-Rassan is swept to the brink of holy war, and beyond.

Hauntingly evocative of medieval Spain, The Lions of Al-Rassan is both a brilliant adventure and a deeply compelling story of love, divided loyalties, and what happens to men and women when hardening beliefs begin to remake - or destroy - a world.

©1995 Guy Gavriel Kay (P)2012 Audible, Inc. Classics Fantasy Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Royalty
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this book was hard for me to keep all the characters separate in my head. large cast of characters and most of the names were very similar to hear. good story tho and I generally laught out loud in public listening to it.

needs a map

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The ending of this one took my breath away. Really. Spend your time with it. You won’t be disappointed

Always sad when guy’s novels end

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Great story and narration! Guy Gavriel Kay's stories never disappoint. I would highly this title.

Excellent

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They way Kay makes you love these characters is captivating and even though you know that the final conflict is coming the beauty of the story let's your heart willingly follow the writer as he leads you into the inevitable

moving

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This is a grand, sweeping epic set on a fantasy world with two moons, though clearly strongly inspired by medieval Spain and the religious conflicts of those times. The plot centers around the conflicts between the three main religions of Ashar (worshipers of the Stars), Jad (worshipers of the Sun) and Kindath (worshipers of the Two Moons). The Kindath are the more oppressed of the three (rather strongly aligned with Jews) while the other two seem to represent a conflict similar to Christianity vs Islam. As the Kindath physician Jehane meets Ammar ibn Khairan, Ashar warrior and poet, and Ser Rodrigo Belmonte, renowned Jad captain, they develop a deep friendship and fight together as a mercenary force while in exile. Once their exile ends, however, they are forced into opposing sides of a great religious war. The "lions of Al-Rassan" refers to the once-powerful Asharite emperors of the lands of Al-Rassan, but that empire is now splintered and fallen and the lands of Al-Rassan are now contested by the Jaddites. I believe however that the "Lions of Al-Rassan" in the title also comes to apply to the two opposing warriors, Ammar and Rodrigo, who come face to face in battle towards the end to decide the fate of Al-Rassan for the future. If you enjoy grand-scale, sweeping political and military stories you will likely enjoy this a lot. I had read it long ago, and enjoyed refreshing my memory with the Audiobook version, however I did find that sometimes the different foreign names are a bit confusing in the Audiobook without being able to see the different spellings in print. #Audible1

A sweeping epic fantasy inspired by medieval Spain

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