A Song for Arbonne

An alternate world

A powerful story, rich in history and detail, despite not being set in any real historical events.

Yes, the first half an hour is a tad hard to follow, with a tremendous amount of new characters being rapidly introduced in a complex mish mash of time and geography. However, once events start unfolding, the story brims with magic and detail, and you find yourself engrossed. By the way, I don't mean magic in the fantastical sense of the word. I mean that Kay has created an alternate world, different from our own, and yet not so foreign that it doesn't ring true. It is simply a complex, rich place with traditions and beliefs and coincidences that start to weave together in a way that is full of mystery, awe and beauty... as well as a great deal of ugliness and hate.

The singing is wonderful, really filling out the politics, religion and geography of the region that start to feel familiar and tangible half way through the book. The mass of characters fill out, becoming very discernable individuals, clashing and coming together to tell this story. The story seems simple, but is brought together in a complex way.

Wonderful narration. And the singing! Superb.

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First 50 pages makes it 4 not 5 stars

Ok, I will admit to being a bit of a GGK fanboy. I love his work almost universally. I even have his book of poetry (I treasure it.)
That being said I found Last Light of the Sun hard to get into and the intro to the mosaic books very confusing.
Now that you know were I stand I will address A Song for Arbonne. The beginning of this book is tough. There are a lot of characters with strange names introduced very fast. This is hard to handle in the printed version. I found that with the wonderful character voices used in the audio version actual names became less important than knowing who was who from there voice. Buy the time the story gets rolling you learn the names.
The descriptive writing in this book is breath taking. People and places come to life. If you are a fan of music and the idea that something as everyday as a song can change the world this book is for you.
Often in audio books male readers butcher the female characters. I think this narrator did as good of a job with the females as the males. Multiple characters sing, both girls and boys, and they were all very well done. I really liked the slight but present troubadour style that was applied to the singing.
To sum up: A little hard at the very beginning but well worth the effort.

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My favorite audio book.

This is my favorite performance of a book. For me what sets it apart is that the verses are sung instead of spoken. I read the book years ago, and it has always been one of my favorites, but Euan Morton's reading, and singing, of it really brought Arbonne alive for me with it's Court of Love and the exalting of Troubadours... He just brought out the different cultures that Guy Kay had created in a way that made them understandable to me. A great book written by Guy Kay, and read by Euan Morton...

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I kept driving around the block!

I listened to this book driving back and forth to work...there were days I drove miles out of my way! I did not realize that I would love this type of story much. The language is beautiful.

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Another Amazing Book by Guy Gavriel Kay

This is a beautiful, complex novel set in a fictional mediaeval world, probably the same world as his Sarantine series, but in a different area. Like most books by this author, the characters are complex, and the plot weaves richly together towards a stunning ending. It is very well read. Highly recommended.

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Beautifull Written Tale!

Where does A Song for Arbonne rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is a top ranked story. I can't possibly give books a number rank, I've listened to too many. I'll go with percentages. This is a top ten percent book. I've never listened to or read anything by Kay, but I'll be diving into his works after this one.

What did you like best about this story?

The shadowing of history. This book mirrors, in a fantasy world, the Albigensian Crusade and the story of the Cathars.

Which character – as performed by Euan Morton – was your favorite?

Blaise definitely, but his women were soft and well done. No annoying high pitched voices or impressions that he was trying too hard.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It made me sigh. At the end. Because it was over.

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Heartbreaking, Beautiful, Wonderful

Though it has received much less recognition than say, The Lions of Al-Rassan, I actually think A Song for Arbonne might be my favorite of GGK's works. So powerful and moving. Beautifully, BEAUTIFULLY read (and sung!) by Euan Morton. This is not light reading, but you will not want to put it down.

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No brainer, amazing buy!!!!

What made the experience of listening to A Song for Arbonne the most enjoyable?

The main character and his development are exceptional.

What did you like best about this story?

The characters and unexpected plot twists... and some of the expected ones.

What about Euan Morton’s performance did you like?

He is consistent with his characters and even made the short singing parts worth hearing.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, you have to pay too close attention to listen for very long periods.

Any additional comments?

Excellent use of a credit.

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Wonderful!

Stunning depth & breadth of story masterfully interpreted & performed by Euan Morton . Likely to start the tale again & enjoy it differently with a second
reading. Cheers!

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Jongleur not "juggler"

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Wonderful book, brilliantly performed. My only problem was the pronunciation of what I assume was meant to be "jongleur". It is not, I repeat, not "joggler". And indeed I would recommend this book to friends, and have done so.

Which character – as performed by Euan Morton – was your favorite?

This narrator was generally terrific. One of the few with the ability to render both male and female voices in a believable way.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes. Some moments moved me to tears.

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