The Golden Key

An old favourite of mine, which puts art and painters at the heart of a complex, sprawling novel - a blend of fantasy, family saga and Gothic horror. With its compelling antihero (the kind you secretly cheer on) and its vivid evocation of a fictional world influenced by Spain and Italy, it's enjoyable and absorbing. It is also long (more than 1,000 pages in my edition) and you may find towards the end that you, like me, begin to think that the editors could have been a little more ruthless - but everything goes towards building the fabric of the world. The presence of three authors doesn't affect the book too much because it is structurally divided into three parts and they take one each. Personally I love the first section, setting the show more scene and bringing the characters to life in sumptuous rich language - laying the foundations of a story which crosses four hundred years, fuelled by ambition, jealousy and the desire to create a perfect painting. Recommended as an alternative to the usual sword-and-sorcery style of fantasy.

For a longer review, please visit my blog: http://theidlewoman.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-golden-key-melanie-rawn.html show less

It had been a while since I read this book (quite a few years, actually!) and I'd forgotten so much about it that it was almost like reading it again for the first time. There are some books that I reread after a long time that seem to lose a great amount of their appeal in the intervening time, but that was in no way true about The Golden Key.

I was still impressed with how well a book by three authors flows together so seamlessly, following Sario's single-minded goal of guiding Grijalva art out of obscurity to the pinnacle of perfection. At the same time, his very single-mindedness (and those actions he undertakes to insure his success) drive him ever deeper into madness, with his original purpose eventually so idealized and static show more that he doesn't even realize he will never be able to reach it in a world that is continually changing around him. show less

Sorcerer-painters frolic in a pseudo-Renaissance Italian city-state. The three authors split the book into three sections, and I liked each section about as much as I like each author. The first section felt repetitious and redundant; the second section combined candy-colored central characters with the wonderfully Machiavellian maneuverings of the villainous protagonist; and the third section was good but marred by wrapping up all the threads introduced in the first two sections. All together, it was...eh.

I finished [b:The Golden Key|257333|The Golden Key|Melanie Rawn|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51EKW8AXVML._SL75_.jpg|16050], after more than a month. It's the not fault of the book that it took me so long (although it is almost 900 pages and spans 400 years). Because there were days-long periods of time between readings, I don't know if my perceptions are that accurate. But I thought I could "feel" the differences in the sections that were written by each of the authors ([a:Melanie Rawn|8661|Melanie Rawn|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1223871368p2/8661.jpg], [a:Jennifer Roberson|8659|Jennifer Roberson|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1223871478p2/8659.jpg], and [a:Kate Elliott|8660|Kate show more Elliott|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1234969697p2/8660.jpg]). The middle section of the book was my favorite, and, to me, it seemed to flow the best, but again, that could be because I read most of that without long breaks in-between.

I have read other books by each of these authors and liked them a lot, so it's not surprising that I gave this book 9/10 on m personal rating scale.

What I liked: I found the system of magic to be original and unusual. Most of the characters were people I ended up caring about. Although there was an inevitability about the conclusion, it was satisfying and there were enoguth twists and turns along the way to keep it from being too predictable.

What I didn't like: I still am confused about the power of the Grijalva Gift vs. the power of the magic. I would like to know more about how the Tza'ab used the magic vs. how the Grijalvas used it. And the similarity of names used through the years, while very appropriate to the setting, made following the story challenging at times.

Let me finish by saying that I know this book was meant to be followed up by 3 volumes, each written by one of the authors of this book. That plan apparently was scrapped years ago, but perhaps some of my questions would have been answered if those books had been written. show less

This book is almost indescribably awesome! A truly unique story, with a a few very well developed characters in a fully realized world. The Grijalva Family has a secret. They are renowned artists in a world where fine art represents legally binding contracts. But they imbue their art with an ancient magic - to manipule time and reality with the paintings. Dorian Grey has come to a whole new level! Highly recommended!

The Golden Key is a fantasy novel set in a Iberian flavored fantasy world, written by Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson and Kate Elliott.

The Golden Key's universe and magic revolves around the use of art as a tool for communication, political power, and it turns out, arcane power as well. The novel is episodic, starting with the rise to power and the discovery of real power by a brilliant artist, Sario Grijalva of Tira Verte. The Grijalvas, after a tragedy years ago, have fallen from grace, power and are pitied, if not feared, by the population at large. Despite their talents with art, being a Grijalva is not an easy or particularly desirable life.

Sario, however, has ambition. This ambition leads him to the lair of a Tza'ab (stand in for show more Berbers or North Africans) living in the heart of the city. His secret power, combined with Sario's knowledge, leads Sario to discoveries to allow him to live in a serial fashion in other people's bodies...and to also imprison Saavendra, the cousin that he loves, in a portrait...

The novel then leapfrogs over the next centuries, as Sario's machinations in his various lives lead to a rise to power for the Grijalvas, even as political and other developments slowly change Tira Virte in ways that even Sario cannot predict and control.

Thus, in a 900 page novel, we really get a complete fantasy series, with a variety of characters strung out along the history of Tira Virte, with Sario and the portrait of Saavendra as the hooks that keep the story together. Add in the intriguing magic system (which any player in Amber would think of ideas for Trumps thereby), great characterization, and vivid writing, and mix well.

This could have been envisioned as an interminable fantasy series, but as one volume, the writing is crisp and rarely if ever flags. The three writers collaborate and write together seamlesly. The novel was a finalist for the World Fantasy Award, and after reading it, I have to wonder, just what novel managed to beat it for that prize.

I recommend it to epic fantasy fans unreservedly. show less

I made it about 400 pages into this book before deciding that life is too short to waste it reading sub-par books. As an artist and fantasy fiction lover, I really wanted to like this book, but it was too much small-time soap opera and not enough story. The idea is such a good one (being able to control people and events through painting), but it's wasted here. My first and likely last encounter with these three authors. (PS - my wife enjoyed this book, but she did characterize it as "chick-lit fantasy". Take that for what it's worth.)