The Recurring Cast
Character guide · 14 books · 1984 to 2022

Guy Gavriel Kay

FantasyEpic and high fantasyHistorical and mythic fantasy

Guy Gavriel Kay began with the Fionavar Tapestry, in which five Toronto students cross into the first of all worlds. He then turned to historical fantasy, writing standalone novels set in thinly veiled versions of Byzantium, Moorish Spain, Tang China and Renaissance Italy.

Best estimate, compiled from series guides, publisher descriptions and reviews where available, and from memory otherwise. Book level only, not chapter level. Minor includes cameos and brief references. Each book carries a confidence rating in its tooltip. Kay's later novels are standalones that share a world; leads are charted per book.

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Who appears in which book

Click a name to follow that character from book to book, or a book title to see its cast.

LLeadMMajor·MinorHas a note
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Guy Gavriel Kay books in order

Each series in publication order, with its lead characters. Where the story runs in a different order, switch to Story order. Crossover books are marked and listed under their main series. Use My books to track what you have read.

Fionavar Tapestry

3 books · Set in invented worldsEpic and high fantasy
  1. 1The Summer Tree1984With Kimberly Ford and Paul SchaferBuy on Amazon
  2. 2The Wandering Fire1986With Kimberly Ford and Paul SchaferBuy on Amazon
  3. 3The Darkest Road1986With Kimberly Ford and Paul SchaferBuy on Amazon

Sarantine Mosaic

2 books · Set in invented worldsHistorical and mythic fantasy
  1. 1Sailing to Sarantium1998With CrispinBuy on Amazon
  2. 2Lord of Emperors2000With CrispinBuy on Amazon

Kitai

2 books · Set in invented worldsHistorical and mythic fantasy
  1. 1Under Heaven2010With Shen TaiBuy on Amazon
  2. 2River of Stars2013With Ren DaiyanBuy on Amazon

Standalone

7 books · Set in invented worldsHistorical and mythic fantasy
  1. 1Tigana1990With DevinBuy on Amazon
  2. 2A Song for Arbonne1992Buy on Amazon
  3. 3The Lions of Al-Rassan1995With Rodrigo Belmonte and Jehane bet IshakBuy on Amazon
  4. 4The Last Light of the Sun2004Buy on Amazon
  5. 5Children of Earth and Sky2016With Danica GradekBuy on Amazon
  6. 6A Brightness Long Ago2019With Danio CerraBuy on Amazon
  7. 7All the Seas of the World2022With Nadia bint RafelBuy on Amazon

Characters

15 recurring and key characters, with the book each one first appears in.

Fionavar

Sarantium

Kitai

Standalone leads