Written on the Dark

From the bestselling author of the groundbreaking novels Tigana and Under Heaven

By: Guy Gavriel Kay

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Both epic and intimate, Written on the Dark is an elegant tour de force about power and ambition playing out amid the equally intense human need for art and beauty, and memories to be left behind.

Thierry Villar is a well-known - even notorious - tavern poet, intimately familiar with the rogues and shadows of that world, but not at all with courts and power. He is an unlikely person, despite his quickness, to be swept into the deadly contests of ambitious royals, assassins, and invading armies.

But he is indeed drawn into all these things on a savagely cold night in his beloved city of Orane. And so Thierry must use all the intelligence and charm he can muster as power struggles merge with a decades-long war to bring his country to the brink of destruction.

As he does, he meets his poetic equal in an aristocratic woman and is drawn to more than one unsettling person with a connection to the world beyond this one. He also crosses paths with an extraordinary young woman driven by voices within to try to heal the ailing king - and help his forces in war. A wide and varied set of people from all walks of life take their places in the rich tapestry of this story.©2025 Guy Gavriel Kay

Critic reviews

An absolutely astonishing novel about poetry, and war, and what it means to be human, by our greatest living writer of the fantastic. Written on the Dark shines with its own unearthly light: Guy Gavriel Kay has given us, quite simply, a masterpiece

Kay is a genius. I've read him all my life and am always inspired by his work

Guy Gavriel Kay has a wonderful talent. He tells stories in an invented world that is so rich in historical echoes that I found myself smiling with pleasure as I heard the echoes, while engrossed in the story. Warmly recommended

Tragic, stirring, romantic, meticulous, comic, rueful, worldly-wise, and written in the intimate, deceptively nonchalant voice of a storyteller offering up his great gift, All the Seas of the World is classic Kay, and to his reader, at least, there can be no higher praise

As with any Kay book, there is beauty of language and intelligent observations. This is a book to be savoured . . . This is a book that I will continue to think about for days to come

In addition to being a profound meditation on history, identity, and the human condition, this novel stands as a testament to Kay's unparalleled storytelling

A tale that combines intrigue, mystery, mysticism and romance in one satisfying feast. . . . Will appeal as much to those who enjoy historical novels as to those who love fantasy. It is all so deftly done!

Just great storytelling

Enjoyable characters in interesting situations. I always find Kay’s work satisfying. A parallel world well drafted.