Any book which starts with a funeral and a market delayed by a missing horse has to be interesting.

Every now and again in The Last Light of the Sun, despite its strange customs and unfamiliar names you find yourself thinking you recognise its setting, like a well-known landscape viewed in a strange light.

It is based, loosely, on England in the ninth century. Alfred is there, so are Vikings, Celts and wood sprites. But they are not as they appear in the history books and the dominant religious icon is not a Cross but a disc.

This is an emerging genre of fantasy - historical fantasy - without the wizards, magic and dragons that throng more traditional fantasy. It has to rely more on character development than magical effects and is stronger for it.

Kay takes history and twists it into a vivid, often callous, dreamland.

His writing is sparse and his descriptions short and to the point, though he does like to sermonise every now and again. The main themes keep driving on and you find yourself identifying with the characters and wanting them to overcome their horrendous problems: the young man who sees his brother's soul condemned, the son shamed by his father's crime.

A good escapist book.

Updated: 09:02 Wednesday, April 14, 2004