There are things to be learned from questions, beyond the answers to the question.

I expected Lions of Al-Rassan to be a challenge but I was up for the task. I had read Tigana from Guy Gavriel Kay earlier, thoroughly enjoyed it and was hoping for another enjoyable book.

Unfortunately I found Lions to be dull. Perhaps it was the historical fiction nature of the story or the characters but I didn't enjoy reading the book or look to find extra time in the day to get through chapters. My biggest grievance was the difficulty in identifying and placing characters. Everyone was properly introduced but I would jumble the names and not realize the significance of two side characters talking or their interwoven plots until the chapter was over or gloss over it completely.

There were some highlights in the book but they were in between long stretches where I wasn't engaged, so in the end this book was just okay for me and I will pick my next Guy Gavriel Kay book carefully knowing that historical fiction may not be the genre for me.