Ysabel is a fiction novel published in 2007 by Penguin Group. The novel was written by the Canadian author Guy Gavrill Kay and it is his tenth novel. The novel is critically acclaimed and has won the award for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 2008.
Guy Gavrill is known for his fantasy novels which are often characterized as being historical fiction because the action takes place in different countries all over the world in distant historical times. The novel Ysabel is different in the sense that it is not connected to any other novel that came before it and because it is set in a different time frame and different location than the novels before it.
The action takes place in Aix-en-Provence, a city in southern France where the author lived during the time he wrote the novel. The novel follows a fifteen year old boy who lives with his father and who one day meets Kate, an exchange student from America. The two then stumble into a story of love between two men competing for the love of Ysabel.
The novel focuses both on the ancient story of Ysabela and on the main character’s story and the struggles of his family. This combination made the novel stand out and it is no wonder that the novel became successful in a short period of time. In fact, it is considered as being Kay’s most successful novel.
