Now that I've revived this thread, I'm not going to let it drop again that easily..........
Pavane by
Keith Roberts
This is an example of a well-established genre of SF/fantasy - “alternate history”. In this setting, Queen Elizabeth 1st of England was assassinated, The Spanish Armada invaded and the power of the Catholic Church remained supreme throughout the globe. The result is a world where technological progress has been stifled and the writ of the Pope is the supreme authority.
The book itself is a series of linked episodes where characters lives and actions contribute, to a greater or lesser extent, to cataclysmic changes in this imagined world. In contrast with
Virconium which shares some of the same characteristics and structure as
Pavane, Robert’s book is a pleasure to read. His characters are three-dimensional and he manages to make you care what happens to them. The world he has placed them in is utterly plausible given the premise that has lead to its evolution, and the events in which they are involved keep you engrossed until the end. This book even has a touch of mysticism to keep fantasy fans happy
.
Perhaps this book is best summed up in the words of the author Brian W. Aldiss :-
"A rare and beautiful novel"