Reviews

The Palace Job by Patrick Weekes

seshoptaw's review against another edition

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3.5

3.5 *

I loved the idea of this book.  The set-up sounded like so much fun and I was delighted by the idea of getting a team of unique individuals together for a heist, including 2 military-trained (but dishonorably discharged) scouts, an illusionist/wizard, a death priestess, a unique warhammer, a unicorn, and a rather random young man that doesn’t appear, at first, to have any unique or helpful abilities.  What could possibly go wrong?? 

I can’t say I didn’t enjoy this book at all, because I did.  There were parts that made me laugh out loud (and good humor in books <i>always</i> gets me), including repeated “your mom” jokes (which are hilarious).  At the same time, the author did a wonderful job balancing the humorous moments with the gravity and drama that other moments required. This book could be very clever and I adored most of the main characters.  The book was also pretty fast-paced (aside from a slower start and a few moments that dragged a little later on) and the fantasy world we’re introduced to is very fantastical.  

Watching the team make plans and have them constantly fall through due to extenuating circumstances was also really fun to watch.  Not every plan goes the way you think it will and watching them adapt and overcome by outsmarting and outmaneuvering their enemies was smartly done.  

However, this book could also be very confusing.  When I think about some of the “greats” (or at least, who I personally consider great) and how they’ve delivered and explained a completely new world to their readers, I’m afraid Patrick Weekes didn’t measure up as much as I’d hoped he would.  References were made regarding machines, devices, history, and political opposition without a lot of explanation and the details that I think were needed to really immerse myself into this fantasy world just wasn’t there.  Information is doled out fleetingly and nothing is explained in depth.  I never really understood the world the author created, and that’s kind of a problem.  

I also <i>hated</i> the puppets.  I thought that the idea was goofy.  Children sitting down to watch a puppet show, sure.  But I just don’t see this being much entertainment for the adults and then when you add the political situations going on (which you learn about through the puppets), I just found it silly and childish.  

I can also struggle at times with constantly changing viewpoints, which this book has a lot of.  Although not a deal breaker, it wasn’t exactly a plus for me either.  

I would recommend this book, because I still enjoyed it a lot – especially the funny bits.  And I look forward to reading book #2.

geliopoulos's review against another edition

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3.0

im bumping this down to like a 3.5 only because i know how drastically they course correct on ululenia in the next book

highlanderajax's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

It's a decent enough read, nothing wrong with it, and it reaches for the fun vibes that we get from The Malevolent Seven, Kings of the Wyld, Dungeons And Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. That's always cool.

However, it doesn't quite hit. It's not bad, but it's just a bit...off. It doesn't quite have the easy charm that the others do, it always feels a little bit tough to get through. The pace is also off - it spends a LONG time on parts that I feel could realistically have been about half the length early on, and it makes the back end feel rushed. Twists, turns and reveals all happen within a couple of pages and it leaves you kind of rolling your eyes and waiting for the denoument.

Weekes' writing is strong enough, but the characters are a little one-note, and this book is so set on setting up the plot that it kind of forgets to have most of it happen - it moves from setup into almost-concluded very very fast. 

That being said, the actual climax of the book is good fun. It's too rushed, but it's entertaining and enjoyable. I'm between a 3.5 and 3.25 here, and it all hinges on whether I'd actually pick up the sequel. I don't think I would - it's a fun world, and a lot of entertaining potential here, but I feel like I'd have to have picked it up immediately to care about the characters and happenings. 

funkeylock's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

themanfromdelmonte's review against another edition

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2.0

It's a heist and it takes its own sweet time to get going. So it's overlong. There's reveal after reveal after reveal and they start to lose their impact after a while.
That said, the dialogue's quite good and did make me laugh out loud a couple of times. Stilestin's zombie grandad was a nice touch.

blipsk's review against another edition

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2.0

Found the pacing a bit rushed and too many characters without enough time spent developing most of them. Story was okay, entertaining and lots of action, but no atmosphere and it didn't evoke any emotional response. I just didn't really care what was happening.

wardsmith's review against another edition

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adventurous

3.75

guyro's review against another edition

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4.0

I'm not a big fan of his deceptions, it feels like he's trying to write terry pratchett style and is not bad per se, just not hitting the spot (afterall, Terry is like the best descriptive writer ever) but by good can this guy write some killer dialogue

I was half way through the book before realising my problem with it, the descriptive writing feels off kilter while in contrast the dialogue is silly good

but the story is really good, and the dialogue is incredible, it just feels like he has half attempted to make a deep magical world of his own and has mentioned loads of thigns without explaining them - if he hadn't mentioned them it wouldn't be a deep fantasy book but without detailing them leaves us not knowing - only thing stopping this book getting 5.5

alikatson's review against another edition

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5.0

4.5

Despite what I found a bit confusing and disjointed start this book came together wonderfully and it was incredibly funny and entertaining. I think the start was too choppy - some POV were only 2 paragraphs and I actually missed some with the audio so I went back and re-read the first few chapters.

Once the characters are established the story really starts to pick up! The group go from one disaster (or is it?) to the next and they adapt rolling with the punches. I kept thinking, how on earth will this end? The laughs rarely stopped.

The audio was really fantastic! I do recommend doing Whispersync as I mentioned before the beginning is a bit confusing and the story does move along at a fast pace so having the print when I needed it was helpful.

Oh I also forgot - I could have used a bit more on screen romance, though. I mean there is some build up and it was fade to black or implied. Boo!

Overall it was a great book!

kayteeem's review against another edition

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Enjoyed the book. If you're in the mood for a madcap caper with a cast of characters ranging from disgraced army scouts, an illusionist, a priestess of death, a talking warhammer and a unicorn, all of whom bring their particular skills to the task, you'll find this a fun one.

My only complaints are that the action really was non-stop. There are very few places to catch your breath and regroup between all the twists and turns in the plot. And every time you think you know what's going on, there's yet another twist to somebody's motivation, or something you thought was true was just a feint.