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josiah17's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
"When people have run out of food and hope and places to hide, do not be surprised if they have also run out of mercy."
Gang wars in a fantasy setting from the perspective of the boss, Tomas Piety. This is a solid book one to a series. It's certainly a setup book, and there's some monotony in the reconstruction of Piety's gang. But I enjoyed this enough and I will definitely continue the series.
The actual prose is decent overall, but the writing and structure as a whole makes this book so incredibly readable. I read it at such a quick pace while still digesting and retaining everything that was occurring. McLean also gives Tomas Piety such a distinctive narrative voice which I quite enjoyed. He's seen some stuff, and that's reflected through his view of the world and how he controls his gang. However, one downside to McLean's writing in first person, at least so far, is most of the side characters don't feel as fleshed out as they could be. Bloody Anne, Luka, and Ailsa were definitely the best written, and Jochan receives a bit of a backstory that makes you feel for him. I'm interested in Billy too, and his ability with the cunning (which is an intriguing and mysterious soft magic system). Otherwise there's not much to any of the other characters. It doesn't feel like it's awful writing, but just not as good as it could be. Although I do like the way Tomas interacts with his gang from his POV regardless of the their lack of development.
As for the world, it's grimdark alright. There's some nasty stuff Tomas encounters and discusses. There's the recent war of Abingon which Tomas and his gang are returning from, and it eternally resides in the back of Tomas's mind. It's clear how utterly horrifying the war was based on Tomas's own recounts of his friends actions and the PTSD (battle shock as its referred to) becoming visible in some of those who he served with. The gang violence itself is brutal too. Tomas doesn't hold back when taking back what's his, and he especially doesn't hold back if you cross him.
Overall, a good read. It's a very bleak and gritty book, but also extremely readable. I'm excited to check out the rest of the series because I believe it only gets better from here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Rape
kelseyreadingstuff's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, Child abuse, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Incest, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
coris's review against another edition
4.0
A darker, grimmer and somewhat less charismatic Vlad Taltos. Little world building beyond what's required to make the plot romp along, but enough to encourage me to pick up the next in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Cursing, Mental illness, and Child abuse
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexism, Alcohol, War, Incest, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Death of parent, Rape, Confinement, Slavery, and Excrement
its_kievan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Priest of Bones has a lot of potential, and almost lives up to it. The side characters are all interesting, the action is incredibly well-paced and engaging, and it gets surprisingly dark in a completely unexpected way without feeling cheap. I will always love a story about gangs taking over towns, and while Priest of Bones didn’t do anything new it did do it very well. The problems lie in the protagonist, and in the setting. Tomas is (I think) meant to be a sympathetic sociopath, balancing ruthless pragmatism with enough redeeming qualities to keep the reader interested. Instead, he’s just flat, moving people around like chess pieces without any sort of emotional justification. Even his supposed feelings for Ailsa disappear the second it’s no longer relevant. He has agency, at least, but no compelling motivations. The setting is an extension of this flatness: Ellinsburg is never flashed out, feeling like a series of linked set pieces rather than a real setting. The wider world was basically nonexistent, which would have been fine if the the ending hadn’t explicitly been about entering the wider world. I would love to read a sequel about Anne and Jochan and the rest, but I have zero interest in Tomas entering high society .
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Rape, Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Gore and Violence
Minor: Gun violence, Sexism, and Misogyny
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