Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - The Lies of Locke Lamora

I have so much to say about this book it’s honesty impossible to say it all. As far as I’m concerned, it’s perfect. No book has made me laugh as often and few books have made me cry as hard. I have BIG FEELINGS about this book.

It’s heists are genius in their construction, the characters are insanely loveable, the dialogue is realistic and hilarious, and the relationships built between the cast are surprisingly heartwarming. Now, if you think the stakes are high 100 pages in, friend, I hope you’re ready to be stressed as FUCK because the stakes only get higher and higher.

I’m obsessed with this book, not much more to say past that.

Tagging the rest of this review as spoilers as it’s pretty much going to include notes from my annotations:

• Jean Tannen is a murderous, sensitive, smart, fat king and I hope he lives to be 200 and the rest of his life full of happiness and joy.

• Locke is a terrible little rat of a man who I desperately want to be happy. I’m sorry you had to go through all of that, king.

• Calo and Galdo, real ones. Y’all didn’t deserve any of that.

• Bug absolutely fucking broke me. Heartbroken. The worst part was that I read up to Calo and Galdo’s death when I had to clock out from work. I had the whole ride home to be shattered about them and scheme about how Bug, Jean, and Locke were gonna take revenge before I finally got home to read the rest of the chapter….

• WHERE. IS. SABETHA.

• Bondsmagi OP, plz nerf /s

• Doña Vorchenza keeps taking those L’s.

• Let me preface this by saying that I LOVED the way women were written and portrayed in this book. Absolutely none of it was patronizing or unrealistic and they were all distinct characters capable of the same level of cunning and brutality as any of their male counterparts. THAT BEING SAID: Was a little disappointed that the two women characters who had potential to be a part of the main crew as it were (Nazca and Sabetha) were neatly folded up and put away for the majority of the novel. Hoping I get to know what the deal is w Sabetha in the next book because she didn’t even show up in the flashback portions of this one and it made her feel like she wasn’t even a part of the Bastards…

• The bank scene is genuinely one of the most insane, most clever, and most hilarious things I’ve ever read. POOR BENJAVIER.

• I was on the toilet during the scene where Locke speaks Bug’s true name and let me tell you, crying heartily about that while pooping was not my most dignified moment.

Content Warnings

anniereads221's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

lotten4's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional funny tense medium-paced

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

5.0

The dialogue was very funny and the plot changed directions a lot but still made sense. The characters and their relationships were perfect.

Content Warnings

claire_baco's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

wolfthorn's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it very intriguing. I thought it was quite difficult to get to grips with as it seems to throw the reader into the middle of an already established plot and I can see how that can be problematic for some readers. I spent quite a bit of the early part of it not entirely understanding what was going on. I kept waiting for a full backstory but there's a lot of it that you never get to find out. There is some backstory doled out intermittently as Interludes before the main chapters but it still left me wanting to know a lot more.

There's a major twist about halfway through that I didn't anticipate, and the second half of the book contains several other twists and various thrilling incidents which really made it exciting reading. It's quite a long read and I didn't really get into it until a third of the way in, but after that point, I was hooked. There were several moments throughout the last third when I realised what Locke's plan or intention was, and seeing how it all came together was most joyous. It's definitely one that you have to stay with, but I think it's worth it. I could write a really lengthy review of the plot in great detail because I was just so taken with it but that would be too much. The characterisations are great, although I didn't like Locke at first because he seemed to be too smug and perfect, but I soon found out that he wasn't like that at all. It was nice for him to have definite flaws, he might be intelligent and great at disguises, but he can't fight with fists or sword to save his life. Literally. The amount of times he got beaten up!

The world building itself is outstanding. The religion and system of 13 gods is very detailed and complex, and having it link in with the calendar so that years are named after the gods all ties together incredibly well. The class system, the economy, and justice system are all well laid out. I loved the detail regarding clothing and how that indicated a person's status. Locke's eye for style, fabrics, and colours suits the time and place, particularly with it being based loosely on 16-17th century Venice.

The main plot of the book is all finished off quite nicely, but I was still left with so many questions about the world, its history with the Elderglass and previous inhabitants; what happened to Chains and Sabetha; and, most importantly, what will Locke and Jean do next??

Content Warnings

christian08's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

its_kievan's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

There was a period in the early-to-mid 2000s where fantasy literature began moving away from Tolkein-esque epic fantasy to stuff that was more "gritty", or at least had fewer elves. The Lies of Locke Lamora is a perfect example of this era. It's a fantasy world with magic and gods and a weird precursor race that built some funky towers, but all of that mostly takes a back seat to the story of a group of thieves trying to get rich in the middle of a gang war in fantasy Italy. It's a side of fantasy that you didn't get to see in earlier works, and it definitely did a lot to bring the genre out of its 90s ghetto. The schemes are complex without being overwhelming, and Locke is a very well-written protagonist. At the same time, it's clearly Lynch's first novel, and he definitely needed to trim a couple chapters. Overall, Lies is a fun read, but it's more notable for what it inspired than for what it is.

Content Warnings

More...