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4.21 AVERAGE
4.21 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was a wonderful and entertaining sequel to one of my top books of all time. It was still charming, full of entertaining banter, clever plans, and excellent characters. It was the icing on the cake when it became a full-on pirate novel complete with ship battles and naval talk.
I was unsure of how Scott Lynch would follow up the masterpiece that was The Lies of Locke Lamora and I was not surprised that I still loved Red Seas Under Red Skies. While not as strong as the first one, I still felt connected with the characters and overall loved the dialogue between them. I think what the sequel lacked was the overall number of characters to root for, as in the first novel we were introduced to a large team of ragtag characters that were family to Locke and Jean. While I still loved the other characters, namely Zamira and Ezri, Red Seas fell a bit short when it came to the characters.
That all being said, I loved the planning, scheming, and heisting that went on throughout the book. I'm a sucker for a good heist, and while Red Seas took many different turns, I still felt satisfied with each plot that Locke and Jean were able to pull off. Locke is probably one of my favorite literary characters of all time and I loved seeing his clever mind work to solve problems and swindle as many people as possible (again).
Before reading the book, I had not read a single summary or review, and I was a little bit surprised when pirates became involved. It was a pleasant and a not-at-all unwelcome surprise and I liked how the pirate plot became entwined with the rest of the story. It wasn't all perfectly cohesive however, and sometimes I felt like Lynch wanted to write both a heist novel and a pirate novel but could only do it in one go. Sometimes the heist plot fell to the wayside which was a bit disappointing. Overall, I still enjoyed the pirates and the ships, but felt like the weaving of the two plots could have been done better.
If you enjoy heists, pirates, and naval talk, I think you would very much enjoy this book (but read The Lies of Locke Lamora first, of course).
I was unsure of how Scott Lynch would follow up the masterpiece that was The Lies of Locke Lamora and I was not surprised that I still loved Red Seas Under Red Skies. While not as strong as the first one, I still felt connected with the characters and overall loved the dialogue between them. I think what the sequel lacked was the overall number of characters to root for, as in the first novel we were introduced to a large team of ragtag characters that were family to Locke and Jean. While I still loved the other characters, namely Zamira and Ezri, Red Seas fell a bit short when it came to the characters.
That all being said, I loved the planning, scheming, and heisting that went on throughout the book. I'm a sucker for a good heist, and while Red Seas took many different turns, I still felt satisfied with each plot that Locke and Jean were able to pull off. Locke is probably one of my favorite literary characters of all time and I loved seeing his clever mind work to solve problems and swindle as many people as possible (again).
Before reading the book, I had not read a single summary or review, and I was a little bit surprised when pirates became involved. It was a pleasant and a not-at-all unwelcome surprise and I liked how the pirate plot became entwined with the rest of the story. It wasn't all perfectly cohesive however, and sometimes I felt like Lynch wanted to write both a heist novel and a pirate novel but could only do it in one go. Sometimes the heist plot fell to the wayside which was a bit disappointing. Overall, I still enjoyed the pirates and the ships, but felt like the weaving of the two plots could have been done better.
If you enjoy heists, pirates, and naval talk, I think you would very much enjoy this book (but read The Lies of Locke Lamora first, of course).
adventurous
dark
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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:
Yes
I much preferred this over the first book. The schemes are still convoluted and prone to constant improvisation, but I had a much easier time believing that Locke took the most practical options at hand in this book. All the people forcing Locke to adapt his scheme were much more compelling and had much more reasonable explanations. Guessing at Locke’s plans was just as fun in this book as the first.
The amount of long-winded descriptions of architecture and its history decreased a lot in this book, improving the pacing a lot, yet the new creative and fantastical locations were still just as amazing to imagine as in the first book. The pacing at the start was still a little rough thanks to the "reminiscence" chapters after each main chapter. I was thoroughly invested in each one by the end of them, but the beginning of each definitely killed a lot of the momentum built up by the end of the previous chapter.
I liked the increased focus on the strains in Locke and Jean's relationship; it added a lot to the moments when they fully understood each other. The secondary characters in this book were so much more interesting and well developed compared to those in the first book and I definitely cared a lot more for them.
I would have liked to see more games at the Sinspire in the beginning and more of the Archon’s thoughts at the end.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Great fun read. Missing some of the naive fun and frolicking (is you can call it that) of the first book however it stands up really well in its own right.
Thoroughly enjoyed and I am very much looking forward to the next instalment.
Thoroughly enjoyed and I am very much looking forward to the next instalment.
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
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:
Complicated
The Gentleman Bastards sequence remains the only light in my experience with 2020.
A rare second entry that is just as good as the first. A swashbuckling adventure with my favorite thieves duo that sees them facing casino heists, piracy and a Yojimbo style faction war.
In a year in which I am desperate to escape I have found no better answer than to sail the seas of Tal Verrar with the group of thieves I've so come to love.
A rare second entry that is just as good as the first. A swashbuckling adventure with my favorite thieves duo that sees them facing casino heists, piracy and a Yojimbo style faction war.
In a year in which I am desperate to escape I have found no better answer than to sail the seas of Tal Verrar with the group of thieves I've so come to love.