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orionmerlin's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Oh, Lies of Locke Lamora, you chaotic little bastard of a book. You lured me in with promises of a slick, clever heist, and then blindsided me with a full-course meal of torture, maiming, and casual murder. Somewhere between the Ocean’s Eleven vibes and the “let’s remove this guy’s fingers one by one” energy, I had to ask myself: Am I enjoying this? The answer? Mostly.
📌 Characters - 8/10
Locke Lamora is an arrogant, overconfident con artist with a talent for thinking on his feet—and a terrible survival instinct. His best friend and right-hand man, Jean Tannen, is the brains and brawn that holds the entire operation together, delivering some of the book’s most satisfying moments (and best beatdowns). Their ride-or-die friendship is easily the strongest relationship in the book.
But the supporting cast? A mixed bag. The Sanza twins are entertaining but underdeveloped, Bug is mostly there to die tragically, and Capa Barsavi is a textbook example of a man who thinks he's in control when he absolutely isn’t. The Grey King and the Falconer make for decent villains, but their motivations are just functional—they work for the plot, but they don’t feel particularly deep.
And then there’s the glaring gender imbalance. Nazca Barsavi, the one woman who seems like she’ll play a major role, is killed off before she even gets a chance to be interesting. Vorchenza, the aging spymaster, is a great late-game addition, but she only enters the story near the end. And Sabetha? She’s referenced endlessly as Locke’s biggest regret, but she never appears, making her feel more like a plot device than a person.
📌 Atmosphere/Setting - 9/10
Camorr is Venetian fantasy meets brutal crime syndicate, dripping with grime, danger, and Elderglass towers that gleam like ancient relics of a long-dead civilization. The city breathes. From the floating black market of the Night Market to the shark-infested waters where debts are settled, Camorr feels alive in a way that many fantasy settings struggle to achieve.
That being said, Lynch sometimes falls into the Tolkien trap of describing everything in excruciating detail. The canals? Filthy. The nobles? Ridiculous. The torture? More detailed than it needed to be. At times, I felt like I was reading a guidebook instead of a novel.
📌 Writing Style - 8/10
Lynch’s prose is fast, witty, and loaded with personality—when it isn’t getting bogged down by its own indulgence. The dialogue crackles, and the humor genuinely lands, which is impressive given how dark the book gets.
But the structure? A bit of a mess. The book constantly jumps between Locke’s past (flashbacks with Father Chains and the early days of the Gentleman Bastards) and the present-day heist. Sometimes, this adds depth. Other times, it kills momentum right when things get interesting.
Also, every single plan Locke makes goes off without a hitch… until it suddenly explodes in the most catastrophic way possible. There’s no in-between.
📌 Plot - 7/10
The first half of the book delivers exactly what was promised: a high-stakes, well-crafted heist. Locke and his crew are conning Don Lorenzo Salvara and his wife Doña Sofia, posing as foreign merchants while stealing everything they can. It’s smart, it’s engaging, and it’s exactly what I wanted.
And then the Grey King shows up, and suddenly it’s less about a heist and more about Locke and Jean trying to survive a city-wide bloodbath.
Don’t get me wrong—the stakes escalate beautifully. But the shift from elaborate con artistry to full-scale revenge thriller is jarring. We go from charming deception to graphic torture scenes, and while that can work, the transition is too abrupt.
📌 Intrigue - 8/10
Even with the pacing issues, this book is incredibly engaging. I wanted to see how Locke would weasel his way out of certain death this time. The elaborate scams, the double-crosses, and the sheer audacity of the Gentleman Bastards kept me hooked.
That being said, the torture scenes killed my momentum. They’re long, brutal, and relentless, and they don’t add much beyond shock value. There were moments where I actively needed to put the book down.
📌 Logic/Relationships - 5.5/10
Locke’s scams are clever, but are they believable? Not really. He and his teenage friends are somehow running elite-level cons on the most powerful people in Camorr—and getting away with it. The idea that no one has caught onto them before now stretches credibility.
Also, the worldbuilding is excellent, but the gender imbalance is impossible to ignore. The lack of women is especially frustrating because the world itself doesn’t seem to have any built-in sexism. There’s no reason why there shouldn’t be more women in the underworld, but for some reason, there just… aren’t.
📌 Enjoyment - 7.5/10
There’s a lot to love here, but also a lot that wore me down. The heists? Fantastic. The cons? Brilliant. The action? Tense and well-paced. But the sheer brutality of the violence and the abrupt tonal shifts made this a more exhausting read than I expected.
I had fun, but I also needed a break.
📌 Final Verdict: 3.75 Stars (7.5/10 Final Score)
Is it a fun, immersive fantasy heist? Yes. Is it also way too violent for its own good? Also yes.
📌 What Worked:
✅ Fantastic setting & worldbuilding
✅ Clever cons & strong banter
✅ Locke & Jean’s dynamic was fun
✅ Fantastic setting & worldbuilding
✅ Clever cons & strong banter
✅ Locke & Jean’s dynamic was fun
📌 What Didn’t Work:
❌ Pacing whiplash (from fun heist to full horror movie)
❌ Over-the-top gore & torture scenes
❌ Glaring lack of gender diversity
❌ Pacing whiplash (from fun heist to full horror movie)
❌ Over-the-top gore & torture scenes
❌ Glaring lack of gender diversity
🔥 Final Take: If you love elaborate heists, fast-talking criminals, and don’t mind extreme violence, you’ll probably enjoy this. If you prefer a bit more balance, chaos, and female characters that exist, you might find it frustrating. Still a solid read, but not without issues.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Misogyny, Sexism, Slavery, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Drug use, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Excrement, Kidnapping, Alcohol, and Classism
The violence is pervasive and often quite brutal, with detailed descriptions of torture and murder. The book features themes of grief, revenge, and childhood trauma, particularly in Locke's backstory and the ruthless nature of Camorr’s criminal underworld. While there is no sexual violence, misogyny is present within the world’s structures, and female characters are notably absent from the main story except for a single major one late in the book.pixiemusings's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I have been meaning to read this for a while and FINALLY got around to it and...why did I not read it sooner?? The book was phenomenal! The world building was absolutely top notch. The characters were great and I actually found myself wanting to stay up to read it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Police brutality and Death of parent
Minor: Kidnapping
plotsandplants's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual violence and Death of parent
maur_damar's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
iholcomb4790's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
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? No
4.5
Thoroughly enjoyable, swashbuckling sort of grimdark fantasy set in a world that feels like a mix of Victorian England and Renaissance Venice. I’m excited to read the next book in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Vomit, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
arcticjinx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is my favorite book. That said, I can't stand here and tell you it is flawless. As some other reviews have stated, there is a distinct lack of characters that are both women and are either alive or have any agency, despite the author making it clear that the devilish underground of Camorr is very evenly split among genders. The main cast is loveable, and in my opinion, believably flawed. I won't say their luck isn't a bit unbelievable, but I suppose that when you have the god of thieves on your side, anything is possible. I would recommend this to people who enjoy worldbuilding, lengthy descriptions of clothing, heists, being sad, alchemy, and a sprinkle of magic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Vomit, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Trafficking, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Pedophilia
breezer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
sad
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? Yes
4.25
Surprisingly heartbreaking
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Torture, Excrement, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
silentquercus's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Animal cruelty, Pedophilia, and Medical content
tmwarner_1994's review against another edition
slow-paced
5.0
I fell absolutely in love with Locke and his mischievous ways, I mean how could you not. This came as a recommendation from a youtuber I watch as it is her favorite series of all time. I loved the trouble that Locke got into and continues to get into and drags Jean into sometimes also. I love the elaborate schemes that he comes up with and carries out and I can't wait to see where his story goes next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
ryangiglio's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent