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wolfthorn's review against another edition
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??
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
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Grief and Kidnapping
Minor: Alcohol, Child death, Death of parent, and Sexual content
christian08's review against another edition
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
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Torture, Physical abuse, Murder, Cursing, and Death
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content
jackiepreston's review against another edition
adventurous
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Death of parent
jupitermond'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? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Death and Murder
Minor: Child death
suncourts's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, and Violence
pitythechild's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
the fact that i’ve already seen all the oceans 11/12/13 movies (and the sting, of course) made me want another heist of that proportion. well, i got that here. and it was high fucking fantasy. locke lamora is a detestable (but charming) man and i love him so much. him and his gentleman bastards are probably the best characters i’ve seen in a while. i loved this book so much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Murder, Blood, Death, Violence, Gore, and Cursing
Moderate: Death of parent, Child death, and Excrement
hurlyburlybooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Death, Excrement, Gore, Murder, Torture, and Violence
mullemit's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.75
*sets down my soap box and crawls on top of it* Why on earth would The Gray King be some random dude with a sob story, when Nazca my-father-can’t-name-me-the-heir-even-though-I-deserve-to-be-because-my-sexist-older-brothers-wouldn’t-like-it-and-whose-funeral-got-turned-into-a-rave Barsavi was right there!? Especially with all the other story threads of underestimated women from Nazcas own mother to unionizing prostitutes!
Whatever, I kept going to see if the book would manage to surprise me, but it really didn’t. I kept thinking “This feels like the straightest dnd game in history”, and yeah it was entertaining enough, but I’m not going to read the sequels
Whatever, I kept going to see if the book would manage to surprise me, but it really didn’t. I kept thinking “This feels like the straightest dnd game in history”, and yeah it was entertaining enough, but I’m not going to read the sequels
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Body shaming, Child death, and Murder
e_flah's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
When I first read The Lies of Locke Lamora in 2014, it was a solid 5-star read for me. I was shocked to find that it just didn't hold up as well for me on a reread, which led me to lower my rating to 2 stars. Some of this change is likely due to my shifting preferences as a reader but there were also elements of the book that I just wasn't dazzled as much by this time around.
To start with, the structure of The Lies of Locke Lamora is very repetitive. There will be some sort of daring con or step in Locke's plan followed by a behind-the-scenes look at how the action was pulled off then some kind of a flashback. The flashback and explanation sometimes flipped places but this "see something cool" + "see how they did cool thing" + "see hint of cool things to come" continued over and over for 500 pages. This got really boring as I knew exactly what was coming next even if some of the details were left up in the air.
If the repetitive structure had been paired with really three-dimensional characters, I think it wouldn't have bothered me so much. Locke seems like a cool guy with a truly incredible knack for schemes but I just never felt like I knew him beyond the surface level. The rest of the Gentlemen Bastards were the same. I honestly couldn't tell you the difference between Calo and Galdo Sanza, which is wild as they were some of the characters we meet earliest in the book.
I also found the lack of strong world-building frustrating. This is definitely a book that can't see the forest for the trees. We get <i>so many</i> details about everything from the market scene to the gods in the Twelve Gods pantheon that initially distracted me from the fact that there isn't much substantial world-building. How does Camorr operate outside its crime scene? No clue. Is it its own city-state? How does the city interact with other countries/city-states? No clue. Names and places and tidbits burst from the pages but fail to coalesce into something with a strong sense of setting. I don't mind a detail-heavy book if it feels like those details are adding something to the story, which wasn't the case here.
Perhaps the best thing I have to say about The Lies of Locke Lamora is that I thought of it relatively often in the 5-year span between my first read and this reread. As someone who reads a ton, particularly fantasy, and then immediately forgets it, this is no mean feat. All said and done, though, I'm not sure I'll be continuing on with this series.
To start with, the structure of The Lies of Locke Lamora is very repetitive. There will be some sort of daring con or step in Locke's plan followed by a behind-the-scenes look at how the action was pulled off then some kind of a flashback. The flashback and explanation sometimes flipped places but this "see something cool" + "see how they did cool thing" + "see hint of cool things to come" continued over and over for 500 pages. This got really boring as I knew exactly what was coming next even if some of the details were left up in the air.
If the repetitive structure had been paired with really three-dimensional characters, I think it wouldn't have bothered me so much. Locke seems like a cool guy with a truly incredible knack for schemes but I just never felt like I knew him beyond the surface level. The rest of the Gentlemen Bastards were the same. I honestly couldn't tell you the difference between Calo and Galdo Sanza, which is wild as they were some of the characters we meet earliest in the book.
I also found the lack of strong world-building frustrating. This is definitely a book that can't see the forest for the trees. We get <i>so many</i> details about everything from the market scene to the gods in the Twelve Gods pantheon that initially distracted me from the fact that there isn't much substantial world-building. How does Camorr operate outside its crime scene? No clue. Is it its own city-state? How does the city interact with other countries/city-states? No clue. Names and places and tidbits burst from the pages but fail to coalesce into something with a strong sense of setting. I don't mind a detail-heavy book if it feels like those details are adding something to the story, which wasn't the case here.
Perhaps the best thing I have to say about The Lies of Locke Lamora is that I thought of it relatively often in the 5-year span between my first read and this reread. As someone who reads a ton, particularly fantasy, and then immediately forgets it, this is no mean feat. All said and done, though, I'm not sure I'll be continuing on with this series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture and Gore
Moderate: Vomit, Violence, and Child death
mscalls's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit