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gjharm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
lowercasenospaces's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
larrydavid's review against another edition
2.0
This book continues the increasing trend of this series of never putting the characters in any risk whatsoever. Here Penric and Desdemona must go to the heart of an empire arrayed against their people, and challenge in his home-state a brilliant and devious ruler and his evil sorceror... and both threats are dispatched with trivial ease, one even off page. The other with a literal deus ex machina, though in a world where god exists, perhaps a deus ex machina is more forgivable. In addition we get the resolution of a long running "love" story that would matter more to me if the characters involved had ever met before this book's final chapter. Truly it melted my icy heart.
This is the latest volume in a series that has yielded two truly excellent books out of ten (Penric's Mission and Mira's Last Dance), both good enough to carry me through the overly cozy remainder of the series. I would highly recommend reading the books in publication order rather than chronological order, as the books start off better, and in addition I think the book Masquerade in Lodi does not work at all unless you have read the previous book that discusses Penric's reaction to his first experience as a physician. In fact if you don't enter with that knowledge, I think Masquerade in Lodi seems to treat a very serious topic in a far too perfunctory way, whereas with prior knowledge its slightness on this subject is more understandable.
These are very light books, compared to the excellent and more interesting Vorkosigan series. Partly this is because Bujold was capable of putting Miles in situations with actual consequences. Partially I think the problem is that this is a fantasy novel in a world where the Gods definitively exist, as does magic, and an empire that runs on slavery and forcibly turning some of its citizens into eunuchs, and yet the main characters all have completely modern sensibilities. A character in a feudal system with a demon in their head and the certainty that their god exists would not think or behave exactly like us, would not share our mores, and I think it would be much more interesting to read an exploration of that character.
This is the latest volume in a series that has yielded two truly excellent books out of ten (Penric's Mission and Mira's Last Dance), both good enough to carry me through the overly cozy remainder of the series. I would highly recommend reading the books in publication order rather than chronological order, as the books start off better, and in addition I think the book Masquerade in Lodi does not work at all unless you have read the previous book that discusses Penric's reaction to his first experience as a physician. In fact if you don't enter with that knowledge, I think Masquerade in Lodi seems to treat a very serious topic in a far too perfunctory way, whereas with prior knowledge its slightness on this subject is more understandable.
These are very light books, compared to the excellent and more interesting Vorkosigan series. Partly this is because Bujold was capable of putting Miles in situations with actual consequences. Partially I think the problem is that this is a fantasy novel in a world where the Gods definitively exist, as does magic, and an empire that runs on slavery and forcibly turning some of its citizens into eunuchs, and yet the main characters all have completely modern sensibilities. A character in a feudal system with a demon in their head and the certainty that their god exists would not think or behave exactly like us, would not share our mores, and I think it would be much more interesting to read an exploration of that character.
tjwallace04's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
4.5
"The Assassins of Thasalon" is a fantastic entry in the Penric and Desdemona series. It is closer to a full-length novel and brings a sweeping plot and interesting new characters to justify the extra pages. It also brought back a few familiar faces from previous books and beautifully wrapped up a plot arc that began with "Penric's Mission," making it almost feel like the end of the series. Fortunately, it is not! I need more Penric and Desdemona.
I loved Alixtra, the unwilling assassin, and Iroki, the lazy saint. And it was delightful to have Bosha and Tanar back on the page. The gods are very present in this volume, which was fascinating. Bujold's description of the experience of being in a god's presence is so well-done. "In a voice not his own, as resonant in this cell as the reverberations in a bass drum, Iroki said, "Take better care of my gift this time, child. You're going to need it." The sense but not the sound of an immense belly laugh, tidal, oceans deep. And then as vast as the presence, somehow vaster, absence. The emptiness left was like a room stripped of its very air. One would weep for the loss if one could only breathe."
Bujold's books look so beautifully at human relationships, the complexities of love and friendship, how we can hurt each other and heal each other. And through it all, we have Penric, who always acts with openness and care for the other, and Desdemona, who supports him with a bit more cynicism and sarcasm. Two of my favorite literary characters - in one neat sorcerous package! :)
I loved Alixtra, the unwilling assassin, and Iroki, the lazy saint. And it was delightful to have Bosha and Tanar back on the page. The gods are very present in this volume, which was fascinating. Bujold's description of the experience of being in a god's presence is so well-done. "In a voice not his own, as resonant in this cell as the reverberations in a bass drum, Iroki said, "Take better care of my gift this time, child. You're going to need it." The sense but not the sound of an immense belly laugh, tidal, oceans deep. And then as vast as the presence, somehow vaster, absence. The emptiness left was like a room stripped of its very air. One would weep for the loss if one could only breathe."
Bujold's books look so beautifully at human relationships, the complexities of love and friendship, how we can hurt each other and heal each other. And through it all, we have Penric, who always acts with openness and care for the other, and Desdemona, who supports him with a bit more cynicism and sarcasm. Two of my favorite literary characters - in one neat sorcerous package! :)
jvilches's review
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
shomarq's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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? No
4.5
ulrikedg's review against another edition
5.0
First of all, this is a full length Penric & Desdemona novel, which I didn't realize when I purchased it, so that was a pleasant surprise!
The P&D books are all relatively low-tension. They aren't boring, but they aren't likely to stress you out, which I still appreciate in this stage of the global pandemic that totally fucked up my emotional regulation. I enjoyed the story. I loved the length. I liked the new characters.
Grover Gardner is Grover Gardner. You have to be familiar with him by now. I did notice a couple of weird sentences, which is really unusual for Gardner. I mean maybe 3-4 over the course of the entire book, so not a lot, but surprising for Gardner. I guess 4.5 stars for him, but only because my expectations are so high.
The P&D books are all relatively low-tension. They aren't boring, but they aren't likely to stress you out, which I still appreciate in this stage of the global pandemic that totally fucked up my emotional regulation. I enjoyed the story. I loved the length. I liked the new characters.
Grover Gardner is Grover Gardner. You have to be familiar with him by now. I did notice a couple of weird sentences, which is really unusual for Gardner. I mean maybe 3-4 over the course of the entire book, so not a lot, but surprising for Gardner. I guess 4.5 stars for him, but only because my expectations are so high.
ielerol's review against another edition
5.0
The whole reason I bother to write goodreads reviews is to help other people figure out if they might like a book or not. Which makes it hard write one here because if you are already a Penric and Desdemona fan, the way you know you'll like this book is that it exists. It's a novel-length Penric story, doing everything a Penric story does well but intensified thanks to the higher stakes. If you are not already a fan, there's enough exposition that you probably could start here, but why bother? If you have even a little bit of interest in a fantasy series with great characterization and a lot of thought put into how and why cultures work the way they do, start at the beginning and you won't be sorry.
So instead I will say that if I have any complaint at all, it's that a series featuring the patron god of gay people doesn't have many important gay characters. So my headcanon is that every single maybe-implied throuple of the series is definitely an extremely gay throuple. This is maybe also the lesson I've taken from Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen: every potential Bujold throuple is canon. Obviously, this means that however much Adelis resists it at first, he and Boscha are definitely going to end up in bed together.
So instead I will say that if I have any complaint at all, it's that a series featuring the patron god of gay people doesn't have many important gay characters. So my headcanon is that every single maybe-implied throuple of the series is definitely an extremely gay throuple. This is maybe also the lesson I've taken from Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen: every potential Bujold throuple is canon. Obviously, this means that however much Adelis resists it at first, he and Boscha are definitely going to end up in bed together.
astroprojection's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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
5.0
naomiysl's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.0
A good addition to the world of the five gods, with plenty of involvement from the 5th god