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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
3.5/5
Have loved this trilogy, and am happy to be joining the hordes eager for a book four. This book excels in the same areas as the first two - The dialogue is so witty, the friendships feel so genuine and the settings feel so lived in. However, I did find this one to be more of a slog than the others, and wasn't actually a massive fan of the plot surrounding both present day political intrigue nor flashback theatre troop.
Have loved this trilogy, and am happy to be joining the hordes eager for a book four. This book excels in the same areas as the first two - The dialogue is so witty, the friendships feel so genuine and the settings feel so lived in. However, I did find this one to be more of a slog than the others, and wasn't actually a massive fan of the plot surrounding both present day political intrigue nor flashback theatre troop.
Another 5-star book by Lynch.
Negatives:
The romance in the book can become a bit grating.
Also you, as the reader are not really invested in the election that is the main plot of the story.
Positives:
Character-work is brilliant, everyone has their own distinct voice.
Locke, Jean, Sabetha and the Sanzas are great.
Pacing is impeccable, the book doesn't have a boring lull in it.
Dialogue is poignant and witty.
The book has a lot of humour and embraces its light tones but also doesn't shy away from serious issues.
Here's hoping Lynch will finish book four soon.
Negatives:
The romance in the book can become a bit grating.
Also you, as the reader are not really invested in the election that is the main plot of the story.
Positives:
Character-work is brilliant, everyone has their own distinct voice.
Locke, Jean, Sabetha and the Sanzas are great.
Pacing is impeccable, the book doesn't have a boring lull in it.
Dialogue is poignant and witty.
The book has a lot of humour and embraces its light tones but also doesn't shy away from serious issues.
Here's hoping Lynch will finish book four soon.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The flashback story was good but the current one felt like it had no stakes.
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Yeah, of the three books in this series so far, this one seems weakest. Probably more of a 2.5 than a 3. I like the characters and general idea of the world, but the two tales in this story both felt kind of... flat? Neither were very dramatic and there was never any real sense of danger or "how will they get out of this one?" that I felt in the first two books.
I was excited to finally be introduced to Sabetha, but she sort of let my expectations down. I thought she would be an awesome kick-ass lady, and in some ways she was, but mostly she just seemed overly capricious and moody, even hysterical, which is a word I hesitate to ever use to describe someone. I really wish Lynch had chosen to go in another direction with her. I also found it somewhat infuriating that the two storylines, about the early and then current (something like 10-12 years later I suppose) relationship of Locke of Sabetha - their arguments are the same, their relationship is basically the same. It was tiresome to see them have basically the same interactions in the past and the present. Their relationship doesn't seem to have matured at all. You could take any of their current arguments and paste the text into one of the interludes and it would fit. Where's the character development?
I also briefly want to say that the play... the play seemed tacked-on. Like, sure, it's a reasonable thing for characters to be involved in, but we don't reeeaaallly need 20 pages of play lines in the middle of a novel. I was wondering if I should just skip the bits where Lynch basically inserts the play he wrote into the middle of the novel. Great, is this pertinent to the story? Okay, not really, moving on...
I was enthralled with the first two books, and just "liked" this one. I admit I'll likely still read the next book in the series, but with some hesitation, rather than eagerly diving in.
I was excited to finally be introduced to Sabetha, but she sort of let my expectations down. I thought she would be an awesome kick-ass lady, and in some ways she was, but mostly she just seemed overly capricious and moody, even hysterical, which is a word I hesitate to ever use to describe someone. I really wish Lynch had chosen to go in another direction with her. I also found it somewhat infuriating that the two storylines, about the early and then current (something like 10-12 years later I suppose) relationship of Locke of Sabetha - their arguments are the same, their relationship is basically the same. It was tiresome to see them have basically the same interactions in the past and the present. Their relationship doesn't seem to have matured at all. You could take any of their current arguments and paste the text into one of the interludes and it would fit. Where's the character development?
I also briefly want to say that the play... the play seemed tacked-on. Like, sure, it's a reasonable thing for characters to be involved in, but we don't reeeaaallly need 20 pages of play lines in the middle of a novel. I was wondering if I should just skip the bits where Lynch basically inserts the play he wrote into the middle of the novel. Great, is this pertinent to the story? Okay, not really, moving on...
I was enthralled with the first two books, and just "liked" this one. I admit I'll likely still read the next book in the series, but with some hesitation, rather than eagerly diving in.
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Scott Lynch's writing; it's a consistent delight to read. The plot wasn't as engaging as in the first two books, but I was still enjoying it. The flashback chapters were fun, interesting, and hilarious.
And then that stupid ass "reveal", which was was so contrived and poorly done. Thankfully it didn't totally hijack the main plot when it happened, but my god was it disappointing. I swear it was written in just soSabetha had a weak excuse to run away at the end. Scott Lynch, you know better. You can do better. This was so sloppy. Please do better in the next book.
And then that stupid ass "reveal", which was was so contrived and poorly done. Thankfully it didn't totally hijack the main plot when it happened, but my god was it disappointing. I swear it was written in just so
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-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