the_tomeraider 's review for:

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

4.5

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch was a thrilling fantasy built in a deeply complex and well developed world. From the first 10 pages, I was thoroughly engaged with the story and eager to learn more.  I tend not to guess at the mysteries within books, but even if I had tried, I am not sure I would have figured out its secrets before they were revealed to me.  I was enthralled and I gasped audibly several times while reading. The use of interludes was well done, and I was interested in both story lines. Though towards the end, I felt that they were not as entertaining and were used just to convey world history which took away from the suspense of the ending slightly. The book introduces a lot of unique words and places very quickly, which was slightly overwhelming, but added to the depth once I got accustomed (around the 25% mark). A map would have been very helpful in allowing me to grasp the relationships of different islands to each other, as well a different city states. I found myself frequently having to pause to remember where something was (or just chosing to trust the author knew his world and moving swiftly past it). In summary, I will definitely be continuing the series (as I have already bought the rest of it) and I look forward to seeing how the author continues to develop the characters and the world following the conclusion to book 1.