I just realized that I get most of my reading/writing done when I'm sick or injured. This time, it's sickness. I don't know what that says about me. I'm sitting here at 8pm at night, wrapped in a blanket like a granny and falling asleep. I often wonder if this is what old age feels like. I must be old. I feel old.
Enough. I'm not here to talk about how old I am. I'm here to tell you about the bookbone I have for The Gentleman Bastard Sequence by Scott Lynch. Scott's world is an amazing word wizard who has build an amazing word world. The cities, the religions, the calendar, the food (the everything)... all this is fed to you with the most delicious words. Oh, and the insults. Who could forget about all the awesome insults? The books are worth it for the education in new and exciting ways to insult people. The story is told in snippets of the 'present' and the past that intertwine in ways that are nostalgic and meaningful. The storytelling is very clever.
Here are my thoughts per book:
Book 1: Gentlemen Bastards are suave as hell
Locke Lamora is a name that just rolls of the tongue, doesn't it? For the first third of this book, you just get sucked into how smoothly everything is going. When you think you know what game Locke and his crew are playing... well, you don't know anything!!!!! Then of course, things take hilarious and horrifying turns.
Book 2: Gentlemen Bastards are Oceans 11 AND Swashbucking Pirates
After reading the first book, I was a bit skeptical about the second, given that it was set on the high seas. How do city thieves fair against the waves? Magnificently. Not only are there plenty of laugh out loud moments, you also somehow manage to pick up some fun language and traditions (much of it fictional) concerning sailing. I am never setting foot on a boat again without feeling the need to bring a cat with me. And I don't even like cats.
One thing that is worth noting is that this book treats women pretty well. When you've read enough fantasy books, you just get use to the absence of women in the backdrop of the world. Scott's bringing back the ladies, which deserves two thumbs up.
Book 3: A Plot: Gentlemen Bastards do Karthain, B Plot: Gentleman Bastards put on a play
If you're not into watching a man trip over again and again and again because of his lady love, fear not, for this book is really two in one (and the second story has much less romance in it than the other part... that is, if you can call it romance and not outright punishment). It was great to have the twins of the group back in the picture - their departure was greatly mourned.
Book 4 is slated to come out this year. I can't wait.
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