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A review by thesinginglights
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
5.0
(first review 18/05/2013)
This got a four-star review by the skin of its teeth.
My eye has been drawn to this book for a while, being as it was part of this “new” wave of low-fantasy. The blood and head count (for larger characters also) is much higher in such books—this one being no exception—and the stakes are much more realised. The emphasis for this is on the brutality.
I suppose the brutality in this book is what it draws its “appeal” from. I’ll put this out as a warning: this book is very ruthless in its violence, featuring some uncomfortable torture scenes (not to mention a very bloody finale) and if you feel that people being drowned in horse urine, or things of the like, might not be your cup of tea, I’d turn away now.
Locke Lamora, then. He is a thief, of a group by the name of the Gentlemen Bastards, of believable intelligence and much cunning, (albeit not being all that remarkable in any other aspect—sword-fighting in particular) navigating the upper class with elaborate disguises to pilfer their riches. He was a bit hit-and-miss for me, at points, but he wasn’t a wholeheartedly bad character to follow along. His ploys were interesting to see unfold, though slow at the start, and his loyalty to his fellows is actually quite admirable. Set in the city of Camorr, which is a very vividly drawn up, possessing its own network of far-reaching criminal activity alongside the workings of the nobility, as well as strange alien architecture mysteriously left by a long gone race. It’s clear that Lynch cares about his world, carefully crafting it with some beautifully detailed descriptions, ones that do not let the reader leave without seeing its intricacies: Elderglass, for example, I really enjoyed visualising. The descriptions, however, can lead them to be quite florid, especially at the start and some details seem a bit unnecessary—Hangman’s Wind, anyone? Just a bit of overkill, Lynch—which doesn’t progress Book I as quickly as I wanted. I have to admit that I was initially put off by the interludes, considering the fact that it went back some years, only really filling in what had happened years before the plot, to mixed effect. But I suppose I did warm to them in the end, possibly because there weren’t so long between the final chapters.
Another thing that I’ve seen on other reviews is the swearing. I’m not too bothering by it personally but it’s a high count and I felt that it stilts some bits of otherwise quite well-done dialogue, rather than adding colour to it. It’s a minor quirk that didn’t work all that much for me. Not a huge problem, though.
The early parts of the book tended to be a bit confusing as the timeline between numbered sections (the event, the set-up to the event) were confusing. The laboured pace nearly completely put me off and the first part wasn’t very compelling. Not really.
But then it picked up.
In fact, it really got exciting and I really got into it. The pace of the plot carried along much more quickly and made for a more pleasant read. With complications of being thrown into a conflict better avoided, the book was most enjoyable. Chapter Seven is perhaps one of my favourites of the book and the most humorous. It’s really not long after that where things become much more serious for effectively everyone. The last half of the book was exciting, well-written and concluded, though not without some serious brutality in between.
The magic seemed near out of place, but it was interesting; the Bondsmage’s powers were alarmingly mighty, considering the setting (with the exception of alchemical manifestations it is, I’ll mention again, very low-fantasy). There were parts, though, that were great reads, and the first encounter with him comes vividly to me as one of the best encounters in the book. I distinctly recall shaking the book on one particular entrance. Perhaps a toning down of the powers would have made him fit into it better.
With the exception of one character who is mentioned a number of times (though never once does she make an appearance, flashback or in the present) you can stop, which works quite well for me. Despite eventually really enjoying the book, I felt that there wasn’t much for me to come back for, unless I was guaranteed that the second book is at least on par with the first—and much more quicker for things to kick off. So while yes, it turned out to be full of some witty banter, excellent descriptions, and tricky, unpredictable situations, I’m not sure that I’m all that ready to try another one of the Gentlemen Bastard series. I may, but for now I’ll look to other reads.
The first part of the book seems to be quite a bit behind in terms of its style but it does redeem itself. That is, of course, if you stick with it.
The Lies of Locke Lamora is a good, if initially slow, debut.
This got a four-star review by the skin of its teeth.
My eye has been drawn to this book for a while, being as it was part of this “new” wave of low-fantasy. The blood and head count (for larger characters also) is much higher in such books—this one being no exception—and the stakes are much more realised. The emphasis for this is on the brutality.
I suppose the brutality in this book is what it draws its “appeal” from. I’ll put this out as a warning: this book is very ruthless in its violence, featuring some uncomfortable torture scenes (not to mention a very bloody finale) and if you feel that people being drowned in horse urine, or things of the like, might not be your cup of tea, I’d turn away now.
Locke Lamora, then. He is a thief, of a group by the name of the Gentlemen Bastards, of believable intelligence and much cunning, (albeit not being all that remarkable in any other aspect—sword-fighting in particular) navigating the upper class with elaborate disguises to pilfer their riches. He was a bit hit-and-miss for me, at points, but he wasn’t a wholeheartedly bad character to follow along. His ploys were interesting to see unfold, though slow at the start, and his loyalty to his fellows is actually quite admirable. Set in the city of Camorr, which is a very vividly drawn up, possessing its own network of far-reaching criminal activity alongside the workings of the nobility, as well as strange alien architecture mysteriously left by a long gone race. It’s clear that Lynch cares about his world, carefully crafting it with some beautifully detailed descriptions, ones that do not let the reader leave without seeing its intricacies: Elderglass, for example, I really enjoyed visualising. The descriptions, however, can lead them to be quite florid, especially at the start and some details seem a bit unnecessary—Hangman’s Wind, anyone? Just a bit of overkill, Lynch—which doesn’t progress Book I as quickly as I wanted. I have to admit that I was initially put off by the interludes, considering the fact that it went back some years, only really filling in what had happened years before the plot, to mixed effect. But I suppose I did warm to them in the end, possibly because there weren’t so long between the final chapters.
Another thing that I’ve seen on other reviews is the swearing. I’m not too bothering by it personally but it’s a high count and I felt that it stilts some bits of otherwise quite well-done dialogue, rather than adding colour to it. It’s a minor quirk that didn’t work all that much for me. Not a huge problem, though.
The early parts of the book tended to be a bit confusing as the timeline between numbered sections (the event, the set-up to the event) were confusing. The laboured pace nearly completely put me off and the first part wasn’t very compelling. Not really.
But then it picked up.
In fact, it really got exciting and I really got into it. The pace of the plot carried along much more quickly and made for a more pleasant read. With complications of being thrown into a conflict better avoided, the book was most enjoyable. Chapter Seven is perhaps one of my favourites of the book and the most humorous. It’s really not long after that where things become much more serious for effectively everyone. The last half of the book was exciting, well-written and concluded, though not without some serious brutality in between.
The magic seemed near out of place, but it was interesting; the Bondsmage’s powers were alarmingly mighty, considering the setting (with the exception of alchemical manifestations it is, I’ll mention again, very low-fantasy). There were parts, though, that were great reads, and the first encounter with him comes vividly to me as one of the best encounters in the book. I distinctly recall shaking the book on one particular entrance. Perhaps a toning down of the powers would have made him fit into it better.
With the exception of one character who is mentioned a number of times (though never once does she make an appearance, flashback or in the present) you can stop, which works quite well for me. Despite eventually really enjoying the book, I felt that there wasn’t much for me to come back for, unless I was guaranteed that the second book is at least on par with the first—and much more quicker for things to kick off. So while yes, it turned out to be full of some witty banter, excellent descriptions, and tricky, unpredictable situations, I’m not sure that I’m all that ready to try another one of the Gentlemen Bastard series. I may, but for now I’ll look to other reads.
The first part of the book seems to be quite a bit behind in terms of its style but it does redeem itself. That is, of course, if you stick with it.
The Lies of Locke Lamora is a good, if initially slow, debut.