The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

[Artemis97]

I have just finished reading this book the other day and I am still reeling from the ending. It was a wild ride from start to finish. So good, I bought the second book in the series before I was halfway through the first. I would highly recommend it.

Have you read it, Playground? Did you enjoy it? Were your brains left buzzing like mine were?

[BeerMug Paladin]

I've read it. It was a great read, slowly picking up steam until about the halfway point when it really got running. I really enjoyed the setting, its detail and the way the corruption in the city was an open secret. It felt real in a very tangible sense as a setting, which is a feeling I don't often get. I got the impression the author did a lot of thinking about how his world fit together.

The second book is, quite possibly even better, expanding the world in a direction that fits quite nicely with what's already established.

[georgie_leech]

It's also the best snark I've seen in years. Ah, how the chapter immediately after Chains explains Bondsmagi opens... :smallamused:

[Vogie]

I'm currently reading it, about 3/4ths through... I'll jump in when I'm finished.

Love it so far.

[Dienekes]

Great first book. Great second book. Haven't read the third yet. I've been meaning to, but I just don't.

I think it was because the big promotion for it was that we would
finally meet Sabetha

Which doesn't interest me, at all really. I'm sure Lynch wrote the book fine and when I sit down to it I'll enjoy it. But it's hard for me to get motivated by a book that promises to focus on, at least in part, the sections of the previous books I found least interesting.

[georgie_leech]

She is kinda the reason behind a lot of how he behaves. But if that doesn't interest you, consider that she's had the same training that the rest of the Gentlemen Bastards have had. And isn't necessarily on their side. So imagine Locke trying to out-con Locke. :smallamused:

[Knaight]

I read the first one, but didn't pick up the rest because I heard they were well below par. With this thread I'm reconsidering that.

[MintyNinja]

Hey, other people have found my favourite books, yay!

All kidding aside, Scott Lynch's books have been my all-time favourites since I first picked up The Lies of Locke Lamora. And it wasn't until I very recently read Patrick Rothfuss' Kingkiller Chronicles that anything else has come close (For those interested, I love both series the same for different reasons).

An important aspect about Locke Lamora's story is how his past and upbringing is revealed as the present story progresses. If you find the theme in the past, you start to get real insight into his present. I think that's most clear with the third book, which I really enjoyed.

In any case, to those who enjoy fantasy stories for an engrossing dose of escapist adventure these books are for you.
To those who always roll up a rogue or side with the thief characters, these books are for you.
To those who play with the sharp tongue duellers and barking snark-tastic bastards, these books are for you.

[GloatingSwine]

The second one was good. The third one had a b plot made out of flashbacks that fell flat on its face, but the main plot was still decent shenanigans.

[Velaryon]

A friend gave me the first book a few years ago while I was in graduate school. It took awhile before I was able to find time to read it, but I had the opportunity to use it for a book talk in class (basically, a 3-5 minute pitch where you try to interest listeners in a book by giving a brief spoiler-free summary, followed by describing who it would appeal to and why). I enjoyed it quite a bit.

Unfortunately, as I was still in graduate school at the time, I didn't find an opportunity to finish the series and I've just not gotten around to it since. One of these days I'm gonna reread the first book and then pick up the sequels.

[Artemis97]

I'm reading the second book now and I'm loving it.

I just got to the part where the bondsmagi reveal themselves to Locke and Jean in the Night Market. The way they cheated at the card game was brilliant. I thought they'd poisoned the cherries somehow, but it was a different sort of poison all together. And the prologue! I had to put the book down after the prologue and just go "What?" Locke and Jean on a dock in a Mexican Standoff while a boat burns in the background, then Jean turns on Locke with no sign that he's bluffing, but after all they went through in the first book, he can't be serious, right?! Aaaah.

Oh and one of the reviews in the front of the books said The Lies of Locke Lamora has had the film rights snapped up right quick. Who can you see playing the Gentleman Bastards?

[thorgrim29]

He's probably a bit too old for the role but I could see Tom Hiddleston playing Locke.

Though it seems Lynch got Martin's disease, so I'm not sure when we'll be seeing the next book, amazon thinks in september but it's been getting pushed back for 3 years soooooo. Same thing with the 3 prequel novellas that were supposed to come out soon after book 3. Damn Martin's disease is infectious too, it got Pat Rothfuss a few years ago, and now it seems that Jim Butcher might have come down with it after fighting it off for more than a decade. Maybe the infection vector is those celebrity d&d games they all play at cons.

[Leewei]

It's great to see the interest in this series! I loved the first book -- kind of like Oliver Twist meets Fafhrd and the Grey Mauser. Lynch himself is a fun guy. If you get a chance to talk to him at a convention, he's quite the wit.

[Anteros]

I actually thought this series got stronger as it went along. The first book started slow and picked up steam about halfway through, and the following books were very enjoyable. It's a shame the new book has been so delayed.

I've got a real soft spot for rogueish protagonists like Locke or Mat Cauthon. There's just something appealing about a character that survives on charisma, wits, and luck in a world where everyone is much more powerful than them. Since we're on the topic, can anyone suggest any books in a similar vein?

[monomer]

He's probably a bit too old for the role but I could see Tom Hiddleston playing Locke.

Though it seems Lynch got Martin's disease, so I'm not sure when we'll be seeing the next book, amazon thinks in september but it's been getting pushed back for 3 years soooooo. Same thing with the 3 prequel novellas that were supposed to come out soon after book 3. Damn Martin's disease is infectious too, it got Pat Rothfuss a few years ago, and now it seems that Jim Butcher might have come down with it after fighting it off for more than a decade. Maybe the infection vector is those celebrity d&d games they all play at cons.

Scott Lynch stopped writing for a while while he was battling with Depression and Anxiety, which is why it took so long for Book 3 to come out. Rothfuss is delayed because he vastly underestimated how much rewriting his books would require, while I think GRRM just let his series spiral into over-complexity.

Anyways, my choice for the Gentlemen Bastards would be Nick Frost and Simon Pegg, though they're getting a little old for the roles. If they could get Edgar Wright to direct, that would be all the better.

[comicshorse]

I've got a real soft spot for rogueish protagonists like Locke or Mat Cauthon. There's just something appealing about a character that survives on charisma, wits, and luck in a world where everyone is much more powerful than them. Since we're on the topic, can anyone suggest any books in a similar vein?

Well they're not fantasy but for a rougeish protagonist you can't do better than the 'Flashman' novels by George Macdonald Fraser ( apart from the very first novel which, IMHO, doesn't get the balance right between Flashman being a bastard but still sympathetic enough for you to care what happens to him)

[Tom Tearcamel]

On books with a similar tone, I'd recommend Nevernight by Jay Kristoff. Maybe a bit darker, but a similar world. The main character is like a post-pubescent Arya Stark (rip family in flashbacks) with rare Shadow Magic that manifests a snarky familiar that takes the shape of a cat. She is training to be a Blade (assassin) for the heretical Red Church to get revenge.

[Vogie]

I just finished it.

Fantastic book. It reminded me very much of Rothfuss' Kingkiller Chronicles, but with more swearing and conning.

The ending was a perfect stack of callbacks and nuanced speech that kept me on my proverbial toes. I'm definitely adding the rest of them to the Goodreads queue.

[Anteros]

I just finished it.

Fantastic book. It reminded me very much of Rothfuss' Kingkiller Chronicles, but with more swearing and conning.

The ending was a perfect stack of callbacks and nuanced speech that kept me on my proverbial toes. I'm definitely adding the rest of them to the Goodreads queue.

You're not the first person I've heard make that comparison, but I can never seem to make myself get into those books. I just don't enjoy them the same way for some reason.

[Dienekes]

You're not the first person I've heard make that comparison, but I can never seem to make myself get into those books. I just don't enjoy them the same way for some reason.

Rothfuss' writing style is poetic to the point it's distracting. That can be a barrier for some people.

That and Kvothe is an unlikable ass.

[golentan]

Lies of Locke Lamora is in my top 5 favorite books.

[Anteros]

Rothfuss' writing style is poetic to the point it's distracting. That can be a barrier for some people.

That and Kvothe is an unlikable ass.

I definitely found myself disliking Kvothe when I was reading. I think that, combined with the fact that the last book isn't even out is what drove me away.