The Book Thread

[ecarden]

Oh, I didn't hate the writing – he's actually a step above most fantasy authors as far as that goes. It's more that I just can't make his takes on thieves and criminals match up with my experience of real-life ones. Actual criminal life sucks because of how low-trust it is. It's what drives most of them out eventually – they either burn out or get sold out. But Michael Sullivan's criminal protagonists all act towards each other like people who've been raised in a super safe, high-trust environment. They aren't worried about their "friends" betraying them at all – in fact, when they do get betrayed, it's by their high-class client!

It's an interesting point, because the Vlad Taltos series sort of fell into this and sort of didn't, even early on when it was more in love with the criminal underworld. Even then, Vlad is repeatedly betrayed (up to the point of being assassinated I think at least once) and repeatedly screwed over, but there's also just enough opportunity there that you can see how someone who didn't have a lot of options might go into it and somehwat prosper.

He does have some friends who remain loyal...but almost none of them are simple criminals. And as time goes on, you see a lot more about how abusive the criminal underworld is, not just to its members, but also to its victims. And this is a comparatively well-run organized crime group, not the less organized kind...

[LibraryOgre]

It's an interesting point, because the Vlad Taltos series sort of fell into this and sort of didn't, even early on when it was more in love with the criminal underworld. Even then, Vlad is repeatedly betrayed (up to the point of being assassinated I think at least once) and repeatedly screwed over, but there's also just enough opportunity there that you can see how someone who didn't have a lot of options might go into it and somehwat prosper.

He does have some friends who remain loyal...but almost none of them are simple criminals. And as time goes on, you see a lot more about how abusive the criminal underworld is, not just to its members, but also to its victims. And this is a comparatively well-run organized crime group, not the less organized kind...

Inside the Organization, I can only think of one character still around who he considers a friend... Kragar. He had some loyal employees, but most of them died in one conflict or another... Sticks comes to mind, and Glowbug was at least loyal, though I wouldn't call him a friend.

Outside the organization? He's pretty much got the top of the Empire on his side... two Dragonlords, Sethra Lavode, and even the Empress seems moderately fond of him (though I don't think they'd be called friends, either). Eventually, he makes nice with the Organization, even.

I read somewhere that Steve's tone changed after the death of a friend due to some crime or another, but I haven't confirmed that.

[ecarden]

I read somewhere that Steve's tone changed after the death of a friend due to some crime or another, but I haven't confirmed that.

I've heard that to and there's a source of uncertain validity here: https://mindstalk.net/brust/psych.html
discussing that history.

[LibraryOgre]

I've heard that to and there's a source of uncertain validity here: https://mindstalk.net/brust/psych.html
discussing that history.

Reads about like I remember, yeah. No idea if it is true, though; that bit came out almost ten years before I started reading Brust.