![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The setting is reminiscent of Renaissance Italy – complete with extravagant mob bosses and descriptions of mouthwatering Mediterranean-style feasts. In Scott Lynch’s rollicking and elaborate first installment of the Gentleman Bastard series, traditional fantasy meets the film “Casanova” meets The Count of Monte Cristo and even “The Sting.” Layer upon layer of cons and deceptions raise ever higher stakes in the expertly crafted plot, featuring a team of anti-heros who will steal your heart as they make off with all the money they can get their hands on. Once I realized – about fifty pages in – that the twists and turns would be nagging at my mind for hours after each lunch break, it was too late to turn back. (Max Gladstone suggested as much in his nice article for The Book Smugglers here, so we know it’s true.) Perhaps the week before Christmas is not the best time to get embroiled in a 700-ish page chronicle of crime and religion and disguises and betrayal. Winter is the time for the Big Fantasy Novels waiting on your shelf. The Lies of Locke Lamora is Scott Lynch’s fun and smart addition to the world of big-ass fantasy books. This will be a woefully shallow review, then, of a complex fantasy novel that I heartily enjoyed. I’m still recovering from the madness of the holidays selling books at Christmastime doesn’t leave much brain- or will-power left at the end of the day for actually reading them. Age range recommendation: 15 and up (contains torture and language) ![]()
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