Game of Cages (Twenty Palaces, #2)

Nov 16, 2012 Katepc rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: dnf

DNF.

As much as I enjoyed Child of Fire, I spent quite a bit of the book wondering what the hell was going on. After the initial WTFery the book was thoroughly engaging.

Game of Cages hasn't moved past the WTF stage and I've spent about a hundred pages waiting for someone to explain something. Anything. I pushed on because book one improved but this one...not so much.

The new ice-bitch-who-despises-our-hero-and-treats-him-like-shit has even less personality than the last one. The background chara...more

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Sep 06, 2012 Kala rated it 2 of 5 stars

I really liked the first book in the series; feeling that it had a lot of potential. The second one picks up a little while after, when the aftermath of the first had died down but not disappeared altogether.

The beginning was strong: new mission, new partner, a bit of rescue from the humdrum. Unfortunately the premise is similar despite the attempt to change it up. Instead of knowing a predator is loose in a small town, this time Ray and Catherine are just in the area to investigate. Of course t...more

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Aug 10, 2012 VK rated it 5 of 5 stars

The second twenty palaces novel is very similar to the first. Small town, bad predator, creepy mind magic that affects people in odd and heart-wrenching ways. Once again a small town runs with blood and Ray Lilly, expendable "wooden man" has only his prison smarts and small arsenal of magic to hold the line.

A few of the things that I found annoying in the first novel (the whole shady 20 palaces "we control your TV set" mentality for example ) were easier to accept in this book. When we learn the...more

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Jul 23, 2012 Fangs for the Fantasy rated it 1 of 5 stars

In this book, Ray Lilly is picked up at his working class job by Catherine because the twenty palaces society has work for him to do. She is not impressed to drive an hour out of her way to pick a wooden man. A big auction is happening for a predator in the tiny town of Washaway and Ray and Catherine are tasked with finding out the details of what is going on.

As to be expected, the situation quickly escalates and Ray becomes a one man rescuer once again. Someone has to save the town from the sap...more In this book, Ray Lilly is picked up at his working class job by Catherine because the twenty palaces society has work for him to do. She is not impressed to drive an hour out of her way to pick a wooden man. A big auction is happening for a predator in the tiny town of Washaway and Ray and Catherine are tasked with finding out the details of what is going on.

As to be expected, the situation quickly escalates and Ray becomes a one man rescuer once again. Someone has to save the town from the sapphire dog who has made pets of most of the town's residents causing them to kill each other so that it can feed on them. The sapphire dog creates feelings of love and adoration in its victim when you look at it and marks you as belonging to it when it licks you. Because of the power the sapphire dog wields a primary - a powerful sorcerer, who has actually been on the hit list of the twenty palace society for quite some time will stop at nothing to possess the sapphire dog and has used magic to make it impossible for anyone to leave town or call for help.

We do briefly see a return of Annalise towards the end of the book. Ray is relieved to see her because he knows that he is in over his head and yet once again, Annalise is not around for the final showdown. Though all he has is his ghost knife and known of her power, Ray is able to defeat the primary that Annalise lost to. Uh huh. I don't understand the point of repeatedly suggesting that Annalise is this all powerful being, only to have Ray save her again. If you don't actually follow through with a display of power, telling us about her power is pointless. It feels at this point more like Annalise is Ray's wooden man than the other way around. This theme is somewhat relieved by Catherine who when kidnapped does manage to rescue herself before Ray can do his prince charming to the rescue routine; however, once again when the action happens, Catherine is nowhere to be seen. Ray sends her away because she is a mother of two small children.

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Jun 12, 2012 Kathy Davie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, horror, urban

Second in the Twenty Palaces urban fantasy series revolving around Ray Lilly, an ex-car thief striving to just survive.

My Take
Connolly yanks me in right from the start for a story that crosses horror with detective work with amateur black ops. Ray's dilemma of how to keep secrets that are spilling out right and left felt quite real---I do enjoy it when an author gives us these seemingly impossible problems and then slips in the solution. Only, in Game of Cages, the solutions are much more the t...more

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Jun 06, 2012 lafon حمزة نوفل rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

I must admit to being confused while reading this. Maybe this had something to do with the fact that I didn't read the first one. A lot of the time I was even more lost than the main character. One thing I must say however is that Raymond Lily (the protaginst) is actually quite human. An odd proposition in today's paranormal genre. Another thing about this book is the level of violence. As you can see from the spoiler below it is quite graphic.
(view spoiler)...more I must admit to being confused while reading this. Maybe this had something to do with the fact that I didn't read the first one. A lot of the time I was even more lost than the main character. One thing I must say however is that Raymond Lily (the protaginst) is actually quite human. An odd proposition in today's paranormal genre. Another thing about this book is the level of violence. As you can see from the spoiler below it is quite graphic.
(view spoiler)[The only light I had left was the daylight shining through the door and the damaged walls. The people pushing their way into the room now were little more than backlit silhouettes. At least I wouldn't have to see their faces.
They were coming with knives, woodworking tools, axe handles, and empty guns. I lifted the iron pipe high and held my left arm low. I didn't have a shield; the tattoos on my forearm would have to do. I put the ghost knife between my teeth. They let out another war scream--a piercing animalistic keening--and I felt like screaming right back at them, but I kept it inside instead, channeling that raw energy to my arms and eyes.
The first guy to get close tripped over Big Bill and fell to his knee in front of me, so I smashed the pipe against his shoulder, knocking him against the one behind him, then I hit the next one hard on the edge of the wrist, sending his hammer bounding off the wall just as two more came close, keeping their balance better this time, and I smashed elbow and shoulder as fast and as hard as I could, blocking a sharpened hoe with my protected arm, but now the pets were crowding in, stumbling sometimes but not enough for me to keep ahead of every swing, of every hand reaching for me, of every sound they made, because I wasn't even looking at their faces anymore, I didn't have time to guess the attack they'd make based on their eyes or body position, they were just a mass of bodies rushing at me, and I laid out with my pipe, swinging everywhere with all my strength against people I'd told Catherine I didn't want to hurt but here I was, breaking arms and collarbones, and the first time a bat struck the bony point of my hip, the pain frightened and enraged me so much that I smashed the man wielding it right on the side of his head, and then every dark shape seemed to be tinged with red as I slapped away attacks with my forearm and crushed bones with the pipe even though many of them didn't even have weapons, just hands that reached to pull me down, so I smashed those, too, watching for knives and swings for my head, and I smashed wrists and elbows and collarbones and fragile, fragile skulls as the pets kept coming for me, climbing over the ones I broke, stumbling, slipping in water and blood and tripping over fallen bodies, then I felt a sudden sharp pain in my calf and looked down to see a girl no older than thirteen stabbing a long knife into my leg, and my fury and adrenaline and hatred and rage made it so easy--so easy!--to slam that iron pipe across both her little arms and I know she screamed even though I couldn't hear it over the noise the other pets were making but God I saw her expression and the whole world should have stopped right at that moment but they kept coming and I kept fighting and I knew right then that it didn't matter whether I lived through this, in fact better if I didn't because I was becoming everything that was raw and evil in this world and I didn't deserve to be in it anymore, so I screamed, finally, letting out all my anger and hatred at predators and peers and most of all myself for what I was doing, because I was not going to stop, not ever, until I had done this damn job, and the ghost knife that fell out of my mouth began to zip around the room with the speed of a sparrow, circling me like a rock on a string, and I just kept hitting and hitting, because I wasn't tired at all, evil men never tire of doing evil. (hide spoiler)]

If you read the spoiler than you can see exactly what I'm talking about. It's not the most violent passage I've ever read, or will read, but it somehow affected me more than many other scenes similar to it. Where some authors wish you to enjoy the gore they provide, I got the feeling that in Game of Cages the gore was sort of meant to be something to be ashamed of. All in all I think a 2.5 star effort , but I'll boost it up to 3.(less)

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Mar 21, 2012 Dianne Socci-Tetro rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the follow up to Child of Fire: A Twenty Palaces Novel and as Harry Connoly says in the first line his acknowledgments (in part) --- "This was not an easy book to write" . Well, this was not an easy book to read. More horror than anything else; this fast paced, bloody novel was off and running from the very start. To add to the horror of this book, it takes place at Christmas time. I actually sighed with near relief when I was done.

There is so much death and dismemberment in almost each...more

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Jan 07, 2011 WillowBe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: anti-hero-who-can-t-win-for-losing

Hmmm- well, kind of the same feeling as when I read the Jill Hunter of Lili Saint Crow. I like the charactar, root for him and want to survive.But then I feel kind of queasy about all the death, and destruction and the PTSD it inflicts on the protag, that I wonder- maybe I should be reading some light romantic lit instead.

I love his vulnerability, his mistakes that come out of sheer ignorance. I really liked how he reacts like a normal person. He is afraid most of the time, gets mad at things I...more Hmmm- well, kind of the same feeling as when I read the Jill Hunter of Lili Saint Crow. I like the charactar, root for him and want to survive.But then I feel kind of queasy about all the death, and destruction and the PTSD it inflicts on the protag, that I wonder- maybe I should be reading some light romantic lit instead.

I love his vulnerability, his mistakes that come out of sheer ignorance. I really liked how he reacts like a normal person. He is afraid most of the time, gets mad at things I'd be angry about, has limits as to what he will do- I like seeing him wrestle with his baser nature to act in ways that are socially acceptable. That he KNOWS he is tired of being alone, and unconnected and he wants to belong. That is major for a man to admit about himself.

Is frequently unsure of himself and feels out of his depth. Admits he is ignorant, but tries to do the right thing. I guess you could say that all protags have this moral code, but Ray just seems really REAL. He has a lot shame issues that he is trying to overcome. It's kind of like he has imposter syndrome- oh wait, he kind of IS an imposter. I don't know. A lot of charactars have shame issues, but I guess since most of them are women; it just doesn't register as much. Felix Castor has a lot of self-blame and self disgust, but I always feel he is too hard on himself. With Ray, I thought it was probably justified in the past, but not relevant today. The diffference is that Ray seems to be reaching to pull himself up and out of his past, while Felix seems to be drowning deeper and deeper in karmic depths and disastrous mischances. He is more immersed in danger, while Ray seems to be getting the skills he needs to stay out of it.

So I guess it's what kind of ride do you want to read about at the time? Ray's voice is so authentic, and I hope the author is able to keep that in future series. I mean, how many blue collar paranormal heroes do we get? Though I see the Big Secret on the horizon- he had no idea he is actually a descendant of X which explains his super powers!- Not sure I am enamored of that take on the charactar, if it comes to pass. (less)

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Dec 29, 2010 Karissa rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the second book in the Twenty Palaces series by Harry Connolly. It was a great read and a fast-paced follow up to the first book. In general the book is pretty contained and you wouldn't have to read the first book in the series to enjoy reading this book.

Ray Lily is out of jail and eking out a living working at a grocery store and living in an apartment above his aunt's house. Things are going pretty well for him, but he misses the action that the Twenty Palaces Society brought to his l...more This is the second book in the Twenty Palaces series by Harry Connolly. It was a great read and a fast-paced follow up to the first book. In general the book is pretty contained and you wouldn't have to read the first book in the series to enjoy reading this book.

Ray Lily is out of jail and eking out a living working at a grocery store and living in an apartment above his aunt's house. Things are going pretty well for him, but he misses the action that the Twenty Palaces Society brought to his life. Then Catherine drops into his life. She is an investigator for the Twenty Palace Society that was told to use him for backup if she needs it. There is a mysterious auction happening in a small town and rumors are that it involves a Predator; Catherine's job is to check it out and report back to the Society. Catherine is dismayed when she finds out that Ray isn't an Apprentice or a Peer but merely Annalise's Wooden Man. When Catherine and Ray get dragged out of the investigation and into a hunt for the Predator , Ray (his only tricks being his ghost knife and his protection tattoos) ends having to be resourceful in ways he wasn't planning on.

There is a lot I liked about this book. It is actually very similar to the first book in that it takes place in an isolated small town and Ray ends up hunting another predator. The action is again very well written and relentless. This is a book that is hard to put down, it shoves you from one action scene to another and leaves you breathless. We get to learn more about Ray as a character in this book and a little more about the Twenty Palaces Society as an organization. We also learn a smidgen more about the other evils in Ray's world.

So overall I enjoyed it, but I have some complaints...which are still the same complaints that I had with the first book. The action is so dense, we never really get to learn much about the characters or the world. This was a little less true for this book than the first book; but I still wish we had more face time with the characters in non-life-threatening situations. Also we get a tiny glimpse into the further structure of the Twenty Palaces Society but not much more than that...I really want to learn more about the Society and meet more people from it.

Catherine was an okay character but kind of weak. I really missed Annalise and was thrilled when she showed up again towards the end of the book. Annalise is such a kick-butt character; her and Ray play off of each other really well. You gain more insight into Ray as a character in this book. At times he reminds me of Harry Dresden; he has the same dry wit and willingness to get his butt kicked to accomplish what needs doing. Ray is different in that he has a lot less resources and he is more self-deprecating.

Overall, I enjoyed this installment in the series. I really, really want to learn more about this world though and with the non-stop action scenes there wasn't time for that in this book. The plot was tight and the writing incredibly readable and engaging. I just hope the next book brings us deeper into this world so we can meet more of the Twenty Palaces Society. I also hope the next book has more Annalise in it; her and Ray make an awesome fighting team. I am eagerly awaiting the next installment in this series.(less)

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Jun 19, 2012 Jeremy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: An urban fantasy fan who loves death

Shelves: dark, everyone-dies, fantasy, magic, supernatural, urban-fantasy, evil-doggy-thing, dark-wizards, must-read

Another fantastic novel written by Harry Connolly. This book somehow managed to be extremely riveting, even though it only takes place within a few days and in a small town. Game of Cages somehow managed to take all of the shock factor and amount of deaths from the previous book, and amplified it by 100. So much happens in the last half of this book that it makes up for the slowness of the first half. Understandably, it was building up to the ending, and what an ending. After finishing reading a...more

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Jan 24, 2012 Chris rated it 2 of 5 stars

I wanted to like this book more than I did, I think.

It's a perfectly good urban fantasy story. Somewhat gritty, supernatural elements interacting with regular society, a likable protagonist that's gruff and kind of a bastard.. But somehow, the world doesn't necessarily come together for me. The magic system seems weak, and not very well fleshed out- a serious problem for the second book in a series. The magical world itself also seems somewhat vague; the existence and structure of different grou...more

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Sep 16, 2010 K. Bird rated it 4 of 5 stars

Ray Lilly is picked up from his blue collar job by Catherine, an investigator for the Twenty Palaces Society, a ruthless group of humans who will stop at nothing to keep other people from using magic.

Ray is a Wooden Man, a magically protected servant of a sorceror who, after the first book, Child of Fire, was sure he was going to end up in jail due to the crimes he had to commit in the name of "protection."

But the Twenty Palaces society is not done with him yet. Catherine takes him to the small...more

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Oct 21, 2011 Shdnx rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy, fantasy, magic

I liked Game of Cages, although it was mostly suffering from the same problems as the opening title of the series, Child of Fire.
This book really isn't too different from the first installment. Same world, same type of plot, similar challenges and resolutions. It was good, enjoyable, just as the Child of Fire, but... there was nothing new, and this subtracted very much from the book's overall value to me.

There's very little new information about the world the series is playing in. There were som...more

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Sep 12, 2011 Karen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy, scifi-fantasy

I love this series and I'm only two books in. We meet up with Ray Lilly several months after Child of Fire. He's working at a grocery store and trying to forget about the events in Hammer Bay when an investigator with the Twenty Palaces Society shows up. A group is auctioning off a predator, and they're being sent in to gather information.

On the one hand I'm disappointed by the fact that we see less of Annalise in this book, as I find the interaction between she and Ray a lot of fun. On the oth...more

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Dec 15, 2012 Greg Kemble rated it 4 of 5 stars

I just learned that Connolly's contract for the Twenty Palaces novels wasn't renewed after his third book (this was the second in the series; also, he has a good blog post on it -- honest, reflective, unwhining). That makes me sad; I like his universe. That said, I liked this book less than his first. I will read the third of the series, for sure. I'm hesitant to read the self-published prequel; I liked the way he'd hinted at the back story in Child of Fire, and I'm not sure I want to know the d...more

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Sep 03, 2011 Dean Fetzer rated it 5 of 5 stars

I liked Child of Fire so much so that I almost immediately downloaded the sequel, Game of Cages. Ray’s on his own for this one. Well, almost alone - he’s been sent with a researcher, Catherine, to check out an auction for very wealthy individuals for what can only be one of those creatures from another world (yes, the ones that like to eat us) and report back. That’s all they’re supposed to do.

Of course, that’s not what happens. With Ray’s usual run of luck, they find themselves trying to track...more

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Dec 21, 2010 Hobart rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010-reads

Not unlike Child of Fire I spent the first hundred pages or so wondering why I was bothering -- sure, this time, I remembered really getting into CoF which helped, but still.

But then Connolly did something -- I don't have a clue what -- and I was in whole hog. I resented putting the thing down even for a minute or two. And then when, *spoiler redacted* showed up, fuhgeddaboudit, I just refused to put it down until it was finished.

Ray is not the most likable character in Urban Fantasy, but it's a...more

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Sep 15, 2010 Alex Mendiola rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Twenty Palaces series continues in Game of Cages. I was drawn into the harrowing life of Ray Lilly in the first novel of Child of Fire. As I've said before, strong choices make the best drama and this series has plenty of strong choices. Connolly builds a world largely unaware of the existence of real magic and the tragic consequences of its use. He walks the fine line between shock and disgust in his fiction. The theme of both books deals with crimes most in polite society would rather not...more

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Jun 25, 2011 Derek rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, noir, urban-fantasy

Blurb:
As a wealthy few gather to bid on a predator capable of destroying all life on earth, the sorcerers of the Twenty Palace Society mobilize to stop them. Caught up in the scramble is Ray Lilly, the lowest of the low in the society—an ex–car thief and the expendable assistant of a powerful sorcerer. Ray possesses exactly one spell to his name, along with a strong left hook. But when he arrives in the small town in the North Cascades where the bidding is to take place, the predator has escaped...more

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Jul 20, 2012 Tom rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is the second book in the 'Twenty Palaces" series. I was late to the party and just recently discovered this series. Unfortunately after I fell in love with the first book I discovered that after the third book the series was dropped by the publisher.

That is by no means a reason not to read these.

While it is a second in the series, you don't have to read the first one to completely enjoy this one. I love that in a series, the books have a lose background together (so far) and if you happen...more This is the second book in the 'Twenty Palaces" series. I was late to the party and just recently discovered this series. Unfortunately after I fell in love with the first book I discovered that after the third book the series was dropped by the publisher.

That is by no means a reason not to read these.

While it is a second in the series, you don't have to read the first one to completely enjoy this one. I love that in a series, the books have a lose background together (so far) and if you happen to pick this one up first it won't kill you / confuse you to not have read the first one too much.

The story is set in the modern world, and kicks off with a bang from the start. It's told from the viewpoint of Ray, who in the past wasn't the best of kids, and as an adult got involved in something that ended up with a lot of people dead. However, a mysterious group called Twenty Palaces somehow cleared his name, and he is now a helper called a 'Wooden Man' of a powerful magician. Their job is to find bad things with magic, and kill all who are involved.

This time, Ray gets picked up by an 'investigator' vs. a 'peer' we met in the first book. They are trying to check something out when everything goes to crap, and people start dying. People that kinda deserve it, and people who don't. There is some interesting Moral Dilemma's in the character's development, and we learn more about his background and what got him where he is slowly leaked out over the progress of the novel. We have multiple people who may or may not be bad guys, a small town's festival with the potential for a blood bath from a runaway monster, and a prick of a peer who thinks he can do this all on his own and that Ray and his new friend / investigator Catherine are beneath his notice.

I am very excited/sad to read the next in the series. I love this authors style of story. No love stories, you don't know to cheer or fear the main character, and his universe of magic is fairly fascinating and rather refreshing compared to tried and true spell casters & evil things that go bump in the night. I highly recommend you check this out and the others in the series.(less)

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Sep 14, 2010 John rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy

This book is a black hole and I mean that in a good way. A follow up to Child of Fire, you are drawn into the story and the main character, Ray, and it's hard to resist the pull.

This is definitely a dark and gritty urban fantasy where the mages are not high minded and the monsters are most definitely monstrous.

Unlike the first book, Ray is not initially teamed up with his peer Annalise but, instead, is assigned to help out an Investigator named Catherine on what should just be a research missio...more

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Apr 29, 2012 Kristin rated it 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars.

Another great entry in this series. I found the plot to be just as good, if not better than the first one. A predator who was recently sold on the auction block has escaped and it’s up to an investigator named Catherine, who was only in town to report on the auction, and Ray, who was only around to assist her, to find and stop it as the cavalry doesn’t seem to be coming. Unfortunately, all of the people who were bidding on it are after it as well, only they don’t want to stop it but wa...more 4.5 stars.

Another great entry in this series. I found the plot to be just as good, if not better than the first one. A predator who was recently sold on the auction block has escaped and it’s up to an investigator named Catherine, who was only in town to report on the auction, and Ray, who was only around to assist her, to find and stop it as the cavalry doesn’t seem to be coming. Unfortunately, all of the people who were bidding on it are after it as well, only they don’t want to stop it but want to capture it to use for their own purposes. And while it’s loose, the body count begins rising at an alarming rate.

I didn’t think anyone could aggravate me as much as Annalise but I was wrong! Catherine’s an annoying elitist, though I did warm up to her a bit as the story went on. And while I loved Ray’s compassion in the first book, in Game of Cages it was out of control and made me want to slap him. He took crap from everyone and should’ve had a t-shirt on that said “Please walk all over me, I like it.” When Annalise shows up briefly, I was surprised to find that I’d actually missed her in the rest of the story. She truly is a kick-ass, take-no-prisoners person who Ray definitely needs to survive. I could just do without some of the genuflecting he does, while she’s powerful and can teach him a lot, she’s not a saint and can still be a total pain in the ass.

As with those in the first book, I didn’t find the predators all that scary. Yeah, they can kill you and I wouldn’t want to face one since they are so hard to off, but seriously frightening? Not so much. The sorcerers who’ve gone off the reservation, now that’s another story. These rogue villains are truly terrifying. I’m not going to give anything at all away, but something that one of them did practically had me gagging in disgust. I think Connolly should focus on these crazies more often, hunting them down instead of predators, because that would be a freaky, cringe-inducing ride.

I really love the world that Connelly has created, but I still have many questions about the Twenty Palace Society and those who make it up, especially Annalise. I really hope we find out more about it in the next outing or are at least introduced to other members. And though he showed serious signs of doing whatever it takes to survive and stop the baddies at the end, I hope Ray nuts up a bit and stops being so tough on himself. That said, he really is one of my favorite characters around. He’s so real (I’m pretty sure he’s going to barf in each book which, for some reason, I love), relatable and not the perfect main character who can solve everything with a flick of the wrist without needing to rely on anyone. Dumb luck is a better friend to him than skill and knowledge, though that’s not to say he isn’t clever and doesn’t know how to make things work in his favor, because he’s very good at observing and evaluating the situations he’s thrust into and at learning from his and others’ mistakes.

This is a terrific series with a hugely likeable, yet flawed, main character. I’ll definitely be picking up the third book, Circle of Enemies very soon.
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Feb 08, 2012 Kristin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: e-book, urban-fantasy

Book two in the Twenty Palaces Society featuring Raymond Lilly.

My thoughts on this book are similar to book one: read a bit like an action movie, lots of running around in panic, people chasing the protagonists, attempted kidnappings, getting shot at and over coming impossible odds. And yet, I enjoyed it because the protagonist struggles with himself. Is he doing the right thing? Is this what he really wants to be doing? Is he actually helping the Twenty Palaces Society or is he causing more ha...more

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Sep 03, 2010 Rachel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Harry Connolly ups his game a 100% in this book. Game of Cages is a non-stop thrill ride with a large dose of horror thrown in. I was jittery and excited the whole time for the main characters, hoping things would be OK in the end. The book starts out with Ray getting picked up by Catherine, a Twelve Palaces investigator, to find out who is buying a predator in an auction. When they arrive to investigate the auction, things go into full swing when they find out that the predator is on the loose....more

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May 06, 2013 Jenn rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: own

I think I found the first of this series through Felicia Day's Goodreads. I liked the first one pretty well, so I picked up the next two at some point. I'm not sure what it was, but I didn't like this one as well. I think it might have been the non-stop action. I've never been a fan of that part when there's not a lot of meaningful interaction between characters. Also, the vast number of players in this one was confusing as hell. The nicknames helped a lot, but even if you took those out, there...more

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Oct 09, 2010 Christopher Valin rated it 5 of 5 stars

With Game of Cages, the sequel to the debut Twenty Palaces novel Child of Fire, Harry Connolly has not only avoided the sophomore slump, but exceeded even my high expectations for this story. The book, which continues the adventures of Ray Lilly, a “wooden man” working for a mysterious organization of sorcerers, is even better than its “Publisher’s Weekly Best Books of 2009″ predecessor. As with Child of Fire, the plot moves forward at a brisk pace and the world is populated with interesting cha...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Kathy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Harry Connolly has the makings of a good series here. This is the second book of the Twenty Palaces series, but stands well enough alone if you don't want to read the first. I feel that this is a much stronger effort from Connolly and I enjoyed it much more than the first novel, Child of Fire. Ray, our "hero", is a bit more seasoned, and a bit disillusioned, about magic this time. He is a resourceful and engaging character that makes the best out of what he is given. There is plenty of action an...more

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Oct 11, 2012 Jami Zehr rated it 4 of 5 stars

In Game of Cages, Wooden Man Ray has been called upon by the Society to look into strange happens in a small town aiding an investigator, Catherine, they are to go in, document their findings, and get out. Ray has his Ghost Knife with him, the one spell he knows how to use (somewhat), a piece of paper with scribbles on it that will cut a person’s spirit and clothing, but not their flesh. He has the ability to call it to his hand, some hand to hand combat experience in prison, the will to survive...more In Game of Cages, Wooden Man Ray has been called upon by the Society to look into strange happens in a small town aiding an investigator, Catherine, they are to go in, document their findings, and get out. Ray has his Ghost Knife with him, the one spell he knows how to use (somewhat), a piece of paper with scribbles on it that will cut a person’s spirit and clothing, but not their flesh. He has the ability to call it to his hand, some hand to hand combat experience in prison, the will to survive, and not much else.

Game of Cages was just as exciting a noir urban fantasy story as Child of Fire. Ray is one of the most engaging characters I have read about in a long time. He has not magical abilities, except for a piece of paper, but he is street smart, thinks things through, and makes quick decisions that turn out to be the right ones. He is extremely capable, competent, and I was extremely nervous despite the series being centered on his character, that his job of Wooden Man would get him killed too soon. I was not so impressed by Catherine, although she is a competent investigator, seeking out truth by becoming a new person to every interviewee so that they wanted to tell her everything, she wasn’t nearly as badass as Annalise. And while Annalise does show up for a portion of the story, it was not nearly enough to satisfy my badass woman needs.

I do love the world the Connolly has created and I, for the most part, love the characters he has created. Flawed human beings with some magical abilities, they fight the really really wrongs of the world even if it means creating some wrongs of their own. Ray is Harry Dresden without the innate magical abilities or formal detective training, he’s just a man with a Ghost Knife. He makes mistakes on a large scale, he triumphs on an even greater one. He is the best kind of character, one you root for and shake her head at, at the same time. A really interesting and engaging series, be warned, if you start this book you will have a hard time setting it down.

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May 25, 2012 Liz rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: meh, urban-fantasy, whatever, readable-but-only-just, bland, forgettable, not-worth-the-time, review-for-the-whole-series, mediocre-writing, boring

After trudging my way through two books of this, I can see why the series was cancelled. Explaining that, however, is harder. There's just...no real excitement in these books. The narrative is good, the plot is good, world building isn't bad, but whatever it is that grabs hold of you and makes you need to finish a book and then need to read the next one is just utterly missing here. It's not a lack of romance - personally I think romance crap brings down a book, it's not a lack of understanding...more

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Jan 04, 2012 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a refreshing read, as it grows tiresome reading about characters who are difficult to connect with because they are written as TOO perfect and/or invincible and/or TOO powerful / magical for words. Most protagonists become annoying to me, when they are portrayed as SUPER-human or have some latent SPECIAL qualities unlike any other, fighting to save the world from evil doers by accidentally falling into the role, and of course, EVERYONE lusts after them and is willing to die for them, and...more

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Game of Cages (Twenty Palaces #2)

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