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Vlad Taltos #10-11
The Book of Dzur: Comprising the Novels Dzur and Jhegaala
The first seven of Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos novels have long been in print from Ace Books in a set of three trade paperback omnibuses. In Spring 2011, Tor put the next two Vlad books, Dragon and Issola , into print as a trade paperback entitled The Book of Dragon . Now we continue with the next two, collecting the New York Times -bestselling Dzur and Jhegaala into The Book of Dzur .
In Dzur , Vlad is back in the great city of Adrilankha, with a price on his head. The rackets he used to run are now under the control of the mysterious "Left Hand of the Jhereg"―a cabal of women who report to no man. His ex-wife needs his help. His old enemies aren't sure whether they want to kill him, or talk to him and then kill him. A goddess appears to be playing tricks with his memory. And the Great Weapon he's carrying appears to have plans of its own….
In Jhegaala , Vlad decides to hide out among his relatives in faraway Fenario, in a papermaking town called Burz. At first it's not such a bad place, though the mill reeks to high heaven. But the longer he stays there, the stranger it becomes. Then a grisly murder takes place. And in its wake, far from Dragaera, without his usual organization working for him, Vlad has to do his sleuthing amidst an alien people…his own.
In Dzur , Vlad is back in the great city of Adrilankha, with a price on his head. The rackets he used to run are now under the control of the mysterious "Left Hand of the Jhereg"―a cabal of women who report to no man. His ex-wife needs his help. His old enemies aren't sure whether they want to kill him, or talk to him and then kill him. A goddess appears to be playing tricks with his memory. And the Great Weapon he's carrying appears to have plans of its own….
In Jhegaala , Vlad decides to hide out among his relatives in faraway Fenario, in a papermaking town called Burz. At first it's not such a bad place, though the mill reeks to high heaven. But the longer he stays there, the stranger it becomes. Then a grisly murder takes place. And in its wake, far from Dragaera, without his usual organization working for him, Vlad has to do his sleuthing amidst an alien people…his own.
400 pages, Paperback
First published October 11, 2011
59 people are currently reading
276 people want to read
About the author
Steven Brust
101 books2,307 followersSteven Karl Zoltán Brust (born November 23, 1955) is an American fantasy and science fiction author of Hungarian descent. He was a member of the writers' group The Scribblies, which included Emma Bull, Pamela Dean, Will Shetterly, Nate Bucklin, Kara Dalkey, and Patricia Wrede, and also belongs to the Pre-Joycean Fellowship.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/steven...
(Photo by David Dyer-Bennet)
http://us.macmillan.com/author/steven...
(Photo by David Dyer-Bennet)
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 18, 2017
Dzur: 3.5 stars; read 16/6/2017.
Jhegaala: 4 stars; read 18/6/2017.
Jhegaala: 4 stars; read 18/6/2017.
September 28, 2025
Unlike the other books of this series, I just could not get myself into this book (and trust me, I tried). It's not all bad. There's still the classic sarcastic wit and assassin-y stuff, but overall, I found it disappointing.
The entire time, I had to force myself to read through the pages, up until the ending of the second entry, where I finally was invested in the story.
This omnibus includes both "Dzur" and "Jhegaala", and I have issues with both.
In "Dzur", there was an absurd focus on describing food, often for pages and pages on end. I didn't count, but it felt like 20% of the book was just Vlad sitting at a restaurant eating. This was widely distracting for me, as I just wanted to get to the parts where anything was happening.
In "Jhegaala", Vlad spends the majority of the book wandering around mostly aimlessly, not knowing what is happening and barely making any progress towards figuring it out. It seems like every chapter is stagnant until the last several, when impactful things finally start happening.
The other issue I have with this entry is perhaps in the reading order. The previous 2 books have world-ending stakes with debates with Gods and strange magic and crazy alien creatures, while in this book, it's just a small town that makes paper. I know that these books can be read in any order, but reading in publication order, this book is just a harsh shift from what has been previously happening. I don't think it was needed; everything that happened in this book could have been left to speculation by Vlad's mention of him "losing a finger during his visit to the East".
Overall, while others may have liked this book, I was struggling to enjoy it as much as the rest of the series.
The entire time, I had to force myself to read through the pages, up until the ending of the second entry, where I finally was invested in the story.
This omnibus includes both "Dzur" and "Jhegaala", and I have issues with both.
In "Dzur", there was an absurd focus on describing food, often for pages and pages on end. I didn't count, but it felt like 20% of the book was just Vlad sitting at a restaurant eating. This was widely distracting for me, as I just wanted to get to the parts where anything was happening.
In "Jhegaala", Vlad spends the majority of the book wandering around mostly aimlessly, not knowing what is happening and barely making any progress towards figuring it out. It seems like every chapter is stagnant until the last several, when impactful things finally start happening.
The other issue I have with this entry is perhaps in the reading order. The previous 2 books have world-ending stakes with debates with Gods and strange magic and crazy alien creatures, while in this book, it's just a small town that makes paper. I know that these books can be read in any order, but reading in publication order, this book is just a harsh shift from what has been previously happening. I don't think it was needed; everything that happened in this book could have been left to speculation by Vlad's mention of him "losing a finger during his visit to the East".
Overall, while others may have liked this book, I was struggling to enjoy it as much as the rest of the series.
December 8, 2020
It really is just as everyone says - the first book is way better written and also suits the series better. (And by gods those little insertions of a foodtalk at the start of every chapter... They make me drool, they melt me. It's such a great addition. Soo good!)
The second book I could only describe as "yet another one experiment". While entire series has a little breeze of detective and puzzle-solving most of the time it's not a primary focus this once is an exception. it reads like a detective and well, it is a detective. I, for one, think that it's brilliant and engaging enough but this doesn't mean that you have to like it if you are a fan of the series.
The second book I could only describe as "yet another one experiment". While entire series has a little breeze of detective and puzzle-solving most of the time it's not a primary focus this once is an exception. it reads like a detective and well, it is a detective. I, for one, think that it's brilliant and engaging enough but this doesn't mean that you have to like it if you are a fan of the series.
February 18, 2019
I'm currently sick and not very creative on writing.
Know that Dzur and Jhegaala are most awesome. As usual Brust accomplished to write individual stories as unique additions to the series. It still startles me how he manages to keep it a well told character development over the course of these disconnected narratives. Totally impressive.
Should I remember I might write more and better when I recovered.
Know that Dzur and Jhegaala are most awesome. As usual Brust accomplished to write individual stories as unique additions to the series. It still startles me how he manages to keep it a well told character development over the course of these disconnected narratives. Totally impressive.
Should I remember I might write more and better when I recovered.
January 31, 2024
Continua a ser muito bom mas os anteriores eram mais estimulantes.
Em Dzur Vlad continua a tentar salvar as consequências dos atos da sua mulher, que não quer ser ajudada.
Em Jhegaala Vlad tenta descobrir as raízes da família da sua mãe numa cidade de leste com uma estranha relação entre o conde, a guilda e o coven ou conciliábulo, onde todos têm a sua agenda, mas vão conspirando uns com e contra os outros .
Mas o humor entre Vlad e o seu familiar Loiosh é o melhor que o livro tem.
Em Dzur Vlad continua a tentar salvar as consequências dos atos da sua mulher, que não quer ser ajudada.
Em Jhegaala Vlad tenta descobrir as raízes da família da sua mãe numa cidade de leste com uma estranha relação entre o conde, a guilda e o coven ou conciliábulo, onde todos têm a sua agenda, mas vão conspirando uns com e contra os outros .
Mas o humor entre Vlad e o seu familiar Loiosh é o melhor que o livro tem.
August 24, 2023
Very good entry. I'm reading order of publication, which isn't chronological order, but somehow it works out really well.
Not too much to say. If you've read up to this point in the series you likely don't need someone to guide your hand.
Not too much to say. If you've read up to this point in the series you likely don't need someone to guide your hand.
January 23, 2024
More Vlad!
The first book takes place moving forward in time (after Lady Teldra), and the second fills in his time in the East. I though the second was pretty depressing, but, as advertised, a good standard murder mystery.
The first book takes place moving forward in time (after Lady Teldra), and the second fills in his time in the East. I though the second was pretty depressing, but, as advertised, a good standard murder mystery.
September 9, 2018
two books in one volume, both are good but I liked Dzur better than Jhegaala
April 22, 2024
Another set of enjoyable books in the series. As always, Brust manages to tell creatively entertaining stories that manage to be quite distinct.
April 11, 2020
As usual, a fun read from Brust. I liked Dzur better than Jehgaala, in part I'm sure because of the familiar faces in Dzur. Still, both had the usual helpings of action, intrigue, and snark. Both are fast paced. The ending of Jhegaala was a little bit underwhelming for me, but both books are worth a read for fans of the series.
December 11, 2012
This one was a mixed bag. The first book was OK, but the second was a little out of reach for this series.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews