The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard, #1) in Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy"

Apr 05, 2016 Daniel Millard rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I picked up the first two books of the Gentleman Bastards on a whim after seeing some very good press for them here on Goodreads, and shortly got roped into a monthly read for this, the debut. Unlike many books I've read lately, I had almost no expectations lined up for this. I was pretty neutral on most plot synopses, and while thievery is not an uncommon foundation for a fantasy story nowadays, Scott Lynch wastes little time in distinguishing his setting.

Lynch breathes an uncommon amount of li I picked up the first two books of the Gentleman Bastards on a whim after seeing some very good press for them here on Goodreads, and shortly got roped into a monthly read for this, the debut. Unlike many books I've read lately, I had almost no expectations lined up for this. I was pretty neutral on most plot synopses, and while thievery is not an uncommon foundation for a fantasy story nowadays, Scott Lynch wastes little time in distinguishing his setting.

Lynch breathes an uncommon amount of life into Camorr, the city in which the majority of this novel is set. The divide between upper- and lower-class seems to be exaggerated, with the majority of districts seeming to be either impoverished, seedy wastelands or opulent homes of nobles, and Camorr doesn't make much sense geographically, but it makes for a cool setting - each district having its own island, and boats/waterways acting as main means of transportation.

Characters are largely quite believable, and Lynch quickly gets you enjoying the company of all the Gentleman Bastards...except for the main character. Locke himself, while very talented, self-abusive, and even ultimately somewhat virtuous, is just not a terribly likeable or interesting character. Rather, it's the characters around him (Jean, Chains, Calo & Galdo, Capa Raza, and various members of the Camorri nobility) that elevate his story. Locke's mostly just a foul-mouthed, constantly short-sighted, yet brilliant thief and impersonator.

Despite not having a strong pull to the main character, the schemes that he gets embroiled in are many and complex. I've never read a fantasy so focused upon skullduggery, deception, and legerdemain as this, and it's a very novel read, consequently. Plots are somewhat convoluted, develop with shocking speed at times, and Lynch does just the right amount of letting the reader in on little secrets in order to keep development quite satisfying.

My main frustration with this book was language. Everyone curses, upper class or lower, and they do it pretty much all the time. There's much more inane cursing than is necessary to develop atmosphere, and it gets a bit wearisome, though there are one or two points where it's just so absurd that it becomes entertaining. Secondly, Lynch is very graphic at a number of points throughout the book, especially in the first torture scene. While there are plenty of disturbing scenarios in fantasy, I've rarely read anything so intimately graphic and gruesome. This isn't a big detractor, but between this and a few mentions of sexual violence, I perceive Lynch as still succumbing to an adolescent sort of thrill in trying to shock readers.

These are situational and relatively minor drawbacks to what is largely a very novel and thrilling story, if quite violent and punishing for its protagonists. I'm hooked enough to have immediately moved onto the sequel. ...more

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Dec 25, 2014 Frank rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

No spoilers here.
This one, as well as, the other two volumes have been on my TBR for quite some time. Not sure that this is quite a fantasy, but there is a slight bit of magic present, in such ways that you find the George RR Martin's series.
Well, I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed this first volume. The setting was interesting, many say a fourteenth century Venice, which I can see. However, what really worked for me in the volume was the great characters that Lynch created along with all the ...more

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May 24, 2013 Filip rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, 5-stars

In all honesty I should rate this book somewhere between 4 and 5 stars but the ending was real good and as it is the first volume of the series I'm willing to give it 5 stars.

First of all, let me say something. I HATE THIS BOOK.
I DO.
I've read better books, for certain - but it is the one book that I should have written.
Damn.

I've always liked caper/con stories and placing them in a fantasy setting is made of win for me. I loved the schemes, the plots, some of the characters - the other ones, incl ...more

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