Second review, finished reading on October 9, 2009

In case the following new review doesn't make it absolutely clear, on a second reading, my admiration of The Lies of Locke Lamora has only increased. Even though I knew what would happen and anticipated every twist, I still enjoyed the book. While I don't think "re-readability" is a requirement for a great book, it certainly helps.

I quite enjoyed the story. It starts out as a con game and quickly becomes about intra-city politics, class warfare, and revenge. No one is whom they seem to be. There's just something so satisfying about watching Locke Lamora and his gang of Gentlemen Bastards execute a confidence game. Maybe I'm a sociopath; certainly it's a valid criticism that the protagonist of the book is a thief. As thieves and rogues go, however, Locke and his bunch aren't bad—they're certainly better than the cutthroat brigands who form one of the two antagonist groups. And the other antagonist group, the largely clueless nobility led by the slightly-less-clueless Dona Vorchenza, isn't much better—there's a reason we switched to democracy, right?

Locke Lamora is everything you expect from the brains behind a con game: sneaky, devious, and a smart-ass. He'll talk back to anyone—even the most scary character in the book, the Karthani Bondsmage known only as "the Falconer." When he's not patronizing you, you should be worried, because that means he's playing you, like he plays Capa Barsavi, once the most important criminal in Camorr, and Dona Vorchenza, Duke Nicovante's secret spymaster.

I suppose I should also telegraph my love for Jean Tannen, Locke's sidekick and muscle. Lynch has a nice way of introducing Jean: he beats up young Locke. Yay, I like when the main character gets taken down a notch! Jean's got brains too—he reads books—but prefers to let Locke build the schemes even as he cuts down anyone in the way. Their symbiotic relationship is perfectly summed up in one flashback scene, which is actually foreshadowing for the climax: "I don't have to beat you. I just have to keep you here ... until Jean comes." Awesome.

Camorr comes alive through Lynch's description of the way the city and its inhabitants operate. There's a great deal of exposition in this book, but it seldom interrupts the unity of the story. As a result, we learn all about the culture of Camorr, how other peoples view the Camorri, and what it's like to be a thief in the city. In a way, the city itself is a character.

And it fits perfectly into this novel's tone of badass underdogs versus ruthless villains. Both groups are equally matched when it comes to wits too; Lynch expertly balances the schemes of both the protagonists and antagonists to create a nice element of risk toward the climax. The first time I read this, I certainly didn't know exactly what the Grey King had up his sleeve; every time he stood up and pontificated his "actual" plan, we'd quickly learn it was just the uppermost layer of a Xanatos Gambit! And he's not the only one with a plan. Of course Locke is going to win in the end—at a terrible price—but along the way he suffers many setbacks. He's awesome, but he's flawed and far from invincible, which makes him a believable character.

Instead of learning about the Grey King's actual totally ultimate evil plan from his own mouth, we refreshingly hear it from the mouth of a tortured henchman whom Locke and Jean capture. In fact, although this book has a lot of exposition and flashbacks, it makes up for this by defying expectations when it comes to direct confrontations between two major characters. I cheered aloud when Dona Vorchenza jabbed Locke in the neck with a poisoned knitting needle, proceeded to tell him how he would now surrender, and he punched her in the face and stole the antidote before running away. Finally, a hero who does logical things when at the mercy of an antagonist! My relief is palpable.

Have I extolled The Lies of Locke Lamora enough? Are you crying out, "Enough, already! We get it, Ben; you liked the book!" Hopefully I've given you an idea regarding whether you'd enjoy reading it. This book is fun, while at the same time maintaining suspense and a sense of danger. If so inclined, you can grow attached to some of the characters. That's often difficult with even the best of books, but Lynch's style and way with dialogue make it easy here.

Of course I have some criticism to offer. It's much the same as what I said in my first review, however, so I won't repeat it here. I've included my first (and less well-written) review below.

First review, finished reading on September 10, 2008. Rating: 4 stars

The Lies of Locke Lamora offers entertaining characters who all seem to have schemes of their own, exciting action scenes, and equally excellent exposition. Scott Lynch has created a refreshing fantasy story that revolves not around "the chosen one" but around a thief. While this may not be original, Lynch's Locke Lamora is a charming thief with whom I bonded as he becomes the underdog through successive struggles in the story.

Alliteration aside, I enjoyed this book in a way I haven't for a while (mostly because I spent the summer reading The Sword of Truth series). When I reached the climax, I couldn't wait to turn the next page--unfortunately, I had to go to class. Lynch is a good storyteller; he keeps the reader interested while still managing to convey enough details to create a rich setting. Camorr is Venice, with a pinch of magic sprinkled among pseudo-science. I appreciate how Lynch seamlessly integrates magic into his setting: no endless speeches explaining the rules of the author's pet system of magic. I hate that!

Locke Lamora is an orphan who rises to become the leader of a gang of thieves for whom misdirection is everything. They regularly breach Capa Barsavi's Secret Peace--that the thieves of Camorr, or "Right People" as they call themselves, will steal only from commoners and merchants, not from nobles or the "yellowjacket" city watch. Yet to everyone outside their group, the Gentlemen Bastards seem to be nothing more than mediocre thieves. Unfortunately, Lamora's penchant for disguise catches up to him when he becomes a reluctant pawn in a power struggle for control of Camorr's thieves.

While Lynch does a good job weaving backstory into the book using flashback, some of the backstory seems superfluous, and that broke the unity of the story. I would pause and think, "Oh, that's nice. Can I get back to the plot now?" Some of the scenes could have been cut to tighten up the writing, and I would not have missed them.

The book was rushed toward the end--climaxes tend to lead to an increased pace, of course, but in this case I felt that the need for the climax drove the story toward an artificial resolution rather than the other way around. I can forgive Lynch for this simply because I derived great enjoyment from his characterization of Lamora toward the ending.

This edition includes a sneak peek at the second book in the series, and I must say that I can't wait to read it!

(Since this book features pirates, I'm using that as flimsy excuse to present my review entirely in "piratical" dialect, courtesy of this handy translator. Apologies to those who were expecting a sobre critique of literature in grammatical, precise English. Ye scallywag.)

I read this hot on th' heels o' me second readin' o' Th' Lies o' Locke Lamora|127455, about which I positively gushed in ever' way possible.

Goin' into this sequel, I be excited. I anticipated another brilliant adventure o' Locke Lamora an' Jean Tannen—an' thats what I got. Exactly what I got. Therein lies th' problem: th' best parts o' th' book be similar t' th' best parts in th' first book. Once again, Locke relies on a <a href="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/XanatosRoulette">Xanatos Roulette</a> t' extricate hisself from a very messy situation, an' e'en by th' end o' th' book, they arent safe yet. As other reviewers be havin' lamented, however, th' worst offence be that o' shoehornin' one plot into th' other . . . after interestin' me in a very Ocean`s Eleven-esque casino heist plot, Lynch suddenly injects a gentleman o' fortune plot into th' story, which smartly takes o'er as th' "main" course o' th' book.

Now we reach th' point 'ere yer mileage may vary. Fans o' nautical adventures will probably enjoy this here log more than swabbies like myself who, while fans o' gentleman o' fortunes, aren`t fans o' havin' marine terminology bandied about while Jean an' Locke cool the'r heels on th' Sea o' Brass. Parts o' this here log bored me, which nerehappened in Th' Lies o' Locke Lamora. An' 'tis nay jus' th' fact that 't takes place at sea among gentleman o' fortunes; 'tis th' failed synthesis o' two disparate plots that irks me so much. By th' end o' th' book, Lynch attempts t' tie all th' plots together fer a grand climax . . . an' 'tis almost thar, but nay quite.

`Tis odd t' say this about a fantasy book, perhaps, but th' realism be sorely lackin'. In a sense, th' lies o' Locke Lamora be too extraordinary an' insouciant, whereas in th' first book, they be jus' th' starboard amount o' extraordinary an' insouciant. Savvy? By th' time we reached th' climax, I had trouble believin' Locke could truly get th' lad's an' Jean ou' o' this mess alive, an' triumphant—speakin' o' which, I did enjoy th' twist at th' very end regardin' the'r spoils o' victory.

Th' first wee chapters o' th' book be th' best. We get t' be seein' Locke at his nadir, resigned t' drink an' mope in a room in an inn while Jean goes ou' an' tries t' build a gang in th' wee, dumpy city t' which they's fled. Locke, whom we`ve grown t' love as a smartass an' badass, be reduced t' a self-pityin' shadow o' his former self. 't takes some tough love from Jean t' set th' lad's straight, after which th' two begin plottin' t' rob th' most heavily-guarded casino eremade by man: th' Sinspire.

Id like t' continue sayin' good things starboard now, but th' subject o' th' Sinspire forces me t' criticize another unrealistic aspect o' Lynchs story: everything be hyperinflated in its status. Th' Sinspire be th' ultimate casino, 'ere nay one, nay one single swabbie ever gets away wi' cheatin'. Th' Archon`s One good eye be th' elite swabbieal guard who would never betray th' lad's. An' so on. Th' superlatives begin t' get annoyin' … well, superlative. Once an' a while 't would be nice t' come across an average sort o' swabbie who t'ain't either a complete idiot or a Chessmaster. I reckon, however, what wi' Locke Lamora bein' so brilliant an' all, 'tis difficult t' challenge th' lad's wi' ere less than a genius.

Speakin' o' which, I miss th' Dona Vorchenza! She be an antagonist, sure, but I liked th' lass'. She be fun. Neither Requin nor th' Archon, Stragos, be particularly likable; in th' first book, while I cheered fer Locke, I sympathized wi' th' Dona`s loss. Here, I couldna care less about what happened t' Requin or his position o' power afterward. Stragos, on th' other hand … well, as I be readin' th' book, I wondered why a troper on th' Gentleman Sons of a biscuit eater page o' TV Tropes labelled Stragos an anti-villain. I dasn't agree wi' th' label, but I agree that Stragos didna deserve his fate, an' I be nay sure Locke an' Jean would be havin' had 't in them. Then again, I didna understand how Locke an' Jean let they's self get into th' situation o' bein' poisoned anyway. Last time someone poisoned Locke coercively, he punched them in th' face an' stole th' antidote.

Without th' poison, o' course, thars very wee impetus fer Locke an' Jean t' go nautical—or refuse t' swashbuckle o'er th' one extant keg o' antidote at th' end. (Oh, come on, dasn't tell me thats a spoiler. I wont tell ye who drank 't,kay?) We get a much stronger idee o' th' bond between Locke an' Jean in this here log. Again, Lynch likes his superlative expressions o' affection, so I started t' skim them scenes after these two reconciled wi' each other fer th' nth time. 't be nice t' be seein' occasional tension, tho. An' 't be good t' be seein' Jean get some action (ye know th' sort o' action I mean).

Red Seas Under Red Skies preserves th' strong, witty characterization that made Th' Lies o' Locke Lamora amazin' in th' best sense o' th' word. Unfortunately, 't lacks a strong story t' go wi' its characters. This series still has great potential; I canna wait t' be seein' who makes th' next move in th' ongoin' struggle between Locke an' Jean an' th' Karthani bondsmages. E'en tho me interest in th' series remains intact, however, Lynch`s writin' an' plottin' needs t' improve t' restore me faith in th' quality o' th' series.