Poudelivre

My love for Scott Lynch and his Gentleman Bastard series is never ending. This is my second time finishing the three novels that has been published (The Lies of Locke Lamora, Red Seas under Red Skies and The Republic of Thieves) and I’m eagerly awaiting 2016 and the release of The Thorn of Emberlain. Until then I’ll busy myself with rereading the first three books yet again.

Locke and Jean has just about come out of the mess they made in Tal Verrar, but they’re far from intact. They leave with one big, but not desirable gift; the fatal poison still in Locke’s body. Jean does what he can, but no physician can cure Locke and it looks like he will face Aza Guilla once and for all, when help comes from the most unlikely and most untrusted place of all. The Bondsmagi of Karthain. Accepting the help will make Locke and Jean bound to a political game playing out in Karthain and putting themselves in awful danger of whatever cruel plan the magi has in their back pocket for the two of them. But declining will mean certain death for Locke.

I loved the first two novels about Locke and Jean and their crazy adventures and The Republic of Thieves did not let me down. Mixed with the present story of Locke, dying by poison and having to choose to either trust the people he distrusts most in the world, or leaving Jean all alone, is the story of the five young Gentleman Bastards sent off to Espara by Father Chains to learn to work together as a group by pretending to be actors.

As always, Lynch is sharp in his writing and creates vivid stories lush with color, smells and feelings. The topics arising is serious, but entwined with humor and sarcasm that I have come to associate with Lynch. He is brutal at times and cracks me up at others. His characters are brilliantly made and shines from every page. They are strong, with an arsenal of problems that makes them incredibly real. Never have I read a story I fell in love with as swiftly as I did with Locke and Jean’s and never have I encountered characters as finely made as all of the ones hidden inside the pages of this series. It has everything I look for in a novel; beautiful covers, fantastic writing, wonderful world-building, strong characters and enticing titles. This series is one of my all-time favorite and I can’t wait to continue on the journey with Locke and Jean. I recommend this to anyone.