Reviews

An excellent followup to the first. If I had to nitpick, I'd say that the pacing of this entry feels a bit off. The first half could be described as a bit slow, and there is one major plot point that feels like it got resolved a little *too* quickly right at the end, as if Lynch simply ran out of space and needed to squeeze it in.

Still, an excellent read. The characters, new and old, are well written and dripping with personality. The convoluted schemes are fun and leave you guessing at every turn, and all in all the whole thing is just good old swashbuckling fun.

This is not a perfect novel, but few are. I enjoyed it immensely, look forward to reading the next entry in the series, and have been recommending it to anyone who will listen.

lizziestudieshistory's review against another edition

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3.0

This book was probably hampered by my tendency to mood read. I started this book and adored the first quarter, struggled through to the half way point, put it down for 6 months and then picked it up again to found myself loving the last half. It was a wild ride.

Saying that I do think this is a books of two halves because Lynch set up the Sinspear plot, which I was really into and then suddenly the tone and plot veered off into the politics/archeon/pirates plot. I definitely needed that break to enjoy the second half of the novel, which is why I took off a star...

I really do enjoy the relationship between Locke and Jean, and the characters of the Gentleman Bastards series are Lynch's strongest feature. I adored Captin Zamira Drakasha and she was a pleasure to read about, but I nearly lost that enjoyment due to the odd plot choices and sudden shifts in tone that jarred my experience as the reader.

The plots of this book could have been two different novels, however, I will be continuing on with the series to see what Locke and Jean are going to face next!

owen_lee_hughman's review against another edition

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adventurous funny relaxing tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

bendebec's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book still has a lot of what I loved from the previous book, the audacious plans, the sharp writing, the imaginative world building, but it sends our characters out to sea for a lot of the book, which doesn't let them show off what they are best at, and what I love them for.

I would have liked more time spent in the noble circles, focusing on the heist plans. Most of the first third, and final stretch of the book really works in this space, but while the boat adventures were good, it just isn't as good as the rest.

Still an enjoyable book though! Very compelling!

indy_oc's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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