The Gentleman Bastards

Early on when the boy and I were dating a bought him a copy of The Lies of Locke Lamora for a holiday gift. He claims he told me about it, but I remember discovering it in the new releases on amazon. Early way he loved it as well as its sequel. He's been eagarly anticipating the third book's publication next week, but as a book blogger I was able to request a copy for him from netgalley. What follows is the boy's first ever gust post and review.

The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch
Published: October 8, 2013 by Spectra
Series Gentleman Bastard #3
Fans of the Gentleman Bastards have long awaited Republic of Thieves, the third book in the Bastard series by Scott Lynch. They will not be disappointed. The adventures of Locke and Jean pick up where they left off at the end of "Red Seas Under Red Skies," with Locke on death's door and the two remaining members of the Gentleman Bastards still looking over their shoulders for magi. Shortly thereafter we get on with the main purpose of the book, which apparently is to finally flesh out the until now absent female member of the bastards, Sabetha, and her relationship with our hero.

In the book, Lynch returns to his formula from Lies of Locke Lamora, interweaving story lines from Locke's past with the current story of whatever shenanigans he is currently into. It works, sort of. While the first two books are focused primarily on the main heist, with character development flowing seamlessly from the natural character interaction, Republic of Thieves seems to put the development of characters first. The majority of the story is used to flesh out the relationship, both past and present, between our conniving hero and his one true love. The shennanigans, such as they happen, are kept to a minimum, and are certainly secondary to the personal stories being told. In this, Republic of Thieves is as different from the first two books of the series as they could possibly be. One can only wonder if the recent, well documented struggles in Lynch's personal life had a dramatic effect on the final product.

That said, true Gentleman Bastard fans will certainly not be disappointed. The book is well written, and the story is told with that easy style that seems to come so naturally to Lynch. Thieves might be a departure from the norm, but it leaves the reader with the best of possible feelings... When can I have book four?

Disclosure: I was provided this book from the netgalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

Today I'm linking up with Blonde Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday!