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anouk90's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
elliotvanz's review
3.0
This was a fun little diversion but nothing terribly memorable. I enjoy the way KJ Parker writes and this quick novella with a philosophical bent was engaging and made me smile. I think I might have connected with it more had I read the prior book, but it wasn't necessary in order to understand what was going on. This goes into the category of books I enjoyed while I was reading but immediately forgot once I was finished.
tempse's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This novella is somehow quite different from its predecessor. Compared to the first Saloninus title, where the only fantastic elements were the (vague) alchemy, this time we have overt fantasy creatures. The wittiness of the first novella is somewhat dialed back, but a particularly crafty plot takes center stage to make up for it. Despite a somewhat different than expected reading experience, The Devil You Know is still among the best novellas I've read lately. KJ Parker just keeps delivering.
shereadstales's review
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
rogueblackwood's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
murpaki's review
2.5
This was a decent short novella but nothing particularly stood out to me. I had some trouble with the writing style. The author constantly switched back and forth between the two POV characters and did not do much to distinguish them from each other (i.e., both in first person with no clear marker of change and a similar voice for each), which made the switches disorienting. But I’m intrigued by other works from this author and will check them out!
jjcrafts's review
5.0
A fantasy novella where a philosopher with a penchant for conning people makes a deal with the devil for his soul, only the devil is pretty sure he's being played. It was really clever and I loved how the devil was so unsure and second guessing everything. It is quite slow but was a solid 4 stars throughout. Until that ending! Everything came together perfectly.