Scan barcode
timinbc's review against another edition
3.0
OK way to pass the time. Not as good as the others; felt a bit lazy.
Too much slap-and-tickle with Liz. I don't mind that, there was just too much of it. Felt like padding.
Bledsoe admits that he can't be bothered creating character names, but this time maybe he goes too far. Guards named Ajax and Hector. A young woman named Cassandra who complains that no one ever listens to her. A young girl named Viola pretending to be a boy. Owen Glendower as a character. A guy named Billy Cudgel (sounds like a good name for a club [sorry, couldn't resist]). And, most over the top of all, a foul-mouthed and abusive chef named Gordon. What will we see in the next book? Mr. Darcy? Fezziwig? A vampire named Lestat?
Also lazy is having the scribe reappear to do a long info dump.
The plot is decent. The motivations of the leading characters are OK. Tatterhead is interesting. The whole thing with the, ahem, person with supernatural powers falls apart as soon as we see some details. She can do this huge thing and that one, but she can't do this little thing or that one. And her motivations are either unclear or missing.
Fifth best book in the series, but still OK.
Too much slap-and-tickle with Liz. I don't mind that, there was just too much of it. Felt like padding.
Bledsoe admits that he can't be bothered creating character names, but this time maybe he goes too far. Guards named Ajax and Hector. A young woman named Cassandra who complains that no one ever listens to her. A young girl named Viola pretending to be a boy. Owen Glendower as a character. A guy named Billy Cudgel (sounds like a good name for a club [sorry, couldn't resist]). And, most over the top of all, a foul-mouthed and abusive chef named Gordon. What will we see in the next book? Mr. Darcy? Fezziwig? A vampire named Lestat?
Also lazy is having the scribe reappear to do a long info dump.
The plot is decent. The motivations of the leading characters are OK. Tatterhead is interesting. The whole thing with the, ahem, person with supernatural powers falls apart as soon as we see some details. She can do this huge thing and that one, but she can't do this little thing or that one. And her motivations are either unclear or missing.
Fifth best book in the series, but still OK.
telerit's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ogreart's review
4.0
I am genuinely sorry that this is the last book of the series. I would read the hell out of any more the author would write.
lcdarkslayer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
surfmonkey01's review against another edition
4.0
For the first 2/3, this was an INCREDIBLY strong read. Good mystery, interesting characters and development. Then as the curtain began to be pulled back on what was happening, it became a bit less interesting. This is one case where the resolution was much less interesting than the mystery itself.
I continue to enjoy the evolution of Eddie and his world, however, as each book gives him new depth and adds more interesting facets to the world. This series remains among my top 5 in Urban Fantasy (for those curious, the others are Harry Dresden, Felix Castor, Iron Druid, and the Leandros Brothers. Order TBD, although Dresden sits at the top of the heap for sure.)
Anyways, I digress. This is a very good book, and I recommend checking it out upon its release. Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy.
I continue to enjoy the evolution of Eddie and his world, however, as each book gives him new depth and adds more interesting facets to the world. This series remains among my top 5 in Urban Fantasy (for those curious, the others are Harry Dresden, Felix Castor, Iron Druid, and the Leandros Brothers. Order TBD, although Dresden sits at the top of the heap for sure.)
Anyways, I digress. This is a very good book, and I recommend checking it out upon its release. Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy.
git_r_read's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of my favorite series from one of my favorite authors. It's fantasy with anachronisms out the whoosie-whatsit and I don't care. I love finding them in the books and hearing them when I listen to the books as I have lately.
Each book gives us more of Eddie's background as a young man, when he left home, and his adventures as a 'sword-jockey' aka private investigator. This starts with Eddie, as a young man on his way to a battle, fighting a bear to help rescue a man from the attack. It doesn't work out well but Eddie rescues the baby that the doomed man was carrying. Eddie promises to help and the story goes from there with a flash to the 'present'.
Plenty of action, humor [bawdy and otherwise], swords, mischief, good deeds and bad, magic, science, romance, Eddie and Liz, so much going on and it's all excellent.
I can definitely recommend this book, series and author.
Each book gives us more of Eddie's background as a young man, when he left home, and his adventures as a 'sword-jockey' aka private investigator. This starts with Eddie, as a young man on his way to a battle, fighting a bear to help rescue a man from the attack. It doesn't work out well but Eddie rescues the baby that the doomed man was carrying. Eddie promises to help and the story goes from there with a flash to the 'present'.
Plenty of action, humor [bawdy and otherwise], swords, mischief, good deeds and bad, magic, science, romance, Eddie and Liz, so much going on and it's all excellent.
I can definitely recommend this book, series and author.
jaymeks's review against another edition
3.0
It was a good book, but not my favorite of the series. I liked a lot of what happened, but quite frankly, some of it was just silly. While I get that it was based on a Shakespearean model, some of the twists and turns were weird, and again, just silly. Not bad, but not my favorite.
alishaaye's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lyndiane's review against another edition
5.0
Please Mr Bledsoe, sir, I've been waiting an awful long time now. When are you going to give us another story about Eddie la Crosse?