#bookreview

#BookReview

After the dramatic events at the end of The Liar's Knot, we enter this book aware of what’s behind the much of the ill our main characters, Ren, Vargo and Grey, are fighting.

The trouble is, although these three are now revealed and reconciled with each other in all their various guises, having become embroiled in multiple personas or other lies, at some point it was inevitable there would be consequences of such deceptions.

For Ren, however much she adores the new family she’s gained by becoming Traementis, it’s based on a falsehood, and it’s really the work that she does in her Vraszenian guises of Arenza Lensky and The Black Rose that she’s passionate about. Is there any way for her to not break with the Traementis while following her heart?

For Vargo, and his spider, he somehow needs to keep the trust of those he relies on when he’s not truly as bound to their causes as he claims.

For Grey, well… he had an exceptional resource at his disposal, but owing to his conflicts he’s cast it aside; how does he go forwards now he’s a different person?

So as our cast is thrown into their biggest challenge - finally ridding Nadežra of maline influence once and for all - they also have to deal with the how the wider Vraszenian and Liganti populace reacts as they see the real characters behind the masks.

I won’t lie and say the plot is always skilfully handled here; it’s certainly not. In particular, the outcome of one of the main denouncements felt particularly episodic as if the writers were, “OK, we must deal with that, OK that’s done, close it off quickly, move on”.

I will also say that the authors do resolve every plot thread, and that’s some task in a series this complex, making for a lot of endings - we learn about Ren’s origins, the spider, the bodyguard, even some whys behind how the Vraszenian tarot-based magic links with Liganti number-based magic.

Despite the negatives in plotting, I still can’t bring myself to be anything but fully positive about the series; it’s innovative, it has captivating characters and the backdrop of Nadežra is just deliciously well realised. Race and class conflicts, as well as what it means to have a mixed heritage, are not easy concepts to bring into a fantasy, especially when we also have so much fun, silly banter and action.

And finally, I’m never not going to have a soft spot for any fantasy where our heroine relies on smarts and not a sword.

I’m off to go back to Mask of Mirrors and start it all over again

#BookReview Here, we continue with story of Ren, a would-be con artist, who’s achieved her goal of being accepted as a full member of the noble House Traementis in the Renaissance Venice-inspired city of Nadežra, where this trilogy is set.

However, Ren’s now a long way from her main motivations being those she started with, as she has a new tangled web of heart and home considerations to think of at every turn.

The primary thrust of this second book takes us back to the mysterious curse on House Traementis, something that was introduced a bit too hurriedly in the first book.

Who or what is it that has the power to so profoundly affect families so as to cause entire family lines to die out? Why is the crime lord Vargo seemingly also so interested in this problem? How does this link to the 200 years of tension between the Vraszenian and Liganti people within Nadežra?

And how is Ren going to reconcile the above with her new and unlooked-for third persona, that of the Black Rose? [Poor Ren! Never mind the two guises she already has as part of her con, being the Black Rose means now she has responsibility to do what’s right by the general Vraszenian populace of the city too].

No doubt, but for me these issues make for a truly sumptuous plot, and I’m fine if there’s sometimes a rather meandering story path as each of our three main characters have various parts of puzzle at various times (as well as Ren, both Vargo and Grey Serrado get full arcs and take on substantial POV sections).

I especially adored learning the truth behind Vargo. In fact, our first scene is a gritty flashback where we see just how Vargo becomes attached to the spirit that lives in his spider Peabody, and thus starts on the path of his meteoric rise from slum street kid to nobility. [And if you haven’t read the first book, and think the ‘spirit in the spider’ thing just sounds too silly to be real, well yes it is, but no it’s not, all at the same time! These authors are not afraid to have fun with their fantasy].

Although, the sheer number of names does mean you have to fully pay attention (and make use of the Dramatis Personae and glossary), I wouldn’t want it any other way - I’m all in to work at fully embracing this lush and polished world. Despite some serious themes (lies, trust, love, greed, spirituality…), there’s just so much more when those are mixed with a good dose of fashion, flirtation and swashbuckling action to give a multi-layered book.

Any fans of political fantasy should be reading this series.