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Scott Lynch II: Read The Lies of Locke Lamora and Win at Life!


Werthead

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One - The US doesn't have a "secret peace" where crime is sort-of decriminalised, so it's more appealing as a career in Camorr.

Two - Comparing with the US as a whole is misleading, as it includes vast swathes of rural areas with low crime rates; it would be more accurate if you could get a comparison with, say, 1920's Chicago.

Three - US statistics may show crimes not covered by "right-people" ness, but they also exclude younger offenders, who would probably have become Right People long before they'd show up on adult offender registers here.

Four - Parts of Chicago apparently have a criminal population of (70%), so if Camorr is anything like that, then the 3000 figure is extremely low!

Scott's figures seem fine to me.

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I don't think I ever commented on the book.

I'm fine with the setting; I'm fine with the wit; I LOVE the wit; I like the modern language, and I like everything. :smug:

Scott, please don't change anything :) . I felt like reading Arsene Lupin mixed with the 3 musketeers, and god knows I love Dumas.

I recommended it to everyone and I want more :P

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:agree:

what niamh said.

read it, loved it and am now telling everyone I know to read it.

Oh, does anyone know when the German Translation comes out?

The Better Half's dad runs the SciFi and Fantasy section of their town library and wants to get LLL in asap.

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Oh, does anyone know when the German Translation comes out?

The Better Half's dad runs the SciFi and Fantasy section of their town library and wants to get LLL in asap.

The German translation will be out from Heyne sometime between May and October 2007. That is all I have been able to discover so far. Very probably it is going to be a trade paperback original.

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Okay, I finally jumped on the bandwagon and read TLOLL, and am so glad I did! I think I'm an official Jean fangirl now. :cool:

I liked the flashback chapters, and how they were tied into the current story. My favorite by far would have to be the "I just have to keep you here unitl Jean gets back" sequences--bravo!

SPOILER: GK

I really expected the GK to be someone we already knew, at least slightly. Several others have said they thought Nazca was actually pulling the strings. I had a similar theory, but I thought it was the mysterious and absent (yet oft mentioned) Sebetha. So the reveal of who he was and why he was doing all this was a bit of a shock, to say the least!

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  • 2 months later...

Nicely written. I enjoyed it very much and it's an impressive debut book. I really liked the setting with the city, it's district and gangs, felt a bit like a late 19-century city like New York or London. The scams were very entertaining and obviously thought through, and I was glad Locke had to try three scams before he got his clothes from Meraggio (sp?). It's not fun when it's too easy and not convincing enough. I even enjoyed the names in the books, I can't stand the usual names that looks like they come from a elven name generator. And more importantly the main story and dialogue was very entertaining and this book was a real page turner for me.

The switching between present and past worked very well, only a few places didn't fit quite right, and several other places it worked extremely well. Like when there is the flashback when Locke is explained about Bondsmage and how polite one should be around them, and then the first sentence in the present chapter is something like "Nice bird arsehole". The switching between POVs worked well enough except for a few places, but then again I'm more in favour of neat POV switches like with A Song of Ice and Fire.

That over confidence and arrogance was the downfall of many characters is well and good, but it made some encounter seems very much set up in Locke's favour. Like when he was suposedly drowned in the barrel of horse urine or his encounter with the Spider, as others have mentioned before. A bit suprised that the Bondsmage was taken down so easily even though he fucked up with the name, I would have expected him to have some sort of defence. And his bond with the bird made him very vulnerable. But I guess we'll get a more extensive explanation on the limits and nature of magic of the Bondsmage. The final confrontation was also quite predictable and worked very much in favour of Locke. Atleast he didn't win by the skill of his sword, but by his determination and willingess to endure in combination with luck and a bit of trickery.

I'm looking very much forward to the next book!

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  • 4 weeks later...

The UK mass-market paperback of The Lies of Locke Lamora is now out and, interestingly, they're using the larger-than-normal size previously only reserved for Alastair Reynolds and a few other worthies. Waterstones have made it their SF/Fantasy Book of the Month and have knocked £2 off it (so it's now just £5.99). Nice going, Scott! There's also a nice sample chapter for Red Seas Under Red Skies in the back as well.

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The UK mass-market paperback of The Lies of Locke Lamora is now out and, interestingly, they're using the larger-than-normal size previously only reserved for Alastair Reynolds and a few other worthies. Waterstones have made it their SF/Fantasy Book of the Month and have knocked £2 off it (so it's now just £5.99). Nice going, Scott! There's also a nice sample chapter for Red Seas Under Red Skies in the back as well.

I noticed that, too. Apart from the sample chapter. I'll have to go into waterstones and read it.

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  • 2 months later...

Most unexpected. The Lies of Locke Lamora has won SFX Magazine's Best Novel of 2006 Award (normally Terry Pratchett wins, automatically, regardless of the quality of his latest novel). Wintersmith and Thud! by Pratchett were in second and third places, whilst Keeping It Real by Justina Robson and The Blade Itself by J. Abercrombie pipped into fourth and fifth spots.

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Oh yeah: congrats, Scott! 32,000+ people just got a hot recommendation for your book!

Screw it, here are the full results from the awards:

Best Novel

1. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

2. Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett

3. Thud! by Terry Pratchett

4. Keeping It Real by Justina Robson

5. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

6. Shield of Thunder by David Gemmell

7. Cell by Stephen King

8. Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

9. The Toyminator by Robert Rankin

10. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey

And just the winners from the other, off-topic sections:

Best Comic

Astonishing X-Men

Best Movie

Children of Men

Best TV Series

Doctor Who

Best Episode of a TV Series

Doctor Who: The Girl in the Fireplace (which somehow beat not only BSG's Exodus but also Pegasus - which qualified thanks to a late 2006 showing by Sky One).

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Well deserved. Scott is an excellent author and somewhat questionable adult beverage judge (not that I'm bitter!). In all seriousness, Scott has shown himself to be a very cool guy in a tough industry and I'm looking forward to the coming second book.

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