Publication Date confirmed for Scott Lynch’s THE REPUBLIC OF THIEVES

[MaesterHeisenberg]

550-600 Is still a good amount IMO. I don't need a monster book. I just wanted a book of any size from Scott.

[Poobah]

I never look for a book of a certain size. Short is just as good as long if it's good (though long is much worse than short if it's bad!) so I'm not really concerned with wordcount.

Looking forward to it :)

[RedEyedGhost]

Maybe Gollancz can increase the font size to make the page count 24% higher than the US version, like Harper Voyager did for The Daylight War. Then we could all buy that version and feel like we got a monster of a book.

[williamjm]

550-600 Is still a good amount IMO. I don't need a monster book. I just wanted a book of any size from Scott.

I think that's probably about the largest it should be. Unless the author is writing an epic like ASOIAF or Malazan I think it tends to be difficult to justify 800+ pages, unless The Republic of Thieves has a completely different character to the previous book I can't see any reason for it to be so long.

[Calibandar]

I think this is a slightly different, new synopsis that is up on Amazon now:

With what should have been the greatest heist of their career gone spectacularly sour, Locke and his trusted partner, Jean, have barely escaped with their lives. Or at least Jean has. But Locke is slowly succumbing to a deadly poison that no alchemist or physiker can cure. Yet just as the end is near, a mysterious Bondsmage offers Locke an opportunity that will either save him or finish him off once and for all.

Magi political elections are imminent, and the factions are in need of a pawn. If Locke agrees to play the role, sorcery will be used to purge the venom from his body—though the process will be so excruciating he may well wish for death. Locke is opposed, but two factors cause his will to crumble: Jean’s imploring—and the Bondsmage’s mention of a woman from Locke’s past: Sabetha. She is the love of his life, his equal in skill and wit, and now, his greatest rival.

Locke was smitten with Sabetha from his first glimpse of her as a young fellow orphan and thief-in-training. But after a tumultuous courtship, Sabetha broke away. Now they will reunite in yet another clash of wills. For faced with his one and only match in both love and trickery, Locke must choose whether to fight Sabetha—or to woo her. It is a decision on which both their lives may depend.

Wert:

The Republic of Thieves is 210,000 words, or every so slightly longer than The Lies of Locke Lamora (190,000 words, or thereabouts). Probably 550-600 pages in hardcover/tradeback

Interesting. That would basically make it the same size as Red Seas, which is 550 pages in US hardcover, as opposed to Lies, which is 496.

[unJon]

So are the three moons inhabited in Lockeworld? Rereading LOLL and in the flashback with jean and Locke on the roof,

Locke looks at the moons and strains to see the blue and green specks that Chains says are the gardens of the gods.

[jmastar]

Time to un-n00b myself and start reading the series.

[Nearly Headless Ned]

It's for debate which ones are awesome. The Troy Trilogy is indeed awesome (aside from the last few chapters of the third book which were written by his wife after his death) and the Jon Shannow sequence is great. I always found Legend and the Drenai stuff to be horrendously overrated (Legend is actually the weakest Gemmell novel of the dozen or so I've read; I have no idea why it's considered a classic), however.

I'd have loved Gemmell to have become a writer of historical fiction. Can only imagine what his take on the Norman invasion would've been like. Awesome probably.

[kcf]

Just saw this on Twitter....

subpress: Reading @scottlynch78's Republic of Thieves again. The Gentleman Bastard changed the ending since the last draft. Damn good book, btw.

I'm finally allowing myself to look forward to this one.

[MuthaHydra / Lord Jo]

Late to the party as usual. This makes me excited :drool:

Also I want to see Joe A doing the Harlem shake ... with only his pecs

[Werthead]

I'd have loved Gemmell to have become a writer of historical fiction. Can only imagine what his take on the Norman invasion would've been like. Awesome probably.

The Troy Trilogy is pretty much historical fiction, or the closest he ever got. Certaionly 'speculative' historical fiction.

So are the three moons inhabited in Lockeworld? Rereading LOLL and in the flashback with jean and Locke on the roof,

Locke looks at the moons and strains to see the blue and green specks that Chains says are the gardens of the gods.

I did wonder if that was more of a Steven Erikson shout-out than anything else.

[RedEyedGhost]

I did wonder if that was more of a Steven Erikson shout-out than anything else.

Say what?

[Lelouch Lamperouge]

Say what?

There is a similar quote in Gardens of the Moon.

'Do you see the moon's oceans?' Apsalar asked.

'What?' He turned.

'Its oceans. Grallin's Sea. That's the big one. The Lord of the Dead Waters living there is named Grallin. He tends vast, beautiful underwater gardens. Grallin will come down to us, one day, to our world. And he'll gather his chosen and take them to his world. And we'll live in the gardens, warmed by the deep fires, and our children will swim like dolphins, and we'll be happy since there won't be any more wars, and empires, and no swords and shields. Oh, Crokus, it'll be wonderful won't it?'

Her profile was in silhouette. He stared at her. 'Of course,' he said quietly. 'Why not?' And then that question repeated itself in his head an entirely different reason. Why not?

I presume Wert was referring to that.

[RedEyedGhost]

But why Erikson? That's a common trope in fantasy - The Book of the New Sun and The Psalms of Isaak are just two other examples. If it's homage to anything, I think it would be to tBotNS.

[Werthead]

But why Erikson? That's a common trope in fantasy - The Book of the New Sun and The Psalms of Isaak are just two other examples. If it's homage to anything, I think it would be to tBotNS.

Because Erikson is the one who makes a (relatively) big deal out of it, going as far as to name a novel after the idea. Lynch could be referencing someone else, of course (ST:TNG also mentions the Moon being terraformed, though notably it isn't whenever it appears on-screen), or simply come up with the idea himself.

[polishgenius]

I think the use of the word 'gardens' and the general tone that gives a particularly Malazan association. I mean the idea's been in play going right back to Doctor Dolittle at least, but it's quite a specific phrasing.

[RedEyedGhost]

Well, he doesn't even list having read Erikson on his goodreads page, so I'm going to go ahead and say it's not an Erikson shout-out.

[banjax451]

Because Erikson is the one who makes a (relatively) big deal out of it, going as far as to name a novel after the idea. Lynch could be referencing someone else, of course (ST:TNG also mentions the Moon being terraformed, though notably it isn't whenever it appears on-screen), or simply come up with the idea himself.

I don't believe that's true about TNG. DS9 made specific mention of the moon not being terraformed - that the people who lived on it lived under domes. See the episode "Valiant." Not that this means anything on this thread, of course.

I honestly believe it could be a reference but it could equally not be one. Doesn't really/truly matter.

[Werthead]

I don't believe that's true about TNG. DS9 made specific mention of the moon not being terraformed - that the people who lived on it lived under domes. See the episode "Valiant." Not that this means anything on this thread, of course.

I think it was in the First Contact movie, where it is said that there are lakes on the surface. Memory Alpha gets round this by fanwanking it that the lakes are under big domes, but that's not the impression given in the film.

[End of Disc One]

Well, he doesn't even list having read Erikson on his goodreads page, so I'm going to go ahead and say it's not an Erikson shout-out.

He also doesn't list GRRM on Goodreads--doesn't mean he isn't inspired by ASoIaF. He has very little epic fantasy on his page; probably doesn't want to rate his colleagues.

Edit: Okay A Game of Thrones is on there. But none of its sequels.