Republic of Thieves read along, part the fourth

Posted by: Redhead on: November 18, 2013

• In: read along | Scott Lynch
• 28 Comments

You guys.

I have been waiting since like August to for THIS POST. All the stuff I couldn’t talk about the in the review? I can talk about it now! with all of you!  Why can’t all Mondays be this awesome?

We’re nearly to the end, and the reveals have been coming fast and furious.  Just, holy shit, WOW.   Now I remember why I used the phrase brick shitting in my review.  We’re not even done with the book yet, which means there’s MORE for next week!

Leave me your link in the comments, and I’ll update the post as often as I can with a list of everyone’s links.

thar be spoilers, matey, (epic, earth shattering spoilers), so questions and answers are after the jump.

Speaking of everyone else’s links, here they be:

Over the Effing Rainbow

Dab of Darkness

Tethyan Books

Lynn’s Book Blog

All I am – A Redhead

Genkinahito’s Blog

Theft and Sorcery

Joma’s Fantasy Books

Violin In A Void

Many a True Nerd

Coffee Cookies and Chili Peppers

Books Without Any Pictures

(I’ll add more links as people post, so keep checking back!)

1. We finally know why Sabetha dies her hair, and that’s so disturbing even the Thiefmaker under Shade’s Hill was disgusted by it. Too dark for this world? Or just right?

Eww, and Ick.  And I’d always figured it was so she wouldn’t look so conspicuous.  Is it too dark for this world? Unexpected yes, too dark, ehhh,  after thinking about some of the ultraviolence from the first book, I don’t know if there is anything too dark for this world.  I am wondering though, what happened to Sabetha’s family? She said before the Thiefmaker, she was “protected”. By her family? by someone else?   Was her hair color one of the reasons the Thiefmaker adopted her out to Chains, because he wanted to be rid of her?

2. The “Asino” brothers are drunken idiots, but they’re not blind. What did you think of the little rendezvous they helped arrange for Sabetha and Locke?

Go Calo and Galdo! I don’t mind that they are pretty much comedy relief in this plotline, but it was really nice that they got to do something important. Their plan was perfect, except they forgot to keep Boulidazi occupied playing cards or something.

3. Locke managed to get everyone out of the Boulidazi mess we discussed last week . . . what do you think of this latest  Boulidazi complication?

Could things get any messier? I mean, come on!  Okay, so yes, Boulidazi was a complete asshole and got everything that was coming to him, but shit, what now?  So everyone is up in the room, and they are trying to figure out what to do with the body, and Boulidazi’s servant comes up to check. . .  and Sabetha saves the day! She makes it look like they are busy being, erm, intimate, and that Boulidazi is quite busy indeed. Brilliant quick thinking on her part!  Had she not been in the room, they’d have all been completely fucked.   I am really curious to see how they’re going to get his cut of the money after the play is done tho!

4.Time is flying, and the election is getting closer. Desperation calls for cheap tricks. I think my favorite so far is Sabetha’s special roof guards. What’s your favorite election dirty trick so far?

Ahh, the old ladies on the roof! I loved them. You can’t beat them up, you can’t shoot them with a crossbow, you can’t even insult them or moon them or push them off the room. Fucking genius.  I also loved when Locke’s favorite corrupt cop rescues him by arresting him.  The dirty trick scenes are my favorite scenes from all of these books.  scads of fucking fun!

5.There’s a mole in the Deep Roots. Was that person’s identity a surprise to you? And how did you like Locke’s method of identifying the person?

The first time I read this book, it was a surprise. But if I had been paying attention, it shouldn’t have been. The guy is a drug addict, he’s trying to quit but doesn’t really want to quit, and the opposition knows he’s a druggie, and is blackmailing him. he’s a weak snake, so of course he’s going to do whatever they say.

I do appreciate how Lynch plays the long game with characterization. We knew he was a druggie right when we first met him. Everything Lynch tells us about a character, everything, it’s important. Nothing is just thrown out there. it’s all in the details, and I love that.

6.What’s so important about this Lovaris fellow? The election is right around the corner, so why introduce someone new so late in the game?

There’s barely a hundred pages left in the book!  What’s the point of having another little twist in a plotline that is going to come to an end no matter what anyone does? The election is on a time schedule, there’s really no escaping the end of it.  Very few Konseil members have been mentioned by name, so I guess they aren’t super important in and of themselves. Actually, nothing really about this election is important, since the politicians are all controlled by the Bondsmagi anyways. . . hey, wait a minute. . . . too bad this book didn’t come out during an election year here in the US. that would have been fucking hilarious.

7. It’s so nice that Locke and Sabetha can finally have some nice, normal dinner dates. He even cooks her dinner! But that sneaky Patience, always interrupting everything! Finally, she promises some answers. that’s nice. what, Locke is WHO? Locke is a WHAT? How much of it do you believe?

I loved all those dinner dates they went on.  I want to visit Karthain just for the crazy restaurants!

Cockblocking, thy name is Patience!  Why did you have to interrupt their nice romantic home cooked dinner? And after Locke went through all that trouble of getting Sabetha’s favorite foods. such a bitch!

and that reveal. holy fucking shitcakes.  I don’t even know what to say.  Other than simply to be an asshole, why would she lie about something like that?  I do imagine that this is the direction the rest of the series is going to go in, with Locke trying to learn more about who he might have been.  If it’s true, he’s got all that power at his fingertips. If the Bondsmagi are going to be going around angering whatever scared the crap out of the Eldren, and he could be a part of that, or a part of stopping it . . .  makes the Austershalin Brandy scheme really look like small potatoes, doesn’t it?

Or the bitch could be lying. Jean is right, you know. The bondsmagi have known Locke’s true name for quite a while now, they peeled it right out of Jean’s head.

So much to wrap my head around!  So. Much!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Tags: fantasy, Locke Lamora, read along