A Practical Guide to Conquering the World

I can't consider this a book I actually read, because I skimmed like 75% of it, but the skimming and the 25% of it I did read made me pretty sure I didn't like it. Honestly this whole trilogy was a miss for me, the narrative voice just did not mesh.

2.5/5 - My main takeaway from this read is that the gimmick of this series was wearing thin for me. I might have had a more positive reaction at a different time.

While the book keeps the historical framing device and sarcastic tone, something about this one was just not as fun. This book ends up being the mongol conquests if facilitated by a random diplomat (from alt-Rome). The protagonist seems to be able get away with everything due to effective dealing with bureaucracy and reading books. Most plot points in the book have an aside detailing how he read a book to get a critical piece of information or has is friend cheat the bureaucracy. After a while it felt a bit grating.

My biggest criticism would be the plot/side characters. Nobody but the protagonist really has agency on the plot after the setup. All the side characters that do come up feel very flat. Any opposition in the story is a problem that can/will be solved fairly quickly then moved on from.

This is the capstone to Parker's City trilogy.This time we're outside the City and looking at how it's fall has affected the rest of the world, and especially one Robur translator working hundreds of miles away in a foreign embassy who suddenly finds himself without a homeland or diplomatic protection. Like the other books in the series it's darkly funny and bitterly ironic. It's extremely readable and you'll have a good time with it, plus I have to applaud a book with the message that going to the library is probably the best thing you can do in a tricky situation.