The Liar’s Key

jättebra

Executive Summary: I enjoyed this a lot more than the first book. There were only a few slow parts that cost this half a star (and I round 4.5 stars down). Overall a really enjoyable book. Almost as good as his Book of Ancestor series.Audiobook: Another great job by Tim Gerard Reynolds. But that's no surprise. He continues to be one of my favorite narrators. He does a bunch of voices that really make this a must listen for me.Full ReviewWhile I didn't care for Mr. Lawrence's Broken Empire books all that much, I found [b:Prince of Fools 18693743 Prince of Fools (The Red Queen's War, #1) Mark Lawrence https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1385072473l/18693743.SY75.jpg 25595312] to be a large improvement. I still didn't even it as much as his Book of Ancestor series, which is what got me to finally read him in the first place.This book came awfully close to those however. I'm not sure if it's due to Prince Jalan growing on me or simply that the last book set the stage for this one to be that much better.I continue to enjoy his world building the most. I want to know all the secret history of the world far more than I care about the current story of the characters of the book. However much of this series deals with uncovering more secrets of the past, so that's probably another reason I liked it much better than his first series.Overall this was a really enjoyable book and I immediately jumped into the third and final book. It's one of the perks of picking up an already completed series that when they are this good you can just binge the whole thing.

My main barrier to really enjoying this book was Lawrence'a writing style. It's a personal thing really. I gravitate towards simpler, less rambly styles like Christopher Farnsworth- probably a reflection of my impatience as a reader. Some, however may enjoy the richness in detail. Alas, I found it tedious as I kept having to reread paragraphs to understand what was going on. In the end, I felt as if I didn't really have a firm grasp of the story. Also, the characters sometimes spout odd, modern remarks that are out of place with the time and world - “Christ on a bike?” I mean, do they even have bicycles in this world? Colour me confused.

It's been a long time since I was unable to finish a book. This was that book.

I suppose if you love selfish, arrogant, immature protagonists who refuse to learn anything from their experience, you'll love this. I don't and I didn't.

Being an optimist, I assume that the thoroughly unlikeable fellow eventually recognises the admirable qualities of his companions, discovers the hero within and sees some value in caring about anything but his worthless self, but I got tired of waiting for it and put the book down with relief.

Goodreads may need a “stopped reading” button for books like this. This being on the “Best of 2015” list renders the entire list useless to me, but the prominence of thinly veiled romance trash on the list had already raised a distrustful eyebrow anyway.

Lawrence has created a great post apocalyptic world, filled with magic and the echoes of science. A pure joy to read.