By Scott Lynch

“An orphan’s life is harsh—and often short—in the mysterious island city of Camorr. But young Locke Lamora dodges death and slavery, becoming a thief under the tutelage of a gifted con artist. As leader of the band of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastards, Locke is soon infamous, fooling even the underworld’s most feared ruler. But in the shadows lurks someone still more ambitious and deadly. Faced with a bloody coup that threatens to destroy everyone and everything that holds meaning in his mercenary life, Locke vows to beat the enemy at his own brutal game—or die trying” (Goodreads).

I was not expecting this to be so good. I’ve been reading a lot of throwaway random checkouts and this kind of quality work came out of nowhere. From the start to the end, I was completely roped in. Not once did the action slow down. The Lies of Locke Lamora is like a more adult, zero morals, super fun version of Six of Crows. Read on for my thoughts!

I’m probably going to be super generous with my stars for this review because it was honestly just so good. The plot was amazing! Every moment was action filled and kept me drawn in. The twists just kept coming, and I never knew what to expect next. At the beginning of the book I started to worry that Locke and his crew’s competency would eventually get boring or annoying, yet I loved how the author was able to bring in twists and complications that still gave Locke a chance to show his skills and be humbled. The story was the perfect mix of heists, political intrigue, and character development.

The author used this really interesting strategy of intermixing the current story with little one shots of the past, showing Locke and the other Gentlemen’s thieving education and introducing institutions and groups. Lynch expertly weaved them together so that I never felt disappointment or like I was being pulled out of the story. It simply served to add extra information and really contribute to the plot.

There was, admittedly, a ton of violence, cursing, and questionable morals (to be discussed more in content warning). However, I didn’t feel like any of it was unnecessary. Some books try to shove that cursing and stuff in just to be edgy, but it really made sense in this world and the social circles the characters lived in. As for the violence, it was definitely immersive, but not necessarily suited for more sensitive stomachs.

The writing style itself was rich and powerful, with consistent pacing, constant twists, and plenty of dramatic irony. From the worldbuilding to the setting and scene descriptions, Lynch set up fascinating situations and intrigue.

Aside from their high levels of moral depravity and violent proclivities, every character was very three-dimensional and interesting. The flashback interlude style helped to add a lot of character development without slowing down the story, but everything the characters went through in the current timeline brought out their personalities and motivations really well.

Locke Lamora felt so much cooler and more likable than most thief MMCs I’ve read. For starters, he was imperfect in a lot of ways but didn’t try to act like he was. He had the perfect balance of confidence and humility, and his mistakes made him seem real instead of making the author look cheap. Even though every side of the conflicts in The Lies didn’t exactly have the moral high ground, Locke somehow kept hold of enough values to keep the reader rooting for him throughout.

The rest of the Gentlemen were similarly flawed and interesting, and the villains were scary enough that it seemed impossible to beat them – yet something about the protagonist crew told you they had what it takes.

I would highly recommend this book to older readers looking for an involved and in-depth (but not high-fantasy level) first installment (in a trilogy). Even as the characters ended up in more and more intense rough spots, Lynch kept the vibe adventurous and fun. As long as you can keep a Bible on hand to remind yourself that stealing and murder is wrong, The Lies of Locke Lamora is an adventure you shouldn’t miss.