Buckling your swash
Jan. 13th, 2008 06:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
threemonkeysFrom time to time, I mention the fine folks at Dymocks here. I'm referring to the team at Dymocks on Lambton quay who have been good friends to SF over the years and who both dispense good information and listen to suggestions. However there is also a Dymocks in Queensgate, Lower Hutt. Darren, the owner, is also an SF fan and despite the restricted shop area he has to work with has worked hard to ensure that there is a good SF section. We have had a few good chats about the genre too. But I don't think his tastes align that well with mine to take much notice of his personal recommendations at least as far as the science fiction side of things goes. I'm more prepared to listen to his fantasy opinions though. So it was that I read The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch.
It is one of those clever thief stories. You know the ones, where the main character is an orphan who lives by their wits in the big city as a thief. Sometimes, as in this case, they have a small band of helpers who each possess special skills. I guess the story goes back at least as far as Robin Hood if not further. For a big chunk of the book, it is pretty much formula - engagingly well told formula, but still formula. It seems to be pitched fairly young. The general tone is quite young and then there is the use of lavish food scenes which is quite often a characteristic of work aimed at a younger audience. Then suddenly it turns nasty and brutal. Over the course of a couple of dozen pages it gets graphically violent complete with the ultimate consequences. The it drops back to a lighter caper level again although now tinged with a darker thread and another shorter nasty episode. Actually, the book needed the darker elements to break away from the formula. I thought it was a better and more "real" read for it.
In fact, as I think about it, it isn't hard to find lots of examples where a violent interlude is used to pick up the pace through the middle of a work. What is surprising is just how violent this book becomes compared to what went before. It is the size of the gap, not the absolute amount that stands out. In the end, I think the only consequence is that it is something to keep in mind when recommending it to somebody.
It is one of those clever thief stories. You know the ones, where the main character is an orphan who lives by their wits in the big city as a thief. Sometimes, as in this case, they have a small band of helpers who each possess special skills. I guess the story goes back at least as far as Robin Hood if not further. For a big chunk of the book, it is pretty much formula - engagingly well told formula, but still formula. It seems to be pitched fairly young. The general tone is quite young and then there is the use of lavish food scenes which is quite often a characteristic of work aimed at a younger audience. Then suddenly it turns nasty and brutal. Over the course of a couple of dozen pages it gets graphically violent complete with the ultimate consequences. The it drops back to a lighter caper level again although now tinged with a darker thread and another shorter nasty episode. Actually, the book needed the darker elements to break away from the formula. I thought it was a better and more "real" read for it.
In fact, as I think about it, it isn't hard to find lots of examples where a violent interlude is used to pick up the pace through the middle of a work. What is surprising is just how violent this book becomes compared to what went before. It is the size of the gap, not the absolute amount that stands out. In the end, I think the only consequence is that it is something to keep in mind when recommending it to somebody.