Smorgasbord Fantasia

Billed as being perfect for fans of Scott Lynch and Patrick Rothfuss, Chandler J Birch 's debut novel, The Facefaker's Game is indeed a pretty exciting prospect for us fantasy lovers - a story about an earnest beggar boy who sets out to right some wrongs in his grimy ramshackle-rundown neighborhood with the help of his newly learned 'magic' skills, this premise should definitely strum your heart-strings as a reader looking for the next big thing after Locke Lamora. Add to the entertaining mix, an elegantly detailed magical system, some charming roguish protagonists, a grim-dark world full of danger and mysteries galore, all in the backdrop of a Charles Dickensian society; quite the potent mix for a good fantasy story. So while not quite in the league of a Locke Lamora or even Kvothe, the charming fourteen year-old Ashes, the main 'hero' of the narrative will definitely win hearts - for his intensely good-nature that leads him into all sorts of trouble, trying...

I finally hauled myself back to the world of Jean and Locke, the Gentlemen Bastard series. I read their first adventure back in 2009 and was completely blown away by heist artists. A Sword and Heist (I would prefer to call it thus as opposed to sword and sorcery as magic while an underlying theme, never really gets its full due till now) story that gave us two of the best protagonists ever in the fantasy worlds in Locke & Jean, and well, a fantastically memorable setting in the city of Cammorr where the events of the first book play out. There has been much uproar over the delay in the third book in the Gentlemen Bastards series – After the spectacular epic fantasy debut, Locks of Lie Lamora, established Scott Lynch as one of the brightest shining stars in this genre ; he churned out the second blockbuster adventure in that series by the next year with a promise to keep it coming once a year. Now that the third book, Republic of Thieves is out (Oh well, if you im...