“… what the people want is something that looks at first sight like real life, but which actually turns out to be a fairy tale with virtue triumphant, evil utterly vanquished, a positive, uplifting message, a gutsy, kick-ass female lead and, if at all possible, unicorns.” pg 11, ebook
K.J. Parker (pen name for Tom Holt) gives readers all of that in this book – sorry, minus the unicorns.
The city has been under siege for decades. Readers are given the history of all that in the last book.
In this entry in the series, it is all about surviving and keeping hope alive against unbelievable odds. The enemy outside the gates outnumbers the survivors in the city by thousands. What hope can be had?
Enter Notker, a professional actor who, among other things, excels at mimicking city leaders.
“Accordingly, the death of Lysimachus – if true – was a devastating blow to me personally, purely because imitating him accounted for something like forty per cent of my income. Sure, you can still imitate people after they’re dead, but there just isn’t the same demand.” pg 24, ebook
When Notker gets pulled into government, he shows an unexpected talent for keeping the city’s hopes alive. It is a delight finding out how he does all of it, so I won’t spoil it for you.
You don’t have to have read the first book in the series to appreciate this one. (I read the first months ago and didn’t really remember much of it.) But I imagine if you read them back to back, you’ll find some hidden gems tying the two books together.
“If you stopped to think about it you’d never do it, so don’t stop and think.” pg 98, ebook
The most interesting character in the book is a tie between Notker and Hodda (the female lead, so to speak). Both develop as the story goes along in predictable and unpredictable ways. I loved every twist as the characters fought for their survival.
I enjoyed this book a lot. It is a cross between historical fiction and something that feels like a Shakespearean play. Highly recommended.
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