Recently read: Craft Sequence by Max Gladstone
Due to me being hospialized for some knee surgery, I had more than ample time to read. as a result I've read several books in a row.. Before the hospital I have looked up what are the best new SF and/or Fantasy books, and obtained them.
I've read three books in the Craft Sequence series by Max Gladstone and I read them in the order they were published, not as they should be read chronocologically (the chronological order is implied in the names of the books)
The books of the Craft series take place in the world, where the Gods and magic (or, craft) exist side by side with the mortals, and both are used as a technologies would be in the real world. Obviously this kind of world is rife with various issues, wars, espionage, etc. The world is pretty vivid and believable. The characters are mostly quite interesting too. I suppose, that I liked books 1 and 3 more than the book #2. the Two Serpents Rise(#2), I thought, was the weakest of the three, as the actions of some of the characters did not seem motivated enough to me.
I loved the portrayal of the peculiar kind of thaumaturgical lawyers, wielding their Craft in these books. I have been honored to work side by side with some very good legal minds, and it was quite a lot of fun, to imagine them in such a world.
The books are very well-written, and certainly I highly recommend them to be read by the lovers of the genre.
(the synopses are taken from the Amazon)
1. Three Parts Dead
A god has died, and it's up to Tara, first-year associate in the international necromantic firm of Kelethres, Albrecht, and Ao, to bring Him back to life before His city falls apart.
Her client is Kos, recently deceased fire god of the city of Alt Coulumb. Without Him, the metropolis's steam generators will shut down, its trains will cease running, and its four million citizens will riot.
2. Two Serpents Rise
In Two Serpents Rise, shadow demons plague the city reservoir, and Red King Consolidated has sent in Caleb Altemoc--casual gambler and professional risk manager--to cleanse the water for the sixteen million people of Dresediel Lex. At the scene of the crime, Caleb finds an alluring and clever cliff runner girl, Mal, who easily outpaces him.
From the beginning, Caleb and Mal are bound by lust, Craft, and chance, as both play a dangerous game where gods and people are pawns. They sleep on water, they dance in fire...and all the while the Twin Serpents slumbering beneath the earth are stirring, and they are hungry.
3. Full Fathom Five
On the island of Kavekana, Kai builds idols to order, then hands them to others to maintain. Unlike real gods, her creations aren't conscious and lack their own wills and voices, but they accept sacrifices, and protect their worshippers from other gods - perfect vehicles for Craftsmen and Craftswomen operating in the divinely controlled Old World. When Kai sees one of her creations dying and tries to save her, she's seriously injured - then sidelined from the business entirely, her near-suicidal rescue attempt offered up as proof of her instability. But when Kai gets tired of hearing her boss, her coworkers, and her ex-boyfriend call her crazy, and starts digging into the reasons her creations die, she uncovers a conspiracy of silence and fear-- which will crush her, if Kai can't stop it first.
I've read three books in the Craft Sequence series by Max Gladstone and I read them in the order they were published, not as they should be read chronocologically (the chronological order is implied in the names of the books)
The books of the Craft series take place in the world, where the Gods and magic (or, craft) exist side by side with the mortals, and both are used as a technologies would be in the real world. Obviously this kind of world is rife with various issues, wars, espionage, etc. The world is pretty vivid and believable. The characters are mostly quite interesting too. I suppose, that I liked books 1 and 3 more than the book #2. the Two Serpents Rise(#2), I thought, was the weakest of the three, as the actions of some of the characters did not seem motivated enough to me.
I loved the portrayal of the peculiar kind of thaumaturgical lawyers, wielding their Craft in these books. I have been honored to work side by side with some very good legal minds, and it was quite a lot of fun, to imagine them in such a world.
The books are very well-written, and certainly I highly recommend them to be read by the lovers of the genre.
(the synopses are taken from the Amazon)
1. Three Parts Dead
A god has died, and it's up to Tara, first-year associate in the international necromantic firm of Kelethres, Albrecht, and Ao, to bring Him back to life before His city falls apart.
Her client is Kos, recently deceased fire god of the city of Alt Coulumb. Without Him, the metropolis's steam generators will shut down, its trains will cease running, and its four million citizens will riot.
2. Two Serpents Rise
In Two Serpents Rise, shadow demons plague the city reservoir, and Red King Consolidated has sent in Caleb Altemoc--casual gambler and professional risk manager--to cleanse the water for the sixteen million people of Dresediel Lex. At the scene of the crime, Caleb finds an alluring and clever cliff runner girl, Mal, who easily outpaces him.
From the beginning, Caleb and Mal are bound by lust, Craft, and chance, as both play a dangerous game where gods and people are pawns. They sleep on water, they dance in fire...and all the while the Twin Serpents slumbering beneath the earth are stirring, and they are hungry.
3. Full Fathom Five
On the island of Kavekana, Kai builds idols to order, then hands them to others to maintain. Unlike real gods, her creations aren't conscious and lack their own wills and voices, but they accept sacrifices, and protect their worshippers from other gods - perfect vehicles for Craftsmen and Craftswomen operating in the divinely controlled Old World. When Kai sees one of her creations dying and tries to save her, she's seriously injured - then sidelined from the business entirely, her near-suicidal rescue attempt offered up as proof of her instability. But when Kai gets tired of hearing her boss, her coworkers, and her ex-boyfriend call her crazy, and starts digging into the reasons her creations die, she uncovers a conspiracy of silence and fear-- which will crush her, if Kai can't stop it first.