Sunday, January 25, 2015

The Way of Shadows (Night Angel #1), by Brent Weeks

Brent Weeks is quickly becoming my latest literary crush. I sought out The Night Angel Trilogy after reading the first three Lightbringer books and then shaking my fist at the sky when I learned that there was a fourth book in the series and it isn't due out until 2016. Weeks!!! Why must you taunt me so? Lightbringer was some of the best fantasy writing I've ever read, and this first installment of Night Angel did not disappoint. Deft writing. Solid, three-dimensional characters that you kind of love and kind of hate. Complex and clever storytelling that artfully weaves together all kinds of political and personal and mythological history and keeps you guessing throughout who is a reliable source of information and who is not (and to what extent). Dialogue that is smart and witty and tight, and just poetic enough at the right times without getting flowery and cliche. And once the thrills start, they're relentless to the end. (I'm pretty sure I was holding my breath as I tore through the last hundred pages.) I got the omnibus version of the trilogy, which is a little intimidating to look at, but if the amount of time I ripped through book 1 is any indication, it's not likely to seem that way for very long.

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