Alex Livingston

Originally posted on Just Geeking by.

Content warnings:
I only read 31% of the book, which means this is an incomplete list of content warnings. From what I did read; there are themes of racism, classism and some scenes of violence.

This was one of those books that I just couldn’t get into from the start. The author’s writing style rubbed me the wrong way, however, I always give a book a fair try to see if it’s just a weak start. I struggled to get to 31%, and eventually had to admit defeat. The Knave of Secrets starts out with an excellent scene which suggests a book of adventure, con artists and Robin Hood style escapades. It then quickly devolves into badly explained politics.

The maps at the front of the book make it clear that the reader can expect there to be several factions vying for control, with locations marked as being under the control of this or that faction. Normally I would be able to tell you the names of the factions, and that there is a sign of one of the issues with this book. Nothing stuck with me. The names, places, factions – the little that the author deigned to actually give to the reader. Other than the four main characters' names and some details about their backstories, and the basic plot (which is in the synopsis), I could not tell you much about The Knave of Secrets.

By the point in the book that I had got to there were four narratives taking place, however, a review on GoodReads suggests that there may have been more to come. The first is the most logical, the main character Varen as named in the synopsis. The second is one of his crew, Teneriéve (Ten), a woman who belongs to the pale blue skinned humanoid race called Mistigris. At this point, the narratives then jump to two completely different people, one being Ria a Gamesmaster of one of the factions (she’s introduced as “Gamesmaster to the Corte” and the reader is supposed to just know exactly who or what “Corte” is). What is evident is that Ria is influential, she has a high place in her society. She is also the person responsible for creating the Forbearance Game, the tournament that Valen enters.

The final narrative feels completely random, Omer-Guy, an ambassador for another faction. In the only chapter I read with his narration, he has a conversation with a Lady who belongs to yet another faction. While it is how it all ties to the tournament, the who and what, by this point, are a complete mess. The names of the factions are thrown around with no background, no explanation as to who they are or why they are even against each other in the first place. There doesn’t need to be huge information dumps, just a bit of background.

Not that Livingston is against information dumps. Teneriéve’s first narration is in fact just a huge information dump rather than an actual narration. It isn’t even told from her perspective, it is just the author telling us her entire backstory in one go rather than sprinkling it throughout the novel. Perhaps this is just Livingston’s style? That was my first thought, and I prepared myself for the same thing to happen with the third member of the crew, Jacquemin. Instead, the former pirate’s background remains shrouded in mystery without any information at all.

I felt that too much emphasis was being placed on Teneriéve as the outsider, as the non-human of the group. This became even more obvious when Ten attempted to talk to Valen’s wife Margo about her concerns about the job. By this point in the book it has been emphasised multiple times that Margo and Ten are good friends, that they are close. Rather than listening to Ten, Margo dismisses her concerns and states that the rewards outweigh the risk. When Ten explains that she worries about Valen’s safety as she cannot enter the tournament with him, Margo is quick to point out that Ten and Jaq will be outside the tournament to watch his back,

Ten changes tactic and explains that as a Mistigris she is more at risk walking the streets at night than Valen will be. Margo completely dismisses her again. While it is not unbelievable that Margo cannot truly comprehend the racism that Ten experiences, the entire conversation felt poorly written and a clumsy attempt to include a conversation about race. It wasn’t the first time that the character writing felt thin, and while Teneriéve and Ria felt like interesting characters, none of them had particularly caught my interest. No one was particularly likeable in The Knave of Secrets.

What I also did not realise until writing this review and re-reading the synopsis was that the 31% and however much after it before the tournament actually happens is pure filler. The synopsis already tells you what happens; “Valen beats the man he was sent to play, and wins the most valuable secret ever staked in the history of the tournament”. I think that is part of the problem. I picked up this book expecting a tournament, and instead I got a bunch of characters arguing over whether they were even going to do a tournament that I already know they’re going to do. Understandably there should be some set up to introduce the reader to what is happening, but get to the actual action, especially if you’ve already told readers what to expect!

Overall, The Knave of Secrets just fell completely flat for me. Maybe it gets better further in, however, I just could not force myself to keep reading to find out.

For more of my reviews please visit my blog!… (more)

Book source ~ Tour
DNF @31%

Valen Quinol is a cardsharp with a motley crew trying to win enough money to realize a dream. A local gangster is coming to call and Valen has no idea what he wants, but he knows it can't be good.

Ok, so this is a rare one for me. I'm not DNFing because I don't like the book or think it's bad. It's just too intricate for my brain right now. (It's been a bad year.) I'm absolutely enjoying the world building and characters in this story so far. It’s a multi-layered, multi-POV suspense filled with danger showcasing a tricky card system and magic added to the mix. It's rich and complex and I really hope I can revisit this at some point in the future because what I have read is quite good.… (more)

This book drew me in for its interesting world and characters.
The schemes of some of the characters were intriguing and clever, which I enjoyed. All of the characters were well-written, and there was a great deal of thought put into crafting the large-scale political plotting in the book.
It's a good story overall, but falls a bit flat in the telling, in my opinion. The inserts of excerpts from fictional writings in the world were distracting and not helpful; they break the immersion without any benefit to the story. The arc of the story becomes more complex and unexpected as it goes on, which made it interesting but also a bit cumbersome to follow, and the climax sort of fizzles out rather than wowing.
Since I'd read an advanced copy of the book, some of the kinks may have been improved by the time this goes to public printing. It could be a really good book with some adjustments.… (more)

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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WHAT'S THE KNAVE OF SECRETS ABOUT?
Valen Quinol has pretty modest ambitions—he's not looking to become rich or famous or anything, he's seeking stability and comfort. He wants to open a casino with his wife, he just needs to get the money to do that. Earlier in his life, he went to wizarding school and left in a pretty noteworthy fashion, when it was clear that his scholarly ambitions were going to be thwarted. So he turned to the only thing he knew he could support himself with—gambling. And sure, in addition to being a pretty savvy gamesman, he became pretty skillful in ways to rig games.

Valen's wife, a friend who left school with him—Teneriève—and another friend work with him now—traveling around from casino to casino, from tavern to inn, etc. making enough money to support themselves, and maybe put a little away.

After the reader meets the crew, a local ganglord pays Valen and Margo a visit to hire/threaten them into doing a job for him. Valen typically shuns his work, but this one comes with some tantalizing bait—Valen will be given the buy-in for a local tournament and can keep the money he earns. All he has to do is make sure one competitor walks losing everything they came to play with. If he turns this down, well, there'll be a duel in his future. And Valen's a cardsharp, not a fighter. It will not go well for him.

Because this isn't that kind of Fantasy novel, Valen and his talents go with the less violent option. What Valen doesn't realize—and his sponsor doesn't either—what the defeat of his target is going to kick off and drag them all into.

Espionage, murder, political intrigue, societal upheaval—and the imminent possibility of a world war. All because of a game of chance.

We get to watch Valen and his crew (partially) realize what they've instigated, as well as getting points of view of several of the major players in the fallout.

TENERIÈVE
Teneriève is one of the more interesting characters in the novel—she's from a group that's essentially an analogue to the Roma, and faces hostility and discrimination everywhere she goes. Valen's crew are the only family she's known since leaving home, but even then, she doesn't feel secure—not because of anything they do/think, but because of her own issues.

Her story arc doesn't go the way you think it will initially, and I'm glad it didn't. Her story definitely doesn't get wrapped up in a tidy bow. She could probably serve as the central character in a follow-up novel because there's a lot to her that could be explored. I also really appreciated while the Roma-esque nature of her background informs her actions and attitudes, her story isn't all about that identity.

Quick tip: As good as the other storylines are, pay special attention to her scenes, they're better (and frequently more frustrating and rewarding) than the rest.

SOMETHING THAT JUST OCCURRED TO ME
Before I hit Publish, I was struck by the thought that this is one of the most PG-13 Fantasy novels I've read in a dog's age that wasn't targeted at an MG audience. Maybe even PG (but a couple of the deaths probably shove it into the PG-13 world).

I don't know that this is a plus or a minus in some readers' minds, but I thought it was noteworthy—who writes like that anymore?

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT THE KNAVE OF SECRETS?
I'll tell you this upfront: I was not in the right frame of mind for this book when I started it. A novel with a new magic system, an involved history, a complicated (but not convoluted) political situation, and gambling—and people cheating at gambling. So you've got to understand the new games pretty well to visualize not just how to play, but how to cheat. Frankly, that's a lot of work.

Now, that's not unusual for a Fantasy novel—and I'm not complaining. I'm just saying that when I started this book I didn't have the mental energy to dive in, and I really wasn't in the mood for it. So when I say that before the halfway point Livingston had me very engaged and invested in the plot and characters, that's saying something.

Livingston has done his homework and has created a very rich world here, we get to see some of it, but probably not all of it. Whether or not this is true, he really gives the sense that he knows all of the ins and outs of the history of these nations going back centuries—and (most importantly) has resisted the impulse to dump it all on the reader. Instead, he gives us just what we need to ground the story and character actions. Give me a book that hints at worldbuilding any day over a book that reads like a history textbook (however interesting the history may be).

All the marketing for this mentions The Lies of Locke Lamora, and insofar as the book centers on a specialized form of criminals fleecing the rich, sure, I can get behind it. But this has a very different flavor and feel than Lynch's novel. Some marketing mentions The Mask of Mirrors—and that feels a bit more on point. Other comparisons involve Casino Royale—beyond the gambling, I don't know if that's appropriate or not, I fell asleep each of the four times I started that flick. The political intrigue of this makes it more like The Mask of Mirrors or the less bloody and sexy parts of A Song of Ice and Fire. I don't point this out (just) to criticize the marketing materials, just to help expectations—don't go into this novel to meet the next Gentleman Bastards, go into it for a new and distinct kind of Fantasy novel.

Despite not being in the right headspace for The Knave of Secrets and going into it with wrong expectations, I ended up pretty impressed with this novel and would definitely recommend this to a wide audience. It's a satisfying read that will leave you wanting to know more about this world and most of these characters.… (more)