Call number
Series
Genres
Publication
New York : Tor Books, 2014.
Pages
320
Description
Vlad Taltos has a price on his head. It isn't the first time, but what's new is that the entire Jhereg organization -- thieves, assassins, vicious criminals all -- has committed to removing him from the board. It will take all of Vlad's considerable ingenuity to come up with a plan that will get the Jhereg off his back permanently.
Awards
Audie Award (Finalist — Fantasy — 2015)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2014-10
Physical description
320 p.; 8.5 inches
ISBN
9780765324443
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User reviews
LibraryThing member jen.e.moore
That. Was. Epic. Great to see Vlad finally tackling his main problems head-on (and head-first, as usual); wonderful to spend some time with Kragar again; tremendous use of Khaavren. I cannot wait to see what happens next - Tsalmoth, was it?
LibraryThing member TadAD
Honestly, I don't think Brust will ever recover the real excitement of Jhereg and Yendi but this one at least gets things moving, with Vlad dealing with his Organization problem. Of course—since it seems obvious that Brust intends this to be a 17 book series to correspond to the Great
Vlad finally says out loud that he's not over Cawti so, for heaven's sake, just get them back together and have a few books of adventures that aren't all about moping over the wife, kid and former life. Or, have Cawti decide she's never going to back to him...which would be a bit out of left field and piss me off totally but at least it would be resolution rather than endless suspended action.
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Houses—everything doesn't get totally resolved but at least there is no longer the sense that he's just marking time to up the book count. Vlad finally says out loud that he's not over Cawti so, for heaven's sake, just get them back together and have a few books of adventures that aren't all about moping over the wife, kid and former life. Or, have Cawti decide she's never going to back to him...which would be a bit out of left field and piss me off totally but at least it would be resolution rather than endless suspended action.
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LibraryThing member rivkat
Vlad Taltos, book 14! Relatively short, and ultimately a caper book: Vlad is tired of being on the run from the Jhereg, so he comes up with a plan to get them to back off; he really wants to see his son. I’m glad I got this (partial) closure, though I think it does rely very heavily on our
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existing affection for Vlad. Show Less
LibraryThing member TheDivineOomba
Steven Brust can do complicated plots - and this one is a doozy. Luckily, just when it seems its going to fall apart, with too many pieces, it all comes together, and it makes total sense.
In this book - Vlad is sick of running from the Jhereg - he wants to see his family, sick of his friends being
So, with a few good friends and an odd Hawk Sorcerer, a plan forms. And it includes an enchanted Euphonium- which has got to be a first for a fantasy novel.
Highly recommended. Actually most of the series is recommended!
In this book - Vlad is sick of running from the Jhereg - he wants to see his family, sick of his friends being
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threatened, and generally, just wants to eat a good meal, sleep in a real bed, and not be worried about being killed by an assassin.So, with a few good friends and an odd Hawk Sorcerer, a plan forms. And it includes an enchanted Euphonium- which has got to be a first for a fantasy novel.
Highly recommended. Actually most of the series is recommended!
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LibraryThing member Karlstar
Vlad is back! Not the depressed, harassed and carried-along-with-events Vlad, but the Vlad from the early books. Vlad Taltos, the human trying to stay alive in a 'elf' dominated world is finally tired of the crime lords that want him dead. He's figured out a way to make himself more valuable alive
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than dead, but he has to stay alive long enough to put his plan into action. Kragar and Cawti (a little) also make a reappearance. Good stuff in the best tradition of Brust, with some laugh out loud parts and his usual wry humor. This book will not make much sense if you haven't read at least a few of the proceeding books (13!). Show Less
LibraryThing member Meggo
A solid Vlad Taltos book, hearkening back to some of the lighter earlier works in the series, before the protagonist's (and, I suspect, the author's) marriage failed. Of interest only to people who enjoy this series of books about an Eastern assassin, but one of the better ones for all that.
LibraryThing member Herenya
Vlad is getting desperate. There has been a price on his head for years, but the Jhereg are making a more concerted effort to kill him and this is stopping Vlad from seeing the people he most cares about. So he plans to give the Jhereg something they want more than to see him dead.
The way Vlad
I did not enjoy Vlad nearly dying from a crushed windpipe -- I am squeamish about such details, ugh -- but I did enjoy the appearances made by Vlad’s closest friends and the different ways they help him. Vlad’s banter and teamwork with Loiosh, his jhereg familiar, is always entertaining, but what struck me the most here was how well Loiosh knows Vlad, and how much he supports Vlad by acting as a voice of reason.
And Vlad’s Great Weapon demonstrates more signs of sentience -- hello, yes, I am here for talking weapons and this talking weapon in particular! (It’s sort of a long story. No, wait, it isn’t, it’s just another story and it’s called Issola, ie., the ninth Vlad book.)
This book left me very curious about what happens next, but also interested in rereading some of the previous ones… I keep wishing I was reading this series was a friend because I want someone to analyse and speculate with.
When you don’t have the skill you need, you hire someone who does; and when you can’t do that, you find a way to fake it. Some days I think that explains most of my career.
The way Vlad
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tells his story feels a bit like watching a magic trick. He explains what his goal is and sets up an agreement that if he can offer the Jhereg council a particular business opportunity, the council will stop trying to kill him. He shows much of what he does to prepare, but is careful not to give away just why he has to take all these steps or what his ultimate plan is until all unfolds.I did not enjoy Vlad nearly dying from a crushed windpipe -- I am squeamish about such details, ugh -- but I did enjoy the appearances made by Vlad’s closest friends and the different ways they help him. Vlad’s banter and teamwork with Loiosh, his jhereg familiar, is always entertaining, but what struck me the most here was how well Loiosh knows Vlad, and how much he supports Vlad by acting as a voice of reason.
And Vlad’s Great Weapon demonstrates more signs of sentience -- hello, yes, I am here for talking weapons and this talking weapon in particular! (It’s sort of a long story. No, wait, it isn’t, it’s just another story and it’s called Issola, ie., the ninth Vlad book.)
This book left me very curious about what happens next, but also interested in rereading some of the previous ones… I keep wishing I was reading this series was a friend because I want someone to analyse and speculate with.
When you don’t have the skill you need, you hire someone who does; and when you can’t do that, you find a way to fake it. Some days I think that explains most of my career.
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LibraryThing member Shrike58
I'd been doing some work on my account when it struck me that I was three novels behind in following the doings of Vlad Taltos, and it had been over a decade since I had read "Jhegaala." In my defense, it's not as though Brust has been anything but careful in what he's writing, but "Issola" felt
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like something of a culmination point and the stories weren't grabbing me as much as they had been. Be that as it may, this number in the series was at hand, and seemed like a good place to jump back in. Short version, while this was basically a comfort read for me, Brust does continue to develop Vlad's character, and a Vlad with a clever scheme to try and right accounts with the Jhereg is more enjoyable than a Vlad that is eternally on the run. Show Less
LibraryThing member bragan
Book number 14 (by publication order) in Steven Brust's fantasy series about Vlad Taltos, former assassin/crime boss and current fugitive. Although this time, he's got a plan to remove the price from his head.
I'll be honest, I possibly often end up talking myself into thinking I like the books in
I'll be honest, I possibly often end up talking myself into thinking I like the books in
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this series better than I actually do, just because they seem so much like things I ought to really like. But I'm pleased to say that this one didn't require any such mental effort. Mind you, it could have. The way it plays coy with Vlad's plan, showing him gathering up all the elements of it without explaining exactly what they're for could have been annoying, as could the somewhat arbitrary-feeling ways in which he gets his hands on some of those elements. But the payoff for it really worked for me. The plan itself was a bit ridiculous, but in a fun way, and it left Vlad in a fairly interesting place in the end. And I enjoyed Vlad as a character quite a bit here, too, as he's portrayed with just about the perfect balance of smartassery and weariness. Show Less