Issola (Vlad Taltos Series #9) Book

REREAD (SEPT 2014)

Not much to add to the below. The scaling issue remains a major problem, but it's partially made up for by getting to know Lady Teldra better.

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(Original review Aug 2006)

Overall 3/5
Story 3/5
Re-Readability 4/5
Characters 4/5

One of bits of coolness about Brust's Vlad tales is the extensive and intriguing backstory that he weaves in and out of the tales (often, it seems, more by hints than fully-developed concepts). The problem with that is, sooner or later, you have to pay the hints off, and that's what this tale is ' a payoff of various bits and pieces that Brust has discussed regarding the gods, the Jenoine, and the origins of Dragaera.

And the problem with that? It's all way out of scale for Vlad Taltos, the erstwhile assassin, who's been most worried about his safety, the Organization on his tail, and his evolving personal code of morality. Within the bounds of a witchcraft and sorcery and elves, Brust's best stories are witty noir.

This isn't. Instead, Vlad, though pulled into the story to help his friends, is out of his depth most of the time, present more as a narrator to events and conversationlist with the High and Mighty. That's entertaining enough, and the chance for him to better get to know the mysterious Lady Teldra, Morrollan's majordomo, is more than that, but ultimately it renders Vlad unusually passive and unnecessary to the action until the very (and somewhat contrived-feeling) end.

A mediocre Brust book is still fun, but Issola is, alas, still "just" a mediocre Brust book. And someone who's never read any of the series really shouldn't start here.