The Blacktongue Thief (Blacktongue #1)

Christopher Buehlman

Kinch Na Shannack owes the Takers Guild a small fortune for his education as a thief, which includes (but is not limited to) lock-picking, knife-fighting, wall-scaling, fall-breaking, lie-weaving, trap-making, plus a few small magics. His debt has driven him to lie in wait by the old forest road, planning to rob the next traveler that crosses his path.

But today, Kinch Na Shannack has picked the wrong mark.

Galva is a knight, a survivor of the brutal goblin wars, and handmaiden of the goddess of death. She is searching for her queen, missing since a distant northern city fell to giants.

Unsuccessful in his robbery and lucky to escape with his life, Kinch now finds his fate entangled with Galva’s. Common enemies and uncommon dangers force thief and knight on an epic journey where goblins hunger for human flesh, krakens hunt in dark waters, and honor is a luxury few can afford.

-Excerpt taken from Goodreads.

Check Goodreads to see the book’s ratings.

My Opinion

“I was so scared, I half wanted to piss myself, but the difference between the strong and the weak isn’t the strong don’t piss themselves, it’s that they hitch their pissy pants up after and go through with it.”

4 out of 5 stars (4 / 5) This book made me laugh out loud! That quote right there, I had to rewind many times to make sure I heard it right and I just laughed and rewound it again. Oh, the main character Kinch is crude, hilarious and so real. Honestly, he made it more realistic. While I was listening to his sarcastic remarks and hearing about him pissing himself in fear (multiple times might I add) I couldn’t help but admire the clever humor.

Who would’ve thought I’d be grabbing a book with kraken, giants and goblins? This world is set in 1200’s (or so) Ireland and this makes it feel very realistic. While this is fantasy, Buehlman brought in enough realistic elements to make it feel almost historical. When goblins and kraken and the magic system were brought in, it didn’t feel out of place. I was worried my new-to-fantasy-brain would have a hard time picturing it but it was done so well I never struggled. How he was able to make it feel like I was listening to an ancient historical story will never cease to amaze me.

The narration for the audio is definitely five stars. His cadence and sarcasm and jokes were brilliant. His accent immediately drew me in and I slowed it down to understand it better and loved every second.

There were times my attention dwindled a bit. I believe that is due to the length of the book and it’s fast pace. When the pace would slow briefly, I could feel it. I also wondered where the story was going and what story the author was trying to tell. There were adventures happening in probably every chapter but I needed a bit more direction to be completely satisfied.

Content Summary: F-20++,  language, hanging, violence, lovemaking but no details, large creatures and fighting large creatures, battles and injuries, deaths and more from those battles. The book makes many crude remarks and has a lot of language. If this is something you’re sensitive to, I do not recommend it.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Tor Books for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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