I found this book to be a lot of fun from beginning to end. The characters are rich and different from a lot of fantasy that I have read recently and would recommend it best like Brent Weeks stated. It is just plain fun.

I absolutely loved this book. It was incredibly engaging: Fast chapters that made you keep wanting one more bite of story, fantastic worldbuilding and beautiful descriptions, a story that all pulls together as it goes on.

Was it dark? Yes. But it avoided being gritty -- the more gruesome or horrible parts were things that we were told about instead of shown, or even not-quite-told-about, Kinch choosing not to put in as much detail or joke with you* about how the nice lie he told you was a lie and you know what really happened there. If anything, the darkness of the world and the events were a frame for the hope that is present throughout. It's a setting where even when things are at their grimmest and it seems as if there is no hope, people still sing.

(* side note: I'm so curious about who Kinch is talking to. It's clear this is 1st person as a "story being told to someone", and I do wonder if it'll turn out not to be a vague audience but someone specific in later volumes.)

The characters are great -- Kinch's sarcastic good humor never stops rolling off the page, and one can see why he serves a trickster god. All the secondaries, as well, are incredibly interesting. I see Galva in particular being very popular -- our hard-drinking and devoted corvid lady knight.

And there is a wonderful cat who I love.

If there were one flaw it is occasionally that either things aren't set up which later turn out to be convenient at the time they need to be convenient, or things that waved a clear danger flag in their setup not being acknowledged by the characters. But this is extremely rare -- it's much more often that things mentioned in passing early on get woven later in as either a cause of a conflict or the resolution of it.

A really delightful read. I'll definitely pick up book 2.

On par with The Way of Kings, and Kings of The Wyld. I absolutely believe this book is representative of what good fantasy is. I have not read the author’s previous works, so I went in not expecting - anything, really. The humor within it, and by its very slimy-natured main character Kinch, is definitely not for anyone. I, however, think it was handled very well and was funny. I have seen complaints about it, and I understand - but not at any point does it undermine the female characters. In fact, throughout the book, both main female characters are shown to be respected and a lot more capable than Kinch. I was also super surprised with how gruesome this got within the action scenes, but pleasantly so. Usually fantasy doesn’t get into such details, but it added to the grittiness of this book. It delivers on so many different aspects of fantasy, including political suspense fantasy often claims to have and lacks, but TBT does them well.

Throughout the story you feel a sense of roughened edges, the book feels very untamed even its writing style. The world is given depth through language and dialect, even small detail. For instance, Kinch uses slang insults common where he lives - and it gives us a sense of a society that shares those words. A society that is cutthroat, and tattoos kids' cheeks to remind them of their debts. Kinch is a representation of many of his countrymen, a hopeless thief - marked forever by his black tongue. Though he’s one of the unluckiest. The world in which he lives is so dark, it hangs over the reader constantly. It’s world-building is one of the best aspects of this book, and stands out.

All characters in this book are given ample development and care. Even when you aren't exactly sure about them, they manage to come off charming. I never thought globins could be scary, but in this book, they were a thing I wanted to avoid. The author does this thing where culture and lore within his story isn’t overwhelming, it’s downright compelling. I could read it all day.

Simply, this is a five-star novel to me. I highly suggest it to all fantasy fans, especially those who are a lover of the finer details, and world-building. I want to sincerely thank Netgalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to review this ARC. I will be purchasing it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor/Forge for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Actual Rating: 2.5/5 Stars.

This book defied my expectations, but not in the direction I'd expected. I think the biggest thing that tripped me up is that this book's bawdy, bloody humor was VERY much not my thing. Fans of grimdark fantasy and nonstop jokes about bodily functions will probably find a lot to love here, but the style threw me really off-kilter and kept me from enjoying it as much as I might have, It makes a lot of sense that Buehlman has his background in horror; this books gets really, seriously gruesome. TW for (among many, many other things) descriptions of cannibalism, decapitation, mutilation, animal abuse, and what I can only describe with the ancient greek word σπαραγμός, which roughly translates as "to tear limb from limb".

That being said, there was a lot of seriously brilliant world-building going on: from complex international politics, to frankenstein magic, to giant war-birds kept in stasis as tattoos. My favorite bits were actually the ones that were arguably more "boring", such as when Kinch was explaining the hierarchy of his odious Guild or alluding to the rich tapestry of history that underlies the continent. I didn't feel too strongly about any of the characters with the exception of the raven warrior Galva, whom I adored.

This book reminded me a lot of Nicholas Eames' "Kings of the Wyld", both in voice (aggressively straight man who is also an underdog) and style (though Blacktongue Thief is significantly darker in tone). I was one of the small minority that didn't particularly like that book, but I think it is a good bellwether for if you will enjoy this one.

I'm going to say from the start, this may well be the best fantasy novel I read this year. It has everything I love in the genre - great characters, great dialogue, camaraderie, journeying through the land, monsters, magic. Then there are the 'moments', those points where the author stunned me with WTF revelations (and the worst thing here is that this is an ARC copy so I can't share those moments - SPOILERS - but I'm looking forward to the day many more have read this, the discussions will be epic.

Come for the battle ravens, stay for the probably-bewitched cat!
Buehlman's latest will have you laughing one moment and gasping the next, and you'll wonder what fascinating new concept he'll come up with next. As Kinch Na Shannack takes an epic journey, you explore this exquisitely built world with him, your sardonic narrator, along with nonstop action. A few raunchy jokes and scenes (as a warning for those who prefer to skip it).

ARC provided by the publisher—Tor Books & Gollancz—in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5 stars

The Blacktongue Thief is an immense entertainment manifesting in a fantasy novel.

Christopher Buehlman is most often known for Between Two Fires and more horror novels; this is about to change very quickly. The Blacktongue Thief is the first book in Blacktongue trilogy by Buehlman, it is his first high fantasy novel, and from my observation, it is quite likely that this is the most hyped adult fantasy debut of the year. I’m not kidding; I’ve seen so many authors highly praised this novel since late 2019 and early 2020 up to this day. I doubt this will die down soon; many fantasy readers will be talking about this book more once it’s officially published.

“If you’ve never fallen hard in love and lost your heart’s sovereign, go on and laugh at me. If you have, have a drink and dab an eye.”

The plot in The Blacktongue Thief revolves around Kinch Na Shannack; Kinch owes the Takers Guild a small fortune for his education as a thief, and 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 Kinch Na Shannack has picked the wrong mark. Kinch picked Galva—a knight, a survivor of the brutal goblin wars, and handmaiden of the goddess of death. Galva 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. Many early reviews from both authors and readers have mentioned that this is a novel suitable for those who loved Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames, and I can certainly agree with this. I mean, even in my interview with Nicholas Eames himself, during his praises towards this book as the one book to definitely read this year, he agreed on these comparisons. The quest premise that Kinch and Galva took reminded me of Clay and Gabe’s journey in Kings of the Wyld; the jokes and senses of humor Buehlman included into the narrative were so delightful.

‘“The sirs won’t help you any more than your Guild will, blacktongue. You know what they say about caught thieves, aye?”
“I’m not a thief.”
“Yes, and I’ll just put the tip in, we know how these things go.”’

Kinch was undoubtedly the biggest highlight of the novel for me. He’s just such a lovable main character; snarky, sarcastic, continuously smile in the face of adversity. But he also knows when to be serious. The Blacktongue Thief is told through Kinch’s first-person perspective, and Buehlman did an excellent job in giving him a high level of distinctive voice that reminded me of what Peter McLean did with his War for the Rose Throne quartet. That being said, don’t misconstrue my words to call these two series similar to each other; they’re not. The Blacktongue Thief is like Kings of the Wyld without all the Easter Eggs, with the addition of Scott Lynch’s brilliant use of profanity language in The Gentleman Bastards. The balance between humor and tension-packed conflicts was achieved splendidly, and hey, have I mentioned there’s a blind cat as Kinch’s companion? Now you know, and why are you still reading my review?

“Monarchy is a bad system because, no matter how smart you are, you can still squirt a moron out of your plumbing. Maybe you get lucky and your son or daughter is at least half as smart as you—what about your grandchild? Probably a knob, and when they inherit the throne, everything you build fall to shyte.”

Alright, fine, if these aren’t enough to convince you to give this book a try yet, there are also stag-sized battle ravens, magic tattoos, Kraken, giants, witches, and goblins. Admittedly, there were a few moments in the middle of the novel where the pacing dragged a bit for me. However, this is more of a personal thing; long seafaring sections in high fantasy rarely worked for me. Fortunately, my overall enjoyment of the novel was not hindered. There are just so many things to love in this book, and the entire section involving the Towers card game was equally hilarious, breathtaking, and superbly executed.

“I won’t bore you with the whole set of rules; just know Towers is like a war right there on the table, and it sucks money out of purses faster than a two-squinny harlot. Starts more fights than religion and politics together. And it’s addictive.”

The ending sequence was pulse-pounding, and the conclusion + the acknowledgment was satisfying to read. The Blacktongue Thief is fated to steal a lot of reader’s hearts with its charm, humor, intensity, and unrelenting fun; I look forward to seeing future readers enjoying this novel. As for me, I will eagerly wait for the next volume in the daring and exciting adventure of Kinch Na Shannack, a thief with a blind cat’s luck.

Official release date: 27th May 2021 (UK) and 25th May 2021 (US)

You can pre-order the book from: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository (Free shipping) | The Broken Binding (Use my code: NOVELNOTIONS121 for discount!)

The quotes in this review were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions

Ahoy there me mateys!  I received this fantasy eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  So here be me honest musings . . .

With a title like that and a cat on the cover, I knew this book had to be on me list.  Plus it be getting five star reviews all over the place.  The ending of this book paid off for me but I have to admit that the ride there was rough.

First off all, I did absolutely adore the set-up for this book.  The main character, Kinch Na Shannack, is a member of the Thieves Guild (i.e. Takers Guild) who happens to owe them a large debt.  He tries to rob his mark and it goes poorly, much to me delight.  It was an excellent introduction to two characters who be forced to work together.  Include the cat, at least one assassin, and other dubious folk and there are a lot of unsavory people to cheer for.  Like Kinch himself.  He is a jerk but grew on me.

I did also very much enjoy the world building.  I love that humans are failing in the goblin wars, giants are becoming a problem, tattoos can come alive, and witches are rather creepy.  The magic system and politics of the guilds were lovely and had some unexpected consequences.  The world felt well developed.  But this was also the problem; the development made the pace so uneven for me. 

The story format is a travelogue, but basically the beginning of every chapter had a history lesson in some form.  I normally love such things but they interrupted the flow of both the characters' journey and the action sequences themselves.  It was frustrating and the unevenness made me keep setting the book down. Thus it took me a lot longer than normal to read then a book this size normally would.

It may not have been a five star read like it was for the rest of the crew but I am curious to see what will happen next.  Arrr!

So lastly . . .

Thank you Macmillian/Tor-Forge!

This is a gorgeous fantasy that thrusts you into the thick of it and just expects you to hang on. And for the most part, I did. I quite enjoyed the magic system and the idea of imbued tattoos, but I felt like a bit of the worldbuilding suffered. However for a 400 page fantasy novel, the pacing was excellent and I quite enjoyed the plot.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Tor/Forge for the ARC in exchange for my honest review*

This was a very pleasant surprise. When I first saw it on the #NetGalley selection pages, I hesitated because it was fantasy, my favourite genre, and then decided to pass it over, probably because of the cover and because I didn't know the author. The next time, fortunately, I decided to select it. This is an unmissable picaresque tale.

The world building is extremely original and vivid. Manreach is mainly inhabited by women because most of the men have died in successive wars against the goblins. The different human nations and nationalities are vividly portrayed. So although a protagonist is male there are any number of female characters of all descriptions: knights, witches, assassins, fencing masters, infantas, pirates, even giants. There are no horses in this world because the goblins killed them using biological warfare. Buehlman's portrayal of goblins and their culture is the best I have found, he manages to make them both disagreeable and at the same time strangely compelling. Magic is strong and folksy, some of it seems to derive from the magic of classic fairytales, such as those of the Brothers Grimm (no, I don't mean the Disney versions), or Russia.

Like all good picaresque tales this is told in the first person, our hero is a low ranked thief or Prank, attempting to make his way in this world, it has to be said not very successfully, when he becomes embroiled in a quest that seems far bigger than himself. The language is rich and salty there are swear words aplenty used to great effect in dialogue, descriptions and scabrous doggerel, which often made me laugh out loud. There are also several very strong scenes, Manreach is a brutal, violent place, the sensitive should therefore be wary. Overall this is a riveting book and I hope there are more in the series.

But Tor/Macmillan, what the hell is with that drear, soulless cover? This is a tale full of rich colour and life, you should be illustrating it to reflect that.

As always, thanks to #NetGalley for allowing me to preview this text.

I’ve read everything Buehlman had published and loved all of it. To say I had high expectations for his fantasy debut would be an understatement of the year. To my relief (and delight!), Buehlman has delivered. Big time.

The Blacktongue Thief follows Kinch Na Shannack, an indebted thief who travels through a crime-ridden world in the company of a veteran knight, a witch in-training, and a blind rescue cat. Decades-long war with goblins wiped out a significant part of humanity and almost all men. To put it bluntly, the world has lost the whole generation of men. The few that still live usually work as prostitutes. Thieves guilt controls everything and everyone and won’t tolerate disobedience. They recruit as many young people as possible, give them student loans to pursue thief-school education, and force them to pay the debt for the rest of their lives.

If all of this seems too grim, keep reading. One of the greatest strengths of the novel is the narrator’s deliciously sardonic humor and grasp of human foibles. Kinch’s distinct voice and gallows humor made me laugh and made this story such a joy to read. He’s no role-model, what with his vulgar asides and debatable morals, but he doesn’t lack wit or charm. Plus, as often seen in fantasy, he’s a decent guy deep inside. I mean, he rescues a blind cat and takes him on a journey. Of course, the cat has his own dark secrets, but no one would expect less from a cat, right?

I adored Kinch. He’s the kind of street-smart protagonist I love to read. His first-person narration conveys both his personality and explains the bleak world with a humor that makes everything more digestible. He’s a chatty little fellow, who wins others; Not always reliable, but always fun to listen to. Thanks to him, Buehlman gets away with digressions and info-dumps - they’re fun. I equally enjoyed the remaining characters, especially Galva, a battle-hardened veteran facing death with a smile on her lips.

Imaginative worldbuilding including giant war corvids, texts that kill their readers, self-healing shields, magic imbued tattoos, giants, assassins, and more impressed me with its scope and cool factor. As a whole, all of this feels fresh and entertaining. Sure, it draws from other stories that deal with sly thieves, high politics, and betrayals but does so with enough gusto to compensate for its shortcomings. The ratio of humor to serious themes is just perfect, and it helps gloss over some pacing problems.

Blacktongue Thief is Christopher Buehlman’s first fantasy novel, and I want the next one. It’s a remarkably fun opening of his Blacktongue series — a fast-paced story of high costs laced with gallows humor. I want more.

I stumbled across Christopher Buehlman by accident a few years ago. I was looking for a random book that I no longer remember and accidentally dropped a book of it's shelf. It was The Lesser Dead. Im always down for a good vampire book so I figured I would give it a shot. I read it in two sittings and over the next few months devoured everything written by him. Fast forward a few years and I get an alert that he had a new fantasy book coming out called The Blacktongue Thief. I quickly marked my calendar and started counting down the days. Well that day was quicker then expected thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, and I was able to finally get a chance to experience this wonderful book. How was it? It was marvelous and everything I hoped it would be! It's very different then anything he's written before. So much so that if another authors name was written on the cover I would have no idea that Mr. Buehlman wrote it. That didn't ruin my enjoyment though one bit. A good story is a good story! The world building was excellent and information is dispensed in a way that makes sense to the story. The characters are all well fleshed out and their motivations are able to be easily understood. The book I would compare this to the most would probably be The Lies of Locke Lamorra, though its quite different from that book in several key ways that I wont spoil. The plot centers on a thief trying to go from point a to point b to avoid some bad things from happening. Obviously that's a over simplication, but is also kind of true. More to come closer to publication. I would definitely recommend this book.

The Blacktongue Thief follows along with the main protagonist on his constant struggle to stay alive in a world shaped by war and organized crime. Throughout the book, he comes face to face with wizards, assassins, goblins, and magical creatures. He expands his view of the world and human interactions, causing him to grow as a person.

It never felt like the story would dull down or even become all too predictable. Each chapter expanded this beautiful world with a touch of humour and wonder. But do not think that this book is like a typical fairy tale. The author does not shy away from brutal action sequences to provide a rewarding change of pace.

The Blacktongue Thief is such a refreshing fantasy and one that is markedly different from the standard tropey book that I see so much of these days. Infused with an incredible magic system, as well as a sarcastic humor that is so reminiscent of Scott Lynch, it really had me entertained throughout the journey from first chapter to last. The characters are so well thought out and the depth is palpable. This book also has some of the best world-building you are going to come across. Highly recommended and I will be posting an official review on the blog in the coming weeks to expand further on my thoughts, so look out for that.

Christopher Buehlman is an author I follow closely. I've read the majority of his book and was really happy to get this ARC. He keep improving and evolving and this entry in the fantasy genre was really well done. A good quest, solid characters and a writing that is on point. I really like his work and this is his best so far so don't hesitate. I highly recommend it! hanks again for the opportunity!

A huge thanks to the publisher and author for approving my ARC request in Netgalley and it doesn't in any capacity affect my review at all.

The only thing that may have influenced my review is that GORGEOUS cover. I mean, come on... You gotta give an extra star just for that.

The cover was the first thing that piqued my intrest along with the premise which was quiet unique. The Thief who has to pay a student loan stumbles apon an adventure is something I've never heard before. So, I requested the ARC and fortunately got the book (after my 7th request 😅)

The Blacktongue Thief is the first book in Blacktongue series and it follows the adventures of Kinch Na Shannack, The Titular character. He was a thief and a waylayer who is deep in debts to the Takers Guild for his education in thievery, lock picking, a little bit of magic and lot more... He meets Galva the Spanth (a Kinght) in an ambush gone wrong and ends up going on a mission with her to Oustrim in order to clear his debts from the Guild.

First and foremost,The pacing of this book, which was really, really smooth with not a single page felt dragging or spoiling the reading experience.

Kinch was witty and self conscious. Humor in this book is dark and I really liked it. Through the eyes of Kinch, we experience this beautiful and Brutal world the author created with vast range of characters with different cultures, Exotic locale, A stag sizes Raven, Kraken, Hideous Goblins, Giants and much much more.

The prose were excellent though I have to use a dictionary a lot since I'm not a native English guy. The action sequences were written really well. Brutal, realistic and just enough description without affecting the intensity of the scene.

One more thing I really loved about this book is the fables and poems sprinkled throughout the story, it was really well done.

The only minor problem I had with this book is I felt that the side characters could have been fleshed out more.

To sum it up, The Blacktongue Thief is a really good first entry in the Blacktongue series with a lot of humor and Brutal action sequences throughout. And I will be definitely reading the sequel when it comes out.

The Black Tongue Thief by Christopher Beuhlman
Kinch is a thief, a member of not so good standing with the Guild. The Guild acts with the loan shark method. You pay to learn, your thievery goes to pay your debt which grows faster than your income so you are forever in debt to the Guild. His debt leads him on a quest to satisfy the Guild and get free.
The plot is intricate with a fair number of characters. The protagonist isn’t terribly likable and neither or most of the rest of the assembly. The settings are colorful and the villains are vile. Dead legs provided an interesting twist.
I enjoyed the book, it is a touch confusing but persevere it is worth it.

Rating: 10/10

Thanks to the publisher and author for an advance reading copy of The Blacktongue Thief ( #1) for review consideration. This did not influence my thoughts or opinions.

The Blacktongue Thief is… astonishing. Buehlman has raised the bar on what makes a special fantasy debut, and not since Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames have I been so enamored from cover to cover. Absolutely brilliant.

People. I literally do not know where to begin. I’ve seen this book talked about for almost a year now (writing this as of 10/23/20) and it still has seven (7) months to go before it is released into the world. How do you talk about something that hits so hard and completely blows your mind without spoiling it for the masses?

Kinch may be one of the best POVs I’ve ever had the honor of tagging alongside. Through his eyes, we see sprawling landscapes, treacherous seas, hideous goblins, massive giants, huge war-birds, and so so much more. But what makes him so captivating is his mouth. Through his story-telling, every single piece of the larger picture is so accurately laid in front of the reader, dropping you into each scene with just enough description as to not overwhelm. His personality alone is enough to fill a room, what with an overabundance of sarcasm mixed with a teaspoon of sensitivity.

Buehlman’s writing style also shines throughout the book with tongue-in-cheek humor, descriptive narration that does not take away from nor slow the pace of the story, and prose fuh days. On top of the hilarious conversations, inner-monologues, and descriptive fight scenes, he also adds depth to the story with multiple cultures (which shape a majority of our main characters), tales, songs, an imaginative magic system, and the overarching hangover from the Goblin Wars.

I really don’t want to dive much deeper because this is one of those novels you just have to experience for yourself. I cannot recommend it enough. I believe it will be the best fantasy debut of 2021 and should be on every single pre-order cart/wishlist available. Fans of Eames and Abercrombie will devour these pages. I cannot WAIT for the next two (2) novels.

Christopher Buelhman is a favorite author of mine, but I've been caught up with his work for a while now. When I saw this was coming out soon, I jumped on the chance for an ARC and here we are. To be honest? I think this is the best thing he's written so far!

Kinch Na Shannack is a black-tongue thief. He's still in training, but for now, he's in debt, (we'll call them student loans), and if he doesn't pay up soon, his future is uncertain. Until he pays those debts, he's forced to wear a tattoo on his cheek that allows everyone and their brother to smack him in the face with no retaliation. The Takers Guild send Kinch on a secret mission, for which he sets off with his new blind cat, (rao), to save himself and perhaps the world. Will he succeed? You'll have to read this to find out!

This story is epic in scale. We're talking dozens of different kinds of peoples, different languages, different societies. We're talking giants and goblins, vast oceans filled with Kraken and other deadly creatures, and that's just to start. Politics between the societies, the existence of witches, kings and queens, and the sad loss of horses, populate these pages.

Of course, when you have witches you also have magic and spells, and this book is full of them, and really cool ones too! Creatures can live inside tattoos, if you have the right spells. Battle corvids and blind cats to name only a few.

The writing here is witty and concise without being stiff or stuffy. For instance:

"Monarchy is a bad system because, no matter how smart you are, you can still squirt a moron out of your plumbing."

His characters aren't so brave that they're never afraid. And they aren't so involved in themselves that they cannot see how insane things are. For example:

"And that's the true story of how on the tenth day of Vintners, I ended up betting my arse on a card game in a sewer, under an army of murdering giants at the very top of the wicked world."

I want to talk about the humor in this book- like that quote above? It was literally his arse that was on the line in that game. The humor is black and dark, just the way I like it. With poor Kinch having to pause life at nearly every turn so that someone can smack him across the face- it was difficult not to burst out laughing at times. (In fact, I often failed and laughed my butt off, much to the concern and chagrin of my family and/or coworkers who were around at the time.)

I will read anything Christopher Buehlman writes. Period. I don't care what the genre label is, good writing is good writing and I'm in it for the stories. He mentions in the acknowledgements that Tolkien, George R.R. Martin and Patrick Rothfuss have had an influence on him and on this book. I hope though, that unlike Martin and Rothfuss, we get an ending to Kinch's story, because I NEED TO KNOW what happens next, (and the sooner the better!)

My highest recommendation!

Available everywhere on May 25, 2021, but you can pre-order your copy here: https://amzn.to/3qxhzrW

*Thanks to a certain editor, to Tor and to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it!*