‪ https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/blog/2019/2/18/uvpoqlprso812nchwvq02jyikvhjmq‬


I love a good con. I love the style and fluidity of a well practised con in any drama. Be it the old school charm of The Sting, the humour and intelligence of Leverage and of course in fantasy the amazing Locke Lamora series by Scott Lynch. Sadly this tale did all the things I love in the con in a way that made me stop and importantly not care.

Ardor Benn is one of the world’s best criminals and uses a variety of dragon based essences to beguile and ultimately escape his marks. He is drawn into the politics of the word and at this point enough was enough.

The biggest issue was the over labouring of firstly the dragon bone based magic system being explained in excruciating detail and the con felt laboured and heavy. A good con tale should be like watching a ballet being choreographed not pounded out with two left feet. Sadly I got the feeling this book wasn’t for me and ended it very early.

Ardor Benn is no common con-man, he is a 'ruse artist extraordinaire'. Along with his friend and partner in crime, Raekon Dorrel, Ard has become infamous for relieving nobles and other folk of their money through a complex combination of trickery, manipulation and charm. One day Ard is approached by a member of the Holy Order who wants to hire Ard and his talents for a job more elaborate and audacious than any Ard has yet pulled off.

This is an epic caper of a story with a fantastic, extremely original magic system. Magic that is basically derived from dragon poop. The characters are all fantastic and I loved the humour, which is done just right. There are many laugh-out-loud moments but, thankfully, they never stray into outright slapstick territory.

This is without doubt the cleverest and most original adult fantasy I have read in a long time. There are one or two loose ends come the final page, leaving it perfectly ready for a sequel. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long for that.

This book has been near the top of my "must read" list for a while. Elaborate heist, where you are just as taken by surprise by Ard's conman skills as any of his marks? The easy banter between Ard and his best friend Raek? An awesome magic system that feels realistic and that is an amazing take on flintlock fantasy? I was sold. Add into that a promise by the publishers that this was perfect for fans of Locke Lamora, and this book was practically made for me.

I was soon sure that this was going to be one of these books I would end up recommending incessantly until my friends read it and were able to fangirl with me. That did change as the novel went on: I felt it dragged in places and was particularly unhappy about Raek's long absences, then undermining by the plot, which made certain moments have less emotional investment. But all the same, if you want a fun heist novel with an interesting crew of characters, this one is more than worth your while to check out. Funnily enough, despite being one of the things that sold me on the series in the first place, the Locke Lamora comparisons were what held me back: it was easy to unfavorably compare aspects of the different books, to Ardor Benn's disadvantage. I don't think I'd have been as distressed about how underused Raek was, if I hadn't kept being reminded of how Ardor and Raek could have been an amazing inseparable duo like Locke and Jean. Their easy banter is certainly as good (if not better in places). Don't come expecting a full-on heist novel either: I loved the sections with the gang running around a hillside after a dragon, waiting for it to finish digesting its food (it makes sense in-universe, I swear), but the book definitely felt like one of several parts, with the heist and cons only making up a part of the action.

The places where this book is best are when it feels wholly different from any other fantasy conman book I've read. The grit magic system is possibly one of my new favourite systems I've read in a book lately. Special shout-out to the disguise makers too: I'd happily read a whole book just about them and their craft, and I bet I'm not the only one. Best side-characters ever. Also some properly on-the-edge of your seat heist moments.

This was a behemoth of a book. It was fun and exciting that it didn't feel like I was reading 600+ pages. If you are a fan of fantasy heists then this may be a great read for you.

The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn is quite a commendable adult fantasy debut, flintlock-style, by Tyler Whitesides that is fun, entertaining and has a unique magic system.

Firstly, this book caught my attention because it was tagged as "Perfect for fans of The Lies of Locke Lamora, Eli Monpress and Theft of Swords." As these are some of my favourite titles, I simply cannot pass this up.

Ardor Benn is a ruse artist extraordinaire who enjoys trickery and mischief, and due to his legend was approached by the most unlikely employer who required his services to undertake the biggest and most audacious heist he had ever performed. And it was an extensive one, such that the story sometimes felt a bit too long.

The narrative follows the 3rd person limited point-of-view of three main characters - Ardor himself, a female thief named Quarrah Khai whom he had to employ to assist with this heist of his lifetime, and a significant man of religion, Isle Halavend (in this world, an Isle is akin to a priest). The character development was good enough that I was interested in each POV, even though my favourite is Ardor. That is not surprising as I've always had a soft spot for roguish characters with good hearts - a cliche that is well-used in stories like this, but one that I will not grow tired of anytime soon.

Aside from Quarrah, our ruse artist extraordinaire has a partner in crime who is also his best friend for many years, Raekon Dorrel. Ard is the master plotter while Raek is the master mixer who prepares all the necessary ingredients to pull off the former's ruses. What do I mean by mixer? Allow me to elucidate a bit about the magic system, which is hard rule-based magic like Allomancy from Mistborn, except it is detonated/ignited instead of consumed. The source of these magical ingredients called Grits is - wait for it - the excrement of dragons. Depending on the material fed to the dragons, the resultant Grit can have different usages, such as Barrier, Blast, Drift, Light, Cold and Heat Grit. And there are Prolonging and Compounding Grits which can be combined with the others to extend its duration or enhance its effects. A detonation will result in a cloud which is spherical, and anything within it will be affected by the Grit's purpose. A master mixer such as Raek will be able to ascertain the weight of different Grits required to achieve the desired outcome. There is a glossary on the Grit system at the back of the book which is quite detailed. Admittedly, some of the action scenes are pretty darn cool with the inventive use of the different types of Grits.

On top of this rather complex magic system, another aspect of the worldbuilding also took me a while to get settled in. We have a religion called Wayfarist, and the faithful are those who have the Urges to keep progressing and advancing, while the faithless are called Settled or Landers. It is all rather quite strange, and I am still tottering as to how I feel about it.

There are times when I find the writing a bit clunky and perhaps a little less refined. Nonetheless, the book is easy to read, and I noticed the narrative improving as it progressed. Plotwise, it is to be expected that nothing will exactly go smoothly for Ard and his team. Regardless, there were a few cool revelations and plot directions which I did not anticipate. And for those who like having some element of romance in their stories, rest assured you will find it in Ardor Benn's debut story.

In short, this novel is an entertaining read for those who enjoy a fantasy heist that occasionally heads in unexpected directions. I definitely liked it enough to read its sequel.