Priest of Lies

War for the Rose Throne, Book 2

By: Peter McLean

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

Tomas Piety has been many things: soldier, priest, gangster...and spy. As Tomas's power grows, the nobility better watch their backs, in this dark and gritty epic fantasy series.

People are weak, and the poorer and more oppressed they are, the weaker they become - until they can't take it anymore. And when they rise up...may the gods help their oppressors.

When Tomas Piety returned from the war, he just wanted to rebuild his empire of crime with his gang of Pious Men. But his past as a spy for the Queen's Men drew him back in and brought him more power than he ever imagined.

Now, with half of his city in ashes and the Queen's Men at his back, the webs of political intrigue stretch out from the capital to pull Tomas in. Dannsburg is calling.

In Dannsburg the nobility fight with words, not blades, but the results are every bit as bloody. In this pit of beasts, Tomas must decide once and for all whether he is truly the people's champion...or just a priest of lies.

©2019 Peter McLean (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Thomas Piety is back, with machinations, mayhem and blood aplenty. If you like your fantasy with a side of dark and gritty you won’t want to miss this.” (Christina Henry, author of The Girl in Red)

Great Thrills Meet Cheap Tricks (4.3/5)

Once I finished the first book I knew I needed the second. While this second book is better in many ways, I felt that the third act the story became cheap for certain characters. Certain things happened and were revealed that I didn't buy as a reader.

But overall it was a fun experience. In all honesty, John Lee is why I'd want to keep reading this work but he didn't do the two other books and by the end of this one, I was burnt out.

I think I'm going to leave this series here for now and if in the future Penguin decides to produce the next books with John Lee then I may pick it up.

The story continues...

and is just as great as the first book! How do these people do it? Also, I cannot put into words how wonderful this narrator is. I mean, it's all great but the narrator really sells it for me.

My new favorite series!

I love fantasy world gangster stories! This one is right up there with Jhereg. Excellent!

Exceptional Dark Characters and Sequal

Dark are the streets of Allenburgh (sp?) and the Stink only gets better. From Thomas Piety and Bloody Anne, to Bloody Hands and Scanion Magician it is a fantastic and cunning story. If blood, guys and naughty words are not the harsh work you desire, the Flower Girls will tell you to take your panties elsewhere, I have to say. And that’s alright. My apologies for the misspellings, but this is the second go around with this audiobook and what a great performance by John Lee. Don’t agree? Go have a chat with Cutter.

Now THIS is a sequel 🔥🔥

Fast moving. A blur of twists & turns. Political intrigue, treachery and murder. Explosive magic. Romance. No boring wars or sieges so far. The First Law trilogy was my first experience with medieval dark fantasy. With this series I may have found a grimdark series that surpasses it. We'll see.

Gut-wrenching, pulse pounding, crime-fantasy

Joe Abercrombie finally has some real competition. Lovers of the First Law Series will not want to miss these books. Thomas Piety is no Logen Nine-Fingers, but he isn't meant to be. This is what real fantasy was meant to be.

Prince of Low Fantasy

I want to thank the publisher and author for an advanced reading copy of Priest of Bones (War for the Rose Throne #1) in exchange for an honest review. Receiving this ARC does not influence my thoughts or opinions on the novel.

Tomas Piety and his gang of Pious Men return home from war to find their beloved town barren and war-torn. In his absence, other ne’er-do-wells and rival gangs have moved in and taken over what was once his.
So Piety does what any crime lord would do in this situation: he uses his gang to take back the streets and businesses, cracking any skull required to get it done, and re-establishes his dominance over the Stink.
Unfortunately for Tomas, gaining back control won’t be so easy. The Queen’s Men have orders to bring him into the fold and work for the Queen’s gain, weaving a web of political intrigue that complicates Piety’s takeover.

The war out there may be over, but there is still one to be fought at home. In the end, no-one is safe.

Let’s go ahead and get this out there: Priest of Bones isn’t unlike anything you have seen before if you are a fan of Grimdark or Low Fantasy. Having said that, it does check the boxes that these genres hold accountable, and does so with gusto. It is dark and grimy, filled to brim with violence, blood, death and dismemberment; it oozes charisma and sets up for what looks to be a dynamite trilogy.

What I think truly sets this book apart from others in the genre is the character of Piety. While there is a laundry list of characters to sink your teeth into in PoB, only Piety is put under the microscope and fully fleshed out. Though he does rule with an iron fist, he does have some priestly tendencies that cause some in his gang to view him in a different light. He doesn’t appreciate the poor being ill-treated, abhors rape and violence against women, and detests child abuse (with very good reason).

There is a claustrophobic amount of world-building going on as we become acclimated to the Stink and don’t venture too far into its outskirts, but what we are introduced to fits the story like a glove. McLean also injects a little bit of magic into the story, which not only adds a shroud of mystery to its beginnings and uses, but teases the reader with what can hopefully be expected to be expanded upon in later volumes.

Overall, this was a very entertaining read and is the beginning of a series that I look forward to finishing.

Love this series!

This is my second time thru and I can’t say enough good things about it.
Thomas
Anne
Billy( both of them)
Cutter!!!!
So many great characters created in this world.

Waiting for the 3rd installment.

John Lee's narration just completely won me over. Yeah, I am saying it," I am looking for other books he has narrated." Addicted! Lol

Riyria, Cold Shivers and Logan Nine Fingers, and Locke Lamora have a new brother

A great new fantasy series that blends magic and sword play into a believable world. Thomas Piety is a well rounded character with modern sensibilities and a gangsters heart. Very much look forward to the next in the series.

The narration is good, though a little slow, the voice definitely matches the character.

So no spoilers or even plot hints just a hearty 5 star rating.