The Prophecy Con (Rogues of the Republic)

If a book can keep me involved with the characters and the story line as this one did, I'll recommend it to any one that enjoys a good read. To better understand and appreciate it, I would advise reading the first book in the series. The characters are filling out nicely and I'm looking forward to the next book to see what they get themselves into next.

About the the store rating: I'm using the Goodreads' equivalent of "liked it" (3/5). Consequently, it appears on the store as though I gave 'The Palace Job' the same rating as 'The Prophecy Con.' However, it should be noted that my Goodreads' rating for 'The Palace Job' was "really liked it" (4/5).

Loch's adventures continue as she endeavours to prevent a war with the Empire by recovering the elven manuscript she retrieved in the first book. Unlike `The Palace Job,' however, there is no single big heist but rather a string of short ones as Loch and her team encounter setbacks posed by the many and varied interested parties. That's because Loch herself is being hunted by factions in both the Republic and the Empire (in an effort to replicate Pyvic's chase of Loch in `The Palace Job' but with characters nowhere near as engaging) while trying to outsmart a rival party also keen on getting their hands on the manuscript. Consequently, this book is much more fast-paced and action-packed than its predecessor what is sometimes to its detriment.

Character-wise, the relationship between Tern and Hessler makes for some witty exchanges/situations easily taking the spotlight in this book. Loch and Pyvic's own could have made for an interesting read if it had been explored at all but the story decides to separate them early on thereby limiting their interaction to a handful of scenes that don't really build on their relationship, nor do they add much to their characters I might add. The rest of the cast is serviceable and the book benefited greatly with the introduction of a dutiful dwarf (whose name I can't remember right now) tasked with recovering the elven manuscript from its would-be thieves. It's a pity we didn't get to read more about him.

Nonetheless, the plot revolving around the manuscript itself can be confusing at times given the rather hectic pace of the book, particularly when a second manuscript comes into play to explain the first one. It's a messy affair that doesn't quite fit in retrospect what is to be expected with so many players and agendas. It probably won't affect your enjoyment of the book, however, and may even encourage you to give it a second, more thorough, read as is my case.

To sum up, `The Prophecy Con' scales the heist elements down a bit in favour of longer action sequences and the introduction of more characters perhaps in an attempt to set up the stage for book three. It's a welcome return to the universe created by Patrick Weekes but it may leave you unfulfilled as likely as not.

For my more complete Goodreads' review: goodreads.com/review/show/1063404125

Patrick Weekes presents a unique take on the sword and sorcery genre with this trilogy. The party is mostly made up of rogues, with a monk a wizard and a priestess making up the balance. Their adventures are serious, but presented in a light hearted manner that really keeps the pages turning.

In many ways the reader will find continued joy in book two to match the wild and surprising virtue of book one.

That said my honest belief is that this is a superior read with action and character to top the first.

Very impressed. A joy.

Really fun, with classic fantasy creatures all grown up to adult humor with swords and sorcery action. Quick read flies by entertainingly enough to cause immediate searching for next book. So much fun actively looking forward to more!!!

So, I loved, loved, loved The Palace Job (the first book in the series). I blasted through it. Recommended it to all my friends. Dove into this one and ..... what?

Weekes explains the absence of any homeless people with the simple expedient of "They HELP them." Not how they help them, or what they have done with the people who don't want help. Just BAM! They help them.

Loch's pragmatism in regards to racism that had gotten her so far in Book 1 is now gone. She's mad because of a museum that has relics from slavery. Relics from slavery in the past. Hmm, I was wondering when reparations and Black Lives Matter was going to make an appearance.

I'm just disappointed. I mean, the first book was borderline brilliant, and kept me guessing until the end. Now, it's like reading the New York Times Editorial page in some sort of stupid fantasy setting.

I just wanna cry. I thought I had found a fun author to escape from reality for a while each day. Sadly, he's just another lib with an axe to grind.

If you like action packed, you'll like Prophecy Con. However, Weekes would do well to limit the magic and magical beings to one or two forms and pace the action a little more realistically. Action scenes on top of a speeding train? Thills-a-minute. If you lay something down on a bouncing, wind-swept surface, it won't be there when you look for it again. Magic in its place is fine, but a bit of adherence to the rules of reality goes a long way.

Ahoy there mateys! He and I both read the following: rogues of the republic trilogy (Patrick Weekes)

We were talking about the books and I enjoyed his viewpoint so I ordered him to write a review. So you get one from me and a bonus additional review from me crew. Please note that I write like I talk and the first mate writes like he thinks. Hope you enjoy!

From the Captain:

So the First Mate and I were plotting potential heists to do when we came across this instruction manual. It has an awesome cover.

So we decided to give it a whirl. And it was wonderful. The first book starts with a situation wherein Loch (a Captain, Arrrr!!!!!) and her right-hand man, Kail, are locked in a prison under a floating city by it’s leader who has stolen a priceless artifact from her. So the two plot both a prison break and a heist to get back the artifact. Of course, nothing goes quite as planned and it’s delightful.

The highlight of the series are the characters themselves. In addition to Loch and Kail, there are seven members of her team and it is their banter and personalities that stole the show. Besides the Captain and her second, ye meet:

- Tern – a lockpick specialist with a penchant for pockets and fruity drinks
- Icy Fist – a martial artist monk with a non-violence policy and a pretzel twisting body
- Hessler – an illusionist who was barred from university and whose greatest illusion is his belief is in his own abilities
- Ululenia – a talking unicorn who is on the prowl for the nearest virgin
- Dairy – the nearest virgin about whom absolutely nothing else seems special
- Desidora – a love priestess who has developed a split personality with death
- Ghylspwr – a talking warhammer “Kun-kabynalti osu fiur’is”

After reading the first book, the First Mate and I quickly gobbled the rest. All three involve fun heists, plot twists, witty banter, implausible crazy fun, fighting, true love, and revenge. Arrrr! The plots were good, if silly, but seriously I would love to meet the whole crew in person. They are all fantastic. The minor quibble of the series for me was how it ended but the journey was so engaging, funny, and silly that it hardly mattered. Pick book one up, ye might fall in love . . .

From the First Mate:

Just a super crazy fun silly series. It’s basically an “Ocean’s 11” type of tale set in a high fantasy world, but really the fun of the series is in the characters. Almost every character is an absolute delight. From out protagonist, Loch, and her even shifting plans, to the absolutely coolest monk ever, Icy Fist, to a second in command who never fails to insult someone’s mother. Witty banter abounds, and the characterization is always on point. Some of the best scenes in the novels really are the characters sitting around just talking and jibbing.

In addition to the awesome characterizations, we also get at least one quality heist in every book. And, like in the best heist films, there is a duality in the fun of watching the heists play out. The villains have plans as intricate as Loch’s, and watching those plans work against each other is delightful.

The only minor negative of the series is that the overarching storyline is not terribly interesting. During the first two books, I was mostly bored whenever that storyline was dealt with. I really just wanted the books to be about the characters and the heists. By the last book, though, that storyline is the only storyline and Weekes does a good job of making it more interesting than it had been in previous books. That third book also does a good job of further advancing the characters, having lots of fun callbacks to the two previous books, and wraps everything up fairly well.

If you’re looking for silly high fantasy fun, these books simply cannot be beat.

[NOTE: I received a copy of this novel through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.]

I read the first book not long ago, and a lot of what I posted in my review at the time is valid again in here. The heist(s), with several levels of deception, double-crossing the opponent, thwarted plans, having to do with a situation turned for the worst… And with twists that aren’t always planned by all members of the team, ending in somewhat hilarious moments that nicely counterbalance the overall “they’re a bit too ready for absolutely everything” feeling one may get. Because something’s bound to give, to turn sour in a heist, otherwise there wouldn’t be as much interest in reading such adventures—at least not for me.

The characters are mostly the same, with some changes reflecting darker turns of events from the first book. Kail is still his old I-give-a-name-to-everything lockpick and pickpocket, and his skill in wielding “mom jokes” remains the same (also he’s contaminated Icy); however, his brush with mind-bending magic left him a bit more somber, but more decided than ever to fight this. Desidora has returned to her duties, yet is now questioning her role within the team, as she feels she is less useful. (I quite liked the conversations between these two, as their predicaments were somewhat related.) Ululenia and Dairy… well, let’s just say things didn’t exactly go as planned (not to mention that the unicorn had to make a choice whose consequences wouldn’t be so light). Loch is trying to work on the side of a law that doesn’t exactly make things easy for her in that regard. Hessler has broadened his magic, with somewhat dangerous results that however leave room to humorous dialogues: a welcome thing, considering that the tone of the novel is a bit darker and that this time, wounds aren’t only superficial.

We are given a bit more of a view of other parts of the world here: the Empire, the dwarves, the elves, as well as the Ancients themselves. A welcome addition, too. At first sight, it doesn’t stray too far from clichés (Elves had tree-ships and prefer to live far from humans, dwarves are often miners…); however, read just a little longer and the differences become obvious. I especially liked how the dwarves were so polite and orderly, while the elf dignitary was at the same time badass and insufferable (in a funny way). While the rules of magic in this world remain fuzzy, the relationship between magic and elves (through the crustals embedded in the latter) was interesting nonetheless.

This novel may have been slightly less humorous than the first one, because its stakes were higher from the beginning—not just a heist to steal a book and earn tons of money, but preventing a war, and trying not to become the sacrificial lamb in the middle of all this. Oddly or not, I liked it even better for this reason, and for another one: this time, knowing the characters, I could also better anticipate on what their moves might or might not be, and this made it more “logical”, so to speak, when something happened that I would’ve otherwise deemed a deus ex machina. Predictable? In a way. Yet the kind of predictable I like, that I *want* to see happen, and then, when it happens, I strike the air with my fist and I’m all “Yesss!”

4.5 stars. I’ll keep recommending this series, and hope book 3 is on the same level.

My Thoughts On The Book:
(May contain minor spoilers for the previous book, The Palace Job)

“Oaths," Kail said, "are for people who are wealthy enough to afford them.”
― Patrick Weekes, The Prophecy Con

The Plot Of The Story:
The Prophecy Con picks up not too long after The Palace Job. Loch and Pyvic, the justicar, are an official couple now and for a little while Loch has also been working as a justicar but as we know from the first book this is not going to last too long is it...... and it doesn't, before you can snap your fingers the pointy fingers of the law have been falsely pointed at Loch yet again and now to prevent a war she must gather her crew of rogues and thieves and get their hands on a dirty, and rather pornographic in tone, book of elven poetry to prevent the Republic and the Empire from tearing each other apart but it's not going to be an easy job by any means! So Loch's crew of her second in command and the world best 'Yo Mamma' joke maker Kail, the shapeshifting and virgin loving unicorn Ululenia, Tern the safe-cracking alchemist, Hessler the illusionist, Desidora, the former love priestess turned death priestess turned love priestess again along with her sentient and babbling warhammer Gwyl containing the soul of an Ancient being, Icy the not-murderous contortionist monk warrior, Dairy (Rybindaris) the virgin and former Champion of Dawn and even Loch's new boyfriend Pyvic, against his best own advice to the contrary, get themselves back together and find themselves in the worst kind of trouble all over again.
Just like the previous book this another rip-roaring and action packed book of sheer awesomeness and while on paper the plot sounds a little like the first book all over again, this is a completely different plot with different settings and a brand new evil to face and can I say it's just brilliant! Maybe even better than The Palace Job.......

What Is There To Love?
As with the previous book the star of the books are the fantastic characters and we get to see some real development with them as we go through this book and the evolution of some of them is more astounding than others. Ululenia continues to be my personal favourite as she comes to terms with her desires for Dairy and with the evolution and growth of her powers. In general, we learn much more about each of them than we did before as each character grows within themselves and with one another.
The romance stakes are a little more raised in this book as there are beginning of romances brewing with the crew, not just between Loch and Pyvic. These new emotions running between the gang ups the stakes for them all as they are now increasingly attached to each other in ways that they really weren't last time around and these new attachments cause a brand new sets of issues for them all as they try their hardest to work together to bring down the major threats to their word.

What Is There To Dislike?
Nothing...... I mean it, nothing to mention here!

How's The Writing?
Again, as with the last book the writing is great and this time it does have a more polished feel to it that the rough and ready feel the last book had. Again the world-building and mythology is wonderful and has been added to and improved on by the giving of further information. The pace is a break-neck as it was last time and in a way it's sometimes even more frenetic than before as they have much more at stake of a persona nature this time and it all adds to the realistic feel of the prose. The humour within the story is just as well-place and laugh-out-loud as it was before and there is even more tongue-in-cheek hidden adult joke than ever...... and Kail is totally on form with his mother jokes, in fact there are even more than ever and they are brilliant in tone and placement.
The character dynamics in The Prophecy Con are completely changed from the first book and we get to see characters teaming up with different other characters than last time which keeps the writing feeling fresh and new as we get to see how each of them relate and react to each other in ways we didn't see before.
I must say that I love the way Patrick Weekes structures and writes his books, he has a great touch with both the fantasy aspects and with the humorous tones, making them for both the young and for the older readers too. I hope there are many, many books to come in this series as I am seriously in love with the first two.

Final Thoughts:
This is a great second book in what is growing to be a wonderful and a real favourite series of mine. If you're looking for something light and fun then these are the books for you as they are exactly that and that is what makes them such a fun experience to read. There's no pretence of them trying be something that they aren't, they are simply the fun fantasy tales that they claim to be and personally I am really, really enjoying the ride with the Rogues Of The Republic!

My review copy was provided for free by the publisher, 47North, via Netgalley for review purposes.

This second book in the Rogues series lives up to the first, albeit with a bit less world-building, as the basics were all in place from Book One. The plot appeared at first to be a bit smaller in scale, as Loch and her crew were trying to stop a major war (as compared to the end of the world). More races took second stage, with dwarves and elves taking major roles-- and dwarvish train lines and elvish flying trees (!) providing transport.

While 'The Palace Job' can definitely be read as a stand-alone, readers of this book would really benefit from reading 'The Palace Job' first; while Patrick Weekes makes some attempts at reminding readers of important elements of the earlier book's plot, the world he's created is complex enough that full enjoyment of the second book requires the background provided in the first.

Recommended, with pleasure.

A great cast of diverse individuals team up to save the world in this bright story set in well-defined fantasy world. All of the many main characters are well-defined and memorable, From the beginning, even with so many characters, each one was easily distinguishable. I only mention this because so many times authors stumble trying to define and differentiate characters when there are so many.

Exciting, fast-paced, humorous and surprising! The story quickly captured my attention and kept me interested until the end.

**eARC netgalley**

This is a great story with characters and a world I've come to love.

The personalities are consistent. The writing is fluid and it has that wonderful richness and jazzy feel of the first book. Things work great together in the book!

Copy editing gets a bit rougher in this but no show stopping errors.

I'm more than pleased. Weeks pays good homage to Rogues Republic in this.

Love the character development, love that it addresses the prejudices of gender and skin color in such a positive way in the story line. Very clever characters in humorous situations while also being caught up in life drama situations.
I like it when a story keeps me surprised. I often can predict story lines in the books I read, however, this book series has offered some pleasantly refreshing and unpredictable plot twists keeping me on my toes and not wanting to put these books down. I highly recommend reading the entire 3 book series.

I am not a fan of social justice warriors pushing the politically correct agendas, however good fiction is good fiction. This is good! The prerequisite racial,sexual, gender soapboxes didn't detract from a good plot. Thank you for writing a really good fantasy action novel. The amazingly creative "yo mama" jokes make me want to buy the author an adult beverage of his choice. If for any reason he happens to find himself in Dallas Texas, the first one is on me!

Continuing story of Captain Loch and her band of misfits and thieves as they try to prevent war from occurring between the Republic and Empire. Great continued development of characters and introduction of several new characters. Great story and well worth the read, definitely a must read. I look forward to the final book to see what further adventures Loch and her band face.

With some great characters, a bit with a train and a cruise ship, some serious politics, both national and ancient, and of course, a thread of love priestess, in the very best sense of that idea, knit throughout. A perfect book to finish reading at Valentine's Day, with enough undead for the gothiest teenager.

Amazing characters. Beautiful story-telling. Great writting, cunning thieves and magical, talking weapons. What else can a girl ask for?
A slow clap for you Patrick Weekes, I'm in love with the world you created.

A wonderful escapist fantasy romp. Interesting enough world with different varieties of magic sourced from the "ancients". Real comic sensibility to "team" which limits the character development of some of the main characters. But moves fast and is pleasing to senses. Only problem is that it is a page turner so a problem if you read it in bed.

One of my new favorite authors. First book was great fun second, this one, was more action and less character insight, but still great verbal foreplay and comedy. Love the one liners and the political puppet shows whose job is to relate the news and commentary. Wish we had those in our world!!
Bravo!

I really enjoy this series - They may be pulling off "cons", but they are more of the Robin Hood types of con artists. The characters are well-defined, and have some nice quirks. This book reminded me, in flavor, of an Ocean's 11 movie. Looking forward to the 3rd in the series.

The writing on this series is hilarious, sharp, and witty. The characters are wonderful. The plot and story are well written and planned. It is seriously one of the most entertaining series I've ever read.

Have you ever started reading a series of books and then get really angry when you're part-way through and the next books aren't done yet? That's what I felt at the end of this book. It has solid and interesting plot, characters, and setting, and all of the twists were well-enough set that even when they catch you entirely off guard, you know that the clues were there all along.

The writing on this series is hilarious, sharp, and witty. The characters are wonderful. The plot and story are well written and planned. It is seriously one of the most entertaining series I've ever read.

Have you ever started reading a series of books and then get really angry when you're part-way through and the next books aren't done yet? That's what I felt at the end of this book. It has solid and interesting plot, characters, and setting, and all of the twists were well-enough set that even when they catch you entirely off guard, you know that the clues were there all along.

This is one of those rare books that somehow keeps you constantly infuriated and enraptured. Plenty of twists, as usual, and intriguing characters and relationships (not just romantic) between those characters. Loved it.

I gave this book five stars because it was awesome! Just as good as the first if not better and I know the third book will be just as amazing! A must read if you love fantasy, excitement, suspense, action and love between characters and for the characters!

This great series has a strong female protagonist who leads a diverse team of fantasy characters through a confidence-game type adventure. Issues of race, sexism, and sexual orientation are handled deftly, unexpected things happen unexpectedly, and characters develop in interesting ways. More than worth your time; enjoy!

Great read if a tad predictable. Predictability aside, this novel describes a fun adventure with a twist ending that I never saw coming! I can't wait for the next book to come out to find out what trouble the gang will get into next.