3.0
We Are Not Good People
ByPublisher Description
Learn the Words. Get the blood. Rule the world. The Ustari Cycle starts here.
From the "exhilarating, powerful, and entertaining" (Guardian) storyteller of the Avery Cates series comes a gritty supernatural thriller featuring a pair of unlikely heroes caught up in the underground world of blood magic. Magicians: they are not good people.
The ethics in a world of blood are gray—and an underground strata of blood magicians has been engineering disasters for centuries in order to acquire enough fuel for their spells. Although in the modern world these mages stay in the shadows, their exploits have become no less bloody.
Still, some practitioners use the Words and a swipe of the blade to cast simpler spells, such as Charms and Cantrips to gas up $1 bills so they appear to be $20s. Lem Vonnegan and his sidekick Mags fall into this level of mage, hustlers and con men all. Lem tries to be ethical by using only his own blood, by not using Bleeders or "volunteers." But it makes life hard. Soon they might have to get honest work.
When the pair encounter a girl who's been kidnapped and marked up with magic runes for a ritual spell, it's clear they're in over their heads. Turning to Lem's estranged Master for help, they are told that not only is the girl's life all but forfeit, but that the world's preeminent mage, Mika Renar, has earth-shattering plans for her—and Lem just got in the way. With the fate of the world on the line, and Lem both spooked and intrigued by the mysterious girl, the other nominate him to become the huckleberry who'll take down Renar. But even if he, Mags, and the simpletons who follow him prevail, they're dealing with the kind of power that doesn't understand defeat, or mercy.
(The first portion of We Are Not Good People was originally published in an altered form as Trickster by Pocket Books).
From the "exhilarating, powerful, and entertaining" (Guardian) storyteller of the Avery Cates series comes a gritty supernatural thriller featuring a pair of unlikely heroes caught up in the underground world of blood magic. Magicians: they are not good people.
The ethics in a world of blood are gray—and an underground strata of blood magicians has been engineering disasters for centuries in order to acquire enough fuel for their spells. Although in the modern world these mages stay in the shadows, their exploits have become no less bloody.
Still, some practitioners use the Words and a swipe of the blade to cast simpler spells, such as Charms and Cantrips to gas up $1 bills so they appear to be $20s. Lem Vonnegan and his sidekick Mags fall into this level of mage, hustlers and con men all. Lem tries to be ethical by using only his own blood, by not using Bleeders or "volunteers." But it makes life hard. Soon they might have to get honest work.
When the pair encounter a girl who's been kidnapped and marked up with magic runes for a ritual spell, it's clear they're in over their heads. Turning to Lem's estranged Master for help, they are told that not only is the girl's life all but forfeit, but that the world's preeminent mage, Mika Renar, has earth-shattering plans for her—and Lem just got in the way. With the fate of the world on the line, and Lem both spooked and intrigued by the mysterious girl, the other nominate him to become the huckleberry who'll take down Renar. But even if he, Mags, and the simpletons who follow him prevail, they're dealing with the kind of power that doesn't understand defeat, or mercy.
(The first portion of We Are Not Good People was originally published in an altered form as Trickster by Pocket Books).
7 Reviews
3.0
M
Created 4 months agoShare
Report
Chad
Created over 6 years agoShare
Report
Maja
Created almost 7 years agoShare
Report
“Okay so I actually just read the "Trixter" part so if I'm to do it right I should probably change the book to that other edition but I'm not gonna. I may read the other parts of this book in the future. Just not right now.
I enjoyed the gritty world building and the blood magic, though it did have some inconsistencies. I liked Lem and Claire too. What I didn't like, and was the major reason it took me half an eternity to read 250-something pages was that the writing and pacing was a bit off and i could never really get into it and find a good reading flow. Also I did not much like how Mags was portrayed as a dimwit.”
Dani Berg
Created almost 9 years agoShare
Report
Keith Thorburn
Created about 9 years agoShare
Report
“Been a fan of Somers all through his brilliant Avery Cates series, and his latest series (dubbed The Ustari Cycle) shares a lot of the same morally grey, action heavy DNA as that. It's gritty urban fantasy where magic spells cost blood (so self-harm or the company of 'bleeders' is the only way to fuel powers) and Somers gets some good grim mileage out of that idea (the notion that huge spells require chain reactions of increasing bodycounts to generate enough blood is very neat), the action is still as visceral as you'd expect from Somers, and Lem and Mags are definitely characters I'd like to read more of. It doesn't quite hook me the same way as Avery Cates did, but I suspect that's largely down to personal preference (cyberpunky action floats my boat pretty damn hard and Cates would take a great deal to beat for me).
NOTE: the release of this was a little odd, in that the first half of the book was previously released under the title 'Trickster' and then later bundled up with the follow-up to make this book. Figured it was worth a mention in case people think they have to buy both! We Are Not Good People is the whole shebang.”
About Jeff Somers
Jeff Somers was born in Jersey City, New Jersey. After graduating college he wandered aimlessly for a while, but the peculiar siren call of New Jersey brought him back to his homeland. Visit him at JeffreySomers.com and WeAreNotGoodPeople.com, and on Twitter at @JeffreySomers.
Other books by Jeff Somers
Start a Book Club
Start a public or private book club with this book on the Fable app today!FAQ
Do I have to buy the ebook to participate in a book club?
Why can’t I buy the ebook on the app?
How is Fable’s reader different from Kindle?
Do you sell physical books too?
Are book clubs free to join on Fable?
How do I start a book club with this book on Fable?
Save to a list
0
/30
0
/100
Private List