The True Bastards
Fetching was once the only female rider in the Lot Lands. Now she is the proud leader of her own hoof, a band of loyal half-orcs sworn to her command.
But in the year since she became chief, the Lots have tested her strength to the breaking point. The Bastards are scattered, desperate, their ranks weakened by a mysterious famine, their fortress reduced to smoldering slag. And their troubles are only growing.
A pack of ravening beasts circles their camp, while grasping human nobles hatch a plan that will shift the balance of power in the Lots.
Fetch and her comrades are still standing defiant—they’re Bastards, after all—but even the toughest half-orc can take only so much; and Fetch knows they’re on the verge of ruin. As she strives to lead her hoof to safety and unravel the plots set against them, Fetching must journey through forbidden elven lands, overcome long-standing hatreds, battle a monstrous wizard of terrifying power—and, worst of all, delve into the dark truths of her own existence.
She’s no stranger to fighting the world, but on this journey, sharp steel and a strong hog won’t be enough. To survive these trials, she’ll have to defy not just her foes but the very nature of the Lots.
-Goodreads
Title: The True Bastards
Series: The Lot Lands #2
Author: Jonathan French
Page Count: 584
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5/5.0
Date Read: November 1st, 2023
Opening
This was my second read from The Lot Lands series in just a few weeks. I read The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French just a few weeks ago and here I am already knocking out book two The True Bastards. I've really been enjoying this series overall so far. Unfortunately, I don't own a copy of book three yet, so I'll need to remedy that over the next couple of months so I can complete the series and have all three for my home collection.
Pacing
The pacing seemed very similar to me as book one. I didn't really pick up on any major changes to style, names or verbiage used. I did both visual read my hardcover copy when able and listened to the audio which is narrated by Lisa Flanagan who did an excellent job helping immerse myself into this story and world.
World Building
The world building continues to expand from book one. You could say that if someone was shining a light on the world in book one that was a tighter beam where book two it's spread wider. We learn quite a bit more about the back stories as we start to understand a bit more about how we got to these points in the story on top of things simply progressing through the second book. The interactions between these cultures and factions certainly seem more intense to me in The True Bastards.
Character Development
Character development was solid. Though I did enjoy experiencing more of Fetching's story, I was a bit disappointed that we go so long in book two simply with some mentions of Jackyl without any action or scenes with him. It just seemed a bit of a letdown to have such a pivotal character in the first book be so absent throughout this one. With that being said the amount of struggle or growth we see so many of these characters go through in this book made it difficult not to have some kind of connection or interest with them. Fetching's story is certainly something else as it unfolds!
Closing
As previously mentioned I'm really enjoying this series. As I get to recommendations I will say there is a reoccurring theme of potential rape in book two so if that is a trigger for some, they may want to avoid or just be prepared for that going in. Beyond that, this series has leaned toward the darker side of fantasy so if that is your thing, I'd say give it a go!
Scoring
Pacing 4.5 / 5.0
Worldbuilding 5.0 / 5.0
Character Development 4.0 / 5.0
