Synopsis
The war is over, and army priest Tomas Piety heads home with Sergeant Bloody Anne at his side. But things have changed while he was away: his crime empire has been stolen and the people of Ellinburg–his people–have run out of food and hope and places to hide. Tomas sets out to reclaim what was his with help from Anne, his brother, Jochan, and his new gang: the Pious Men. But when he finds himself dragged into a web of political intrigue once again, everything gets more complicated.
As the Pious Men fight shadowy foreign infiltrators in the back-street taverns, brothels, and gambling dens of Tomas’s old life, it becomes clear:
The war is only just beginning.
Review
“When people have run out of food, and hope, and places to hide, do not be surprised if they have also run out of mercy.”
I loved this book. This was pitched to me as a Peaky Blinders rec and I have to say it’s even better than the show. I went to take a look at it based on a friend’s bookstagram post and three days later, I’m requesting book two on Libby.
Starting with the comparison- I thought it was gonna be a high-stakes gangster story but I did not realize how much Peaky Blinders it was going to be. It is a one-to-one match and one only needs to read the first chapter to get that. It captures the post war setting where disillusioned soldiers are turned to gangsters perfectly. The world feels so harsh, so immersive, so real and so gritty.
“Pick up what?” Jochan demanded. “The country is on its fucking knees, Tomas. There’s plague. There’s famine. There’s no fucking work. And we won this fucking war?”
̶T̶o̶m̶m̶y̶ ̶S̶h̶e̶l̶b̶y̶ Tomas Piety is a ruthless but ambitious gangster who has just returned from the war with 10-12 of his soldiers. He has taken up priesthood during the war and has become the leader of the group after their original captain had been killed. When he returns to his city, he finds that all of his businesses and criminal activities have been stolen from him and the people are living destitute lives. Now, I don’t have to talk about the appeal of an anti-hero and the political intrigue in this kind of a setting but it takes really skillful writing to keep the readers invested and feel for characters who do morally bad stuff but McLean absolutely delivers here.
Initially it is about introducing the world and the characters and there is a lot of action but there is a specific chapter where the whole book changes. It becomes a character study of these war-scarred adults dealing with trauma from the war and their personal lives before the war. It makes the book emotionally complex and kicks it up to a higher gear. I was properly hooked from that point and I was able to see the character motivations that the author is layering into each character of the gang, especially the MC, Tomas Piety. I was reminded of George RR Martin’s writing in places.
The second half of the book got so brutal, so quick. It also shows off how great the author’s writing is. There are two specific things I want to highlight. One- how well the author is able to balance the cinematic action sequences and moments of quiet emotion between family/gang members. Two is actually derived directly from one- how great the author is in drip feeding the lore and the backstories of the character that I was completely bitten by the one more chapter syndrome. I am not a fast reader by any means and yet I finished 80% of the book in just two days.
In conclusion, I loved this book and I’m waiting for Libby to release my hold for book 2. The author has succeeded in making a violent and dark story feel compelling and cool. Fans of Godfather, Greenbone saga, First Law, and Scott Lynch – you will find a lot of things to love in this book.
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