What Fresh Hell (The Gods are Bastards Book 1)

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Action Girl: Fairly common, since one of the major deities of the setting is a goddess of both warfare and feminism. Her paladin is one of the main characters, and naturally also female. Worldbuilding, large scale Machiavellian conspiracies, and character development are the strengths of this story, and damn, they are real strengths - some of the most fun, and best written I've seen in any work of fiction. Villain Protagonist: For at least one book, Jeremiah "Thumper" Shook, a Thieves' Guild enforcer, and his mentor, Alan Vandro. Aside from being generally willing to steal and use force for their own benefit, they share an attitude to gender politics that is unpalatable to say the least - see Politically Incorrect Villain, above.

They were positioned before one of the stained glass windows which predominated six of the octagonal chapel’s walls, the others housing the entrance and dais respectively; Yancey hovered discreetly behind Ravana as always. Aristocrats milled about in various small groups, quietly talking while servants glided between them, all eyes focused on one of the three points of social interest in the chamber: Archpope Justinian standing before the altar where nobles approached him in singles and pairs, Juniper surrounded by an avidly fascinated cluster of mostly men, and Ravana off by herself—or she had been, until Tamarin took the social risk of positioning herself here. It was only natural that Justinian took up the only position of primacy in the symmetrical room, framing himself as the authority to be approached. Corrupt Church: The Universal Church as it currently stands is an organization designed to rule the empire but without the mechanisms needed to do so as intended. This has resulted in Archpope Justinian being able to exert large amounts of influence throughout the Empire and infiltrate the cults but is generally prevented from any public action by those same groups. This has not prevented the Church from causing or exacerbating many problems throughout the story.

‘Bastards in Shakespeare’s plays

Ravana ceased making the wineglass sing, lifting it to her lips for another appreciative sip. “Mm. Well, one works with what one has, yes? Mine has never been called a winning personality.” Everyone Is Bi: Evidence suggests humans are the only sentient species paying attention to gender in matters of the heart/sexuality in this setting, and a good part of the cast aren't humans, so this trope applies. Think? They’re a little more obtuse than I would like, but there’s potential there. Of course, we don’t get any students without that potential.” April emitted a short, disbelieving laugh. “Not here. I ain’t heard, sorry. Not many boarding houses in town; we don’t get much in the way of travelers since the mining dried up. They even took us off the regular Rail stop roster,” she added bitterly. Freudian Excuse: Trissiny at least assumed Gabriel had one, the truth was more complicated. The expectation is commented upon elsewhere.

As you go through life,” Tellwyrn intoned, “you’ll find that doing what you’re told by authority figures is a path to mediocrity. Opposing authority figures in a knee-jerk fashion leads to a swift and brutal end. It is necessary to find a middle ground—and finding that means understanding the forces that move both individuals and groups, and how you can manipulate those forces to your advantage. Ironically, this is an art that hinges heavily on the elucidation of your own principles, the philosophical framework of your life that you must uphold to protect your identity as a coherent being. This is the entire purpose of this class. The ultimate point of this task was to show me how far along you already are. I can’t say I’m impressed.With the Empire?” she replied incredulously. “You can’t possibly imagine I have any pull with the Throne.” invoked Goddamn Bats: Turn up during the very videogame-y Descent, a series of challenges the freshmen go through as part of their training. The trope is named but never really played straight, since several of the protagonists have powers that render them irrelevant.