Guard Against Dishonor

Hawk & Fisher #5

by Simon R. Green

Amid top-level peace talks between the Low Kingdoms and Outremer, the streets of Haven are ravaged by a new drug, which brings out the vicious animal instincts of its victims. The distributors always seem to be one step ahead of the City Guard force. Someone may be revealing the Guards' plans. Could Isobel Fisher be the informant? Hawk and Fisher are pulled apart by circumstance as a political truce is threatened and the death toll climbs.

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook, Crime, Magic

188 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1991

About the author

Simon Richard Green is a British science fiction and fantasy-author. He holds a degree in Modern English and American Literature from the University of Leicester. His first publication was in 1979.

His Deathstalker series is partly a parody of the usual space-opera of the 1950s, told with sovereign disregard of the rules of probability, while being at the same time extremely bloodthirsty.

Excerpted from Wikipedia.

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

"In the light of a flickering brazier, an angel from the Street of Gods was throwing dice with half a dozen gargoyles. A fast-talking salesman was hawking bracelets plated with something that looked like gold. A large Saint Bernard with a patchy dye job was trying to bum a light for its cigar. Two overlarge rats with human hands were stealing the boots off a dead man. And two nuns were beating up a mugger. Just another day in the Northside."

"'You did what you thought was right at the time. That's all any of us can do. Beyond a certain point, worrying about past mistakes just becomes self-pity and self-indulgence.'"

"'Most people in Haven are just like anyone else in any other city--good people struggling to make ends meet, keep their heads above water, and hold their families together. They're too busy working all the hours God sends to think about making trouble. That's why we do this job; because they're worth protecting from the scum out there who try to steal what little those people have. Most people here are all right.'"

Guard Against Dishonor is Simon R. Green's Fifth offering in his Hawk and Fisher series. Of those in the series that I have read thus far this, in my opinion, is the best. The imagination required to create Haven is exceptional. I particularly enjoyed the whole concept of "pocket dimensions," which, to me, was like walking into an M.C. Escher painting but more treacherous, or possibly watching the destruction of Joel Barish's memories in the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind."

In Guard Against Dishonor, Hawk and Fisher continue to survive in spite of the corruption and evil of the city, Haven, and their law enforcement organization called the Guard. They seem to be the only two that have any integrity, or virtue. It is admirable that they can endure in such an environment. This story adds some exciting twists which were not thought of in the previous novels, including a deadly drug which is being distributed by evil drug lords that makes its users turn into savage beasts willing to tear anyone in their path to pieces. This of course, can make for some gruesome descriptions, but, notwithstanding, there is absolutely no foul language in the book.

As in the previous novels, the duo searches for mysterious culprits who are intended to surprise the reader at the end. In this case, the conclusion was a bit expected, at least for me, but the book as a whole had excellent description, character development, and intrigue. For an entertaining fantasy with a lot of fighting and sorcery this book satisfies.

[Terry]

A mystery where great friends forgot they have an awesome friend until oh wait they don't... Reveal felt flat but journey wasn't horrible.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simon R Green produces very decent books - not great, but they don't pretend to be literature and they get the job done in terms of passing some pleasant time. All his series, in various, related, genres are pretty much at the same level - solid, entertaining fiction, but I'm beginning to like the Hawk & Fisher books best.
Cop novels set in a high-ish fantasy setting, think Ankh Morpork without the humour, provides a decent backdrop for mystery and action. I actually think this is the best so far, as the two leads are separated by orders from above after an attempted arrest of a drug lord goes wrong. Meanwhile diplomacy is occuring elsewhere, with as much sincerity you would expect in the corrupt setting of Haven.

[Michael Tildsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I figured out the guilty parties pretty early on in this story, but I still managed to have fun with it.

Even with Green’s no frills plain style still in effect, there was tons of action in this book, and as always, it is blessedly short and sweet.

One thing that makes this different from the previous entries is that even though the problem was resolved, the plot didn’t completely wrap up. I think this will leave Green open to continue exploring this point in the next entry of the series.

I think I will read book 6 if I can lay hands on it, but I’m not sure I want to try books 7 and 8. I peeked ahead and saw that they are both around 500 pages. I don’t know if Green can keep my interest that long without changing up his pitches a little bit.

[Gareth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably a hard one for me to rate fairly - not a bad book by any means, but is following one of the tropes that I really dislike in fiction, and have likely called out in other novels I've reviewed as well where following similar trope.
Allows us to see more of Hawk and Fisher independently here though, which gives us better insight into both, albeit shows that they are much stronger together, even if still strong alone :)
Bit of an underlying whodunnit in here, but was a bit more obvious to me at least than some of the prior ones, as reasonably quickly seemed to really only be one likely suspect.
Still, while not a comfortable read for me, not a bad one either.

[Ponytaorponyboy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll be honest, I did not see this coming. It was smart of them to separate the two guards, but at the same time, is it that easy to pit them against the other? I feel like they're inseparable enough that they wouldn't even doubt each other.
Is this because they're always running on empty and they're always tired, so it helped them with the paranoia? Who knows...

More and more, we're probably hinting that they are Rupert and Julia, or that they were very close to the two heroes, because... I mean... the references to the Mine, the Forest..

[Đenis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trošku jiná zápletka než v předchozích dílech, ale stále to připomíná detektivku na odpoledne.
Manželé tentokrát vpadnou do obchodu drogového magnáta, který chce nasadit novou superdrogu. Po fiasku se zatčením a strátou kontrabandu je Jestřáb poslán vypátrat ztracené bedny a Rybářka dohlížed na mírové rozhovory s nepřátelskou zemí. Tohle rozdělení je ale rozdělí víc, než by si pomysleli. Hlavně když za tím stojí někdo mocný. A právě o pátrání po něm tady jde.

[Ian Banks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, dumb fun. We see a few plot points from the previous novels coming to a head here as well as the chance to see how our heroes operate without the calming influence of each other. Not really a challenging or difficult mystery to solve in this one but it is fun seeing the pieces all fit together by the end.

[Shaun Dyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guard Against Dishonor is another fantastic high fantasy cop drama from the prolific Simon R Green. In this one, Hawk and Fisher are on the trail of a drug dealer peddling a new and rather lethal drug while two warring kingdoms attempt to have secret peace negotiations. It's a great setup, and again, this book doesn't disappoint.

Hawk and Fisher are wonderful and kick-ass as ever, and the new side characters are equally good, sliding perfectly into the setting. Man, I love Haven; what a cool toybox to play around in. The action is constant and brutal as ever, and the mystery is the right level of 'I just saw it coming' to be satisfying.

If you've read Green before, you'll know what to expect, and this won't disappoint. If you're new to Simon R Green, you're in for a treat. Bring on book six, is what I say.

[Сибин Майналовски · Rating 5 out of 5]

Пак политика, но този път в точно достатъчно количество :) Нямаше много мистерия, но пък екшън колкото искаш :)

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice bit of a story, Short and nearly perfect. Lots of violence and dead bodies.
Great one liners.

[Elektrohase · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theoretically good.... If it wasn't so clear who the real bad guy was from almost the start. Just 4 stars because I like hawk and fisher. With objective eyes maybe more a 3

[Tim Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re read this - a great little book!

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty much the very definition of pulp fiction, this is the kind of story that you tend to forget as soon as you've read it! While also never confirmed within this (or, to the best of my knowledge, in any of the Hawk and Fisher books prior to 'Beyond the Blue Moon'), there are also some very broad hints dropped that these two characters are the same protaganists as in Simon Green's 'Blue Moon Rising' novel.

Essentially, these novels are crime novels with a magical twist - personally, I find done so much better by Terry Pratchett's Discworld series of books featuring the City Watch. That's not to say these should be avoided: just don't go in with too high an expectation and you won't be disappointed!

[Alexander Draganov · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fifth book in the "Hawk & Fisher" series presents a classic "cop plot" to the readers. Hawk and Fisher capture a ruthless drug lord with powerful friends and all Hell break loose. Soon the cops are considered villains, the drug lord is free and an even more sinister plot threatens to destroy the city of Haven. "Guard against dishonor" is by far the grittiest book in the series and the problems, described in it are very relevant to our own world. Still, the book is very readable and with pleasant ending. Not as good as the previous novels, but still a good read.

[Droewyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really hate plots where the hero gets framed for something horrible and all of their friends and colleagues immediately turn against them. I find it upsetting and I just don't enjoy it. I did like the bits where Hawk was confronted with his record; namely his habit of leaving a larger trail of bodies behind him than most video game protagonists. When Lara Croft thinks you're a bit extreme, you may in fact have a problem and should definitely look into meditation or green tea or something.

Solid book in the series, just didn't care for the framing device (ha ha).

[Peel · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite Hawk and Fisher book yet! I blew through the whole thing in one sitting because I was just so interested in seeing what happened next. I did kind of see the spy before the reveal, but there was plenty of tension nonetheless and Hawk and Fisher's confrontation kept me on the edge of my seat. Loved it.

[Cylaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generally ok if you are not expecting much. The main problem about the book is that it seems pretty naïve in the way the case is solved. The Burns and Nightingle guys simply own up pretty easily and conveniently at the end of the book. This seems to be a trait for the past few books in the series. Hope it gets better from the next book

[Samantha wickedshizuku Tolleson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the fact that Green split Hawk and Fisher up in this installment. This made the characters a great deal of trouble that made them remember their faults. There was a lot of twists to the plot, and the characters' growth was awesome!

I can't wait to get to the next installment, and finish up with the Forest Kingdom Saga.

Cheers Pretties!

[Daphne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most of this series is just fantasy fluff, but the scene where the community and the guards were clearing away rubble after the explosion to try to save those trapped was actually quite moving.

[Shayan Kh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing special. It was as good as the rest of the series. So if you liked the rest, read this one. If you didn't like other books of this series, of course you wouldn't like this one.

[Archimedes Grimm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a great book, but Green is getting better at description, even if his plots can be a little thin in this series.

[Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crimebusters with a magical touch.