Joseph Boyd > Recent Status Updates

The Company on the run! The Lady defeated? AND WHERE THE HECK IS RAVEN???

Raven’s dead… Or is he???

I guess a slow burn is to be expected for one of the first Shadowrun novels, but I do hope it picks up.

Welp, Raven and Darling are gone again.

Raven had his big moment with Shed. Dealt with Krage and their money problems in one fell swoop, but no Croaker is on his trail. Will they reunite as friends? Or will Raven believe it to be too risky and see the Company’s men as enemies?

Ahhh it’s good to be back. Croaker and a small contingent of the Black Company have made it to Juniper where Raven is simultaneously running his corpse-cart business.
I WONDER IF THEY WILL RUN INTO EACH OTHER.
The plot is beginning to pick up.

As I recall and am reminded of the details of the last book’s plot I can tell it’s sucking me in. Glen Cook’s unique style with this book is more and more enjoyable. I had completely forgotten about Raven until Croaker re-explained who he was and I was like, “oh crap, I remember him now!”

Glen Cook starts the second Black Company book with a new hobby - super short chapters. It’s a little jarring to be 30 pages in and on Chapter 8. My guy, do a page break and throw in some asterisks or something and I will understand the scene/location has changed.

Thankfully the style of the previous book is back and the world of the Black Company is starting to feel more lived in than ever before.

The dynamics among the Taken are a very welcome meta-plot to follow along! Soulcatcher and Shifter don’t seem to like the Limper very much.

Croaker is turning into even more of a lovable protagonist to adventure with. I sure hope nothing bad happens to him…

Just noting a few things that stuck out to me in the past few sections.

I liked that the Lieutenant took no lip from the Limper’s courier.

I’m also really glad that Croaker has a sympathetic side with his disgust at the Limper’s massacre of the villagers. I greatly enjoyed his description of the upcoming scene, “The cursing and weeping resolved into a scene fit to disgust anyone tainted with humanity.”

Chapter two has begun and the character of Raven is introduced! The journey across the sea was sacrificed on the altar of convenient time skips. I can’t help but wonder what interesting things Croaker may have observed in tight quarters with Soulcatcher. Now the Black Company moves north to help put down a rebellion that has defeated the Limper (unmet character). I wonder what horrible fate awaits the rebel Raker.

I’m really enjoying the setting and sort of passive world-building, but holy cow is it hard to keep track of what’s actually happening in the moment. Additionally, time seems to be a non-consideration as I have no concept of how long things are taking in the plot or how big the time skips that have occurred are. Still worth continuing. Let’s see how Croaker and the Black Company handle being the bad guys.