The Dead Cat Tail Assassins
Ratings17
Average rating3.9
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins are not cats.
Nor do they have tails.
But they are most assuredly dead.
Nebula and Alex Award winner P. Djèlí Clark introduces a brand-new world and a fantastical city full of gods and assassins.
Eveen the Eviscerator is skilled, discreet, professional, and here for your most pressing needs in the ancient city of Tal Abisi. Her guild is strong, her blades are sharp, and her rules are simple. Those sworn to the Matron of Assassins―resurrected, deadly, wiped of their memories―have only three unbreakable vows.
First, the contract must be just. That’s above Eveen’s pay grade.
Second, even the most powerful assassin may only kill the contracted. Eveen’s a professional. She’s never missed her mark.
The third and the once you accept a job, you must carry it out. And if you stray? A final death would be a mercy. When the Festival of the Clockwork King turns the city upside down, Eveen’s newest mission brings her face-to-face with a past she isn’t supposed to remember and a vow she can’t forget.
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Eveen is an undead assassin in service to a goddess. When she comes face to face her latest mark, she experiences a memory, something that is not supposed to be possible. The two escape and try to figure out who has set them up, how, and why, while being chased through the city by Eveen's fellow assassins determined to force her to fulfill her contract and generally make her unlike miserable.
This novella was a wild ride from practically start to finish, where things just went bat s—t crazy in the best way. The plot is tight and twisty. I thought setting the events in the middle of a big festival involving costumes and character roles was fun. The assassins vary from eccentric, to creepy, to downright sociopathic. Overall I had a very good time and would love to read more in this world.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and Tor in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are entirely my own.
A fun and uncomplicated story that touches its characters and universe at surface level only. It's a standalone (I think) and not that many pages. If that's your thing, you might want to give this a go. Clark is a good writer.
But it's a 2* read for me as all of the above apparently doesn't work for me. The first few chapters promised a possible 5* read but I lost interest in, well, everything, started speed reading, skipping more and more towards the end. It's a shame. I love Ring Shout and like A Master Of Djinn. Not this, though.
It's not terrible, but ultimately I think my issue was that it seemed very simple in all aspects. This is better as YA/teen and I would recommend it for youth audiences.
