The Grief of Stones

This is a direct sequel to Witness for the Dead (book two of a trilogy) and is another fantasy mystery set in the world of the Goblin Emperor.

Witness for the Dead feels more like a traditional mystery novel, in that the climax of the story is also the reveal of the mystery. On the other hand, this book's "stereo investigation" (in Disco Elysium terms) is roughly sorted out mid-book, and instead jumps into action and many repercussions from there. I think this works really well, but it gives it a different feel overall.

One thing I really liked about this book is how many story threads from the first book were picked up and were an integral part of this story. On its own, I felt like there were parts of the first book that went a bit far afield (even if they were interesting worldbuilding and character development!), but in the context of how they tie back into book two makes the two books together feel much more tightly crafted as a whole. It makes me excited to see where the third book goes.

Mostly, I continue to enjoy these books focused on Celehar as a main character; he has been through a lot and continues to go through a lot, and is carrying a lot of trauma and grief that he is coping with. It feels like he doesn't believe that he deserves nice things even while he constantly goes out of his way to serve others beyond the call of duty; it's just comforting to see so many characters caring for him in ways that he won't do for himself.

I read this quickly while somewhat sleep deprived, so I don't have as coherent an impression as I might have hoped.

Like the previous "Witness for the Dead" this is essentially a noir detective novel with fantasy elements. The characters are engaging, although the villains turn out not to have much redeeming qualities.

It's hard not to see the Goblin / Elf dynamic as some kind of comment on race and racism, although it wasn't really clear to me if the book was commenting on contemporary society or just reflecting it.

The book relies on the reader having some recall of the previous two, but especially Witness for the Dead. The reader needs the previous book not only for background on the world, but also on the relationships.

Like in Witness for the Dead, the use of an imagined dialect of English is crucial to both the atmosphere and the characterizations. Speakers (or students) of French or German will recognize the notion of formal and informal pronouns and their collision with plural. Other words seem to be borrowed from older variations of English, helping to paint the picture of a kind of steampunk early-modern world.