Orca - Vlad Taltos, Bk 7 Author:Steven Brust ORCA is the seventh to be published, but is actually the eighth book in the timeline of the VLAD TALTOS series. — As this hardboiled fantasy opens, the ex-crimelord and ex-assassin is still attempting to evade the hired killers of the Jhereg, the criminal organization he quit in a rather spectacular fashion. Vlad is now traveling with a nearly ca... more »tatonic young man, Savn, who got that way when he saved Vlad's life. In exchange for an old woman's sorcerous attempts to heal Savn, Vlad agrees to recover the deed to her house. Naturally, as per usual with matters involving Vlad, the situation is vastly more complicated than it first appears, with implications reaching to the highest levels of the Dragaeran Empire. The mysterious Kiera the Thief, Vlad's old friend, lends a hand in uncovering the plot, and, in the process, reveals more than one secret of her own.« less
Even though the Taltos books aren't published in chronological order, Orca followed the storyline started in the previous book (Athyra) and I have already decided that at this point, Vlad the Detective is nowhere near as interesting as Vlad the Assassin. The plot is dull, revolving around a financial scheme (!), and the supporting cast does very little supporting. Kiera the Thief is the only useful side character, and the end of the book the author decides to throw a twist into things that seems totally unnecessary - perhaps it was obvious at this point that Vlad on his own, without Morrolan, Aliera, or even Kragar is just not that fun to read. I'm working on Book 8 right now, which goes back in time to a more interesting period, but I'm not certain at this point if I will care much anymore.
Continues the Vlad series & comes after Vlad's adventures from Athrya. We learn more about Kiera in the process. Vlad is trying to help Savn regain his proper mental state. In the process, he also tries to help a woman retain her property.