Tor
367 pp.

The previous book had some marginal successes and victories, and the possibility of something Very Big and Very Bad happening in the Orphan’s previous homeland,and they have made allies of their counterparts from the Lands Born of Smoke and Sacrifice. Five Odd Honors begins with the discovery of the treachery of the previous Tiger, Thundering Heaven, who has managed to trick the Monkey, Bent Bamboo. He declares that he will only allow them to talk to the Monkey to ask him to join them in going back to the Lands Born of Smoke and Sacrifice if his daughter Pearl (the current Tiger) steps down from her position. The other Orphans are less than enthused by this option, and Pearl resolves the situation by having a duel with her father. (When they finally get into contact with Bent Bamboo, he is immediately agreeable to the plan, and is upset that Thundering Heaven had tricked him. Continue reading →