I was delighted to be selected as a reviewer for Gollancz Geeks as I'm a huge fan of Tom Lloyd, having read the Twilight Reign series and thoroughly enjoyed it. I picked up Moon's Artifice with a huge sense of anticipation and I wasn't disappointed.
Lloyd's strength is his world and character building. Very quickly I got a sense of the Imperial City and Narin, the Lawbringer. For me though, the most interesting character in the book was Enchei the old warrior. What an intriguing character with a mysterious background. The female lead in the book is a refreshingly strong character capable of holding her own (most of the time!).
The very strict caste system and the different houses and characteristics of each is an interesting idea, which I wasn't sure of at first as it seemed very complicated. However, as I got further into book it made sense and actually became key to the story. It reminded me of ancient China and the very strict caste system in that society.
I loved this book and really look forward to the next in the series.
