The Way of Shadowsby Brent Weeks
It started out slow and I still have 7 hours to go but so far it's picked up and I'm really interested. It's a bit gory but magical (wytches, poisons, magic, swordsmanship, etc.). It's sad too...the story of Doll Girl...how she nearly died at the hands of an evil man named Rat, whom literally left her for dead and scarred her face for life, yet Kylar still loves her and finds her to be yet so beautiful inside and out. The whore house and all the secrets within it. The different levels of power, secrets, lies, rulers, etc. There's a lot going on but the main focus is on Kylar, a wetboy, and his growth into a man thus far.
A piece from the book near where I'm currently reading:
There were guards on every stair. This wasn't good news. Kylar had made his way surreptitiousl
y through the party, trying to look so ordinary that no one gave him a second glance, but it wasn't easy...
He made his way onto the back porch. Normally, he would have avoided it, because it was liberally strewn with couples. If one thing was guaranteed to make you feel lonely, it was seeing other people kissing passionately in an alcove in the moonlight.
Now, though, Kylar was looking for a way to get to the second floor. A balcony hung just above the porch, and if he could figure out a route, he could climb to it quickly enough that no one would even notice. Of course, once he was upstairs, he'd still have to find the ka'kari, but he bet it was in the duchess's room. People liked to keep their favorite jewels close...
"Kylar?" It was a woman's voice. "Kylar, hello. What are you doing here?"
Kylar turned guiltily. "Serah! Hello." She looked like she'd spent all day getting ready for the night. Her dress was modestly cut, but classic, beautiful, and obviously far more expensive than anything Count Drake could afford.
"Wow, Serah. That dress..."
She smiled and glowed, but only for a moment. "Logan's mother gave it to me."
He turned and grabbed the rail. Across the river, behind high walls, the castle towers gleamed in the moonlight, as near and unreachable as Serah herself.
She came and stood beside him. She said, "You know Logan is going to-"
"I know."
She put her hand on his. He turned and they looked into each other's eyes. "I'm so confused, Kylar. I want to say yes to him. I think I love him. But I also-"
He swept her into his arms roughly, throwing an arm around her back and a hand behind her neck. He pulled her to him and kissed her. For a moment, she gasped. And then she was kissing him back.
In the distance, as if all the way across the river, somewhere in the castle, he heard a door slam. But it was so far away, surely it didn't matter. Then he felt Serah stiffen in his arms and pull back.
A hand clapped on Kylar's shoulder, not gently.
"What the hell are you doing!" Logan shouted spinning Kylar around.
They then get into a fist fight where Kylar wins. The back story is that Logan and Kylar are good friends. They've known each other for about 10 years. Logan was going to turn 21 and on his birthday (Kylar is 19), he was going to ask Serah, the girl he loves, to marry him. I can't wait to find out what happens next. This is what keeps me going....that and the other things going on as well.