Sylvester (Taking a break in 2023)'s Reviews > The Broken Seals: Part One of the Marshes of Mount Liang

A ripping good book. It may not be what is traditionally considered "picaresque", but it has all the episodic "living by one's wits" ingredients to satisfy me on that account. Loved it. Loved the Asian flavour - something relatively new to me - so inventive and piquant. Love the fights, the trickery, and the little bits of poetry, which were breathtaking snippets of description. Loved how each chapter ended with something like this " And if you want to know how Shin Ji and his friends escaped, you must read the next chapter." Or, "Who it was he saw when he turned round, you must read the next chapter to find out." Brilliant. So fun. It was a job keeping all the characters straight in my head - thankfully they had nicknames too, which were easier to remember. All in all - fabulous! Highly recommended. Chock-full of fun.