The Free Bastards by Jonathan French (The Lot Lands #3)

The Lot Lands are on the verge of being crushed by the Tyrkanian empire and Hispartha, and treason pours from every misguided ally, putting the freedom of the mongrels in jeopardy. The True Bastard siblings will undoubtedly meet violent ends. Hell, the entire first section of this book is an action-packed chase scene that leads to a nail-biting struggle against all odds. The Free Bastards is a nasty, suspenseful book filled with dark humour, difficult choices, shocking gut-punches, and real surprises.

However, the hardest times were those that were silent.

Together, Jackal, Fetch, and Oats have travelled a considerable distance. We didn’t know them when they were slops, or hoof prospects, but we have stood by them as they rose through the ranks of their hoof to become the potent leaders and symbols of hope that they ultimately become. The inability to interact with their peers the way they formerly did comes along with that power, though. Thus, their relationships with one another have been their only real, sincere bonds.

RELATED STORIES

Queen of the Blood Throne by Rhiannon Hargadon

House of Bastiion by K.L. Kolarich

Starseer by Katya Hernández

French saves these chats for the quiet periods in between storms, when less words tell so much more. These are beautiful moments that demonstrate how well one family knows one another. The understanding that develops between the three, in the form of a look, a grin, a nod of the head, or a shared anecdote, I felt to be some of the most moving scenes in the entire trilogy.

We never leave Oats’ point of view while reading this volume, so we are privy to some of his other issues with making decisions about the future, his connections with people who reared him, those who see him as a potential parent, and perhaps more. These story beats were expertly mixed by French between exciting ship battles, city conflicts, rescue operations, court politics, and solving mysteries that had persisted for more than a thousand pages. It’s skilled work.

When one of the greatest plot puzzles was ultimately solved, I found myself asking a lot of “well why didn’t it” and “how could it” questions, which was one drawback to the story. It came out as a little forced, a little too clean, and written more for maximum mic-drop effect than for the story’s overall context. Even while it may not have passed the strictest inspection, it was nevertheless a fantastic moment that did not detract from the satisfaction and epic mood of the Bastards trilogy’s end.

There has been substantial discussion regarding the widespread homophobia displayed by the mongrel society in these books, which frequently uses the word “backy” as the punchline of dialogue in place of the word “gay.” And it’s okay since they are merely characters and certain characters are written that way by design. For what it’s worth, though, I would want to point out that this story significantly more positively represents the LBGTQ+ community than prior volumes.

Jonathan French is a crafty one; he gives the stories of Jackal, Fetching, and Oats the heart, loss, and depth they merit while still leaving room for future Lot Lands tales to be developed. Whatever the future may hold, I’ve been riding in this saddle for three volumes, and thanks to The Free Bastards’ gruesome conclusion, I’m lucky to pass away on this horse.