Tong Lashing: The Continuing Adventures of Sir Apropos of Nothing

by Peter David

Book Overview

It's hard to find a lesser man than Apropos: a con man, a knave, a scalawag...and those are his finer points. This time, Apropos winds up a stranger in a strange land called "Chinpan," populated by... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743449126
• ISBN13: 9780743449120
• Release Date: August 2003
• Publisher: Star Trek
• Length: 375 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Darkly humorous fantasy

Generally, in fantasy (among other genres), the principal characters fit into one of three broad categories. There are, of course, the heroes and the villains, and somewhere between the two is the anti-hero. Which is Peter David's character, Sir Apropos of Nothing? At times, he can be any of the three, which makes him all the more interesting. Certainly, in the third Apropros book, Tong Lashing, we get to see him at both his best and worst. The novel begins with the protagonist drifting at sea, the only survivor of a shipwreck. This wreck was the result of a dangerous Dungeons & Dragons-like game that Apropos is forced into playing with some rather obvious parodies of Fafhrd, the Grey Mouser and Thomas Covenant. Now, Apropos seems doomed, but he is the ultimate survivor who eventually winds up washed up on the shore of Chinpan, a land that is a blend of China and Japan. Apropos is taken in by a farming village and begins to find peace with their simple existence. Eventually, however, the real world intrudes and he is drawn into a conflict between the local emperor and a vast criminal/rebel organization. Even this has mixed blessings as Apropos shifts his allegiances from one side to the other and reaps the benefits, at least temporarily. He may even find true love, albeit with a woman who is distinctly evil. This is dark fantasy, not in the standard sense of a supernatural horror story but because of the pervasive grimness that seems to follow Apropos. He is unable to be happy; any sense of contentment is marred by his worries about the next bad thing. Do the gods truly conspire against him or are his problems caused by his own dark nature? There is no simple answer. Mixed in with all this darkness is a lot of humor (especially in the first half of the book). Much of this relies on puns that range from the clever to the ridiculous, but there is also plenty of good pokes at the conventions of the fantasy genre. Sometimes, the sillier aspects are an inconvenient distraction. Overall, however, this is a good book - a high four stars - that should please most fantasy fans. It is the third book in a series, however, and is better read as part of the set than as a standalone book. As a whole, this is one of the better fantasy series in recent memory.

Not the best...but not bad

I'm a big fan of science fiction/fantasy humor like Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams. I have read and bought the entire Sir Apropos of Nothing Series and although this was my least favorite, I didn't dislike it. I loved the wordplay--better than in either of the other books, but the book seemed a little burdened with social issues. Plus, it looks like Peter David is looking to end the series here because he resolved most of the conflicts that have been present since book one. Unfortunately, some of them ended rather abruptly--unsatisfying! However, there's hope because of a tiny bit on the last page that drove me crazy after I finished the book and realized what it was saying. Not sure if this helps...but basically if you liked the other books in the series, you should give it a try!

Laugh Out Loud Funny

One particular line in this book had me fall out of my chair laughing. I couldn't stop for several minutes, and the line kept coming back and making me laugh the next day. This was the culmination of many times I broke out laughing at the dialogue or the wordplay. Yes, you can see some of it coming, but you have to just play along and join in Mr. David's spirited romp. Sometimes the plot takes a back seat to the wit, but that just makes it all the more fun. The only bad thing about this book is that you desparately want to share the humor with someone, but everything is a set up and builds, so no one who hasn't read the book will understand. It is truly one of those "you had to be there" situations. So throw your stress and serious nature away, sit back, have some tea, and read one of the funniest books ever written.

As good as the first? Hard to say.

I won't bother going into the plot - read the book. I will say that I'm having a hard time deciding whether this book is better or worse than the first, which was incredible. This 3rd book in the Apropos series is also incredible. The second book wasn't that consistantly great but I still liked it. Anyway, here are the good and bad of Tong Lashing: Good: 1) The poking fun of other fantasy literature was exquisite. It gave you that feeling of "hey, I read that book! I'm hanging with the IN crowd!" 2) Puns - everyone's talking about the puns. The puns are great. Sure, they make you groan, but groaning's fun, and if you don't like these puns then you need to groan up. 3) There's some INCREDIBLE insight into the human condition, morality, etc. I'd hate to meet the girl responsible for Peter David's ability to write about these things. In D & D terms, I'd say he probably has a 19 or 20 in his Wisdom. 4) This book is totally absurd. Bad: 1) Others have harped on the ending. I don't QUITE have a problem with the ending. I think there's definitely room for another book, despite those others, who shall rename maneless. Still, if this really is the end, then Peter was having a BAD DAY when he finished the book. Talk about train-wrecks. I think I would have preferred an ending more in line with the other two books, overall. I will say that the ending was incredibly interesting. 2) There's this one part, and if you've read the part you KNOW what I'm talking about, which gave me the willies. I'm conflicted on whether this was actually a bad part, because it was also pretty funny. But I'm technically "afraid" to call it a good part :) Ok, there weren't really any true "bad" parts, but what can I say - this book had it all. I think the first book will forever remain perfect in my eyes, but Tong Lashing kind of pushed the envelope.

Wow!

This third (and perhaps final) installment of Sir Apropos of Nothing may just be the best book out of the three. Peter David maintains his hilarious (and painful) use of puns with the names such as Itso Isi, Hamunri, and Go Nogo (and many more which I won't spoil). The plot moves along at a steady pace, and any lulls in the action are used to further character development. And the final chapters in the book are so shocking and powerful that I am led to believe that Peter David is either a genius or the sickest man alive! If you read the first two books, buy and read this book ASAP.