Penric is a good father and a good husband. As a good brother-in-law he accompanies Adelis to a council with the Duke, after which all hell breaks loose. A rogue sorceress has to be caught, but when the white god makes his will known there's nothing for it but a trip to Thasalon.
I craved a longer, more in depth story with Penric and Desdemona and it was everything I hoped for. ( )

Even a novel-length Penric story is way too short! I’m very thankful to Lois McMaster Bujold for creating characters full of humanity, compassion, humour and wisdom and letting us readers follow their lives and adventures. Every new book in this series is a delight. This is just like sitting down with old friends to exchange tall tales. Please keep them coming :-) ( )

The first full novel in the Penric and Desdemona series, The assassins of Thasalon is as delightful as the rest of the stories in the five god world, and the extra depth and texture afforded with the longer format makes it a great read.
Pens brother in law is the target of an assassination attempt that Pens resident demon, Desdemona, foils, setting them on a mission for their god that takes them from the streets of Orbas to the palaces of Thasalon, resulting in a reshuffling of the reign of the empire, as well as a severe intervention by their god, the Bastard. ( )

I continue to be absolutely delighted by this series and these characters. Bujold's choice to use uncommon language tickles me no end. (Except where she likes to use until a lot, but uses till not 'til. Pet peeve of mine, I guess.)

( )

When Penric saves his brother-in-law from a sorcerous attack it starts the wheels in motion that certainly has his saint’s hands in the mix. After setting a trap for the assassin to try again they capture her and find out that she the Bastard God very much is upset about how his saint has been blackmailed to do these murders and sets Penric on the road to set things to right. Since he will have to travel back to Cedonia, there will be some cameos from the previous books when he went in to recruit and then rescue the general that became his brother-in-law. As usual Bujold writes a wonderful story, and it is great to see these characters on the page again. I can’t wait for the next adventure. ( )