Tropes much? 
 I am a fan of action movies. At times I need to watch something to unwind that includes and not limited to science defying action moves, explosions, car chases in fancy suits, cheesy dialogues and a story that goes: baddie does bad things, boy scout barrels in, baddie retaliates, boy scout gets a boo-boo, baddie is defeated. I am not looking for morals or a life lesson or question logistics when I see a man walking two feet away from an explosion. Yes, I am looking at you [Bruce Willis] RED. As a consumer I am aware of what these movies are going to deliver and as long as they entertain me, I am okay. As a consumer I am aware of what these movies are going to deliver and as long as they entertain me, I am okay. Also, these kind of movies work wonderfully when consciousness is grasping for some semblance of ease and visual provocation that provides superficial satisfaction for the time being. This book is very close to Die Hard of the books. 
 Sullivan takes dozens of tropes from fantasy genre and action movies. The reason I even picked this up because I needed a break from reading about World Wars, geopolitical tension and to stop obsessing over death of a superhero.(Also that it came highly recommended from a friend, Yamini, whose opinions I respect. And she is generally right about these things.) As anticipated, Theft of Swords was wonderful in delivering every trope that Sullivan touched. 
 Its a story about friendship, quest, princesses, murder mystery, extra mystery surrounding the two friends, marginalized politics, difficult romances, easy narration, larger than life characters, uncomplicated description, severe lack of metaphors (a massive plus, for a book like this!), occasional diatribe, passable wit and the author's confidence in knowing exactly what he is doing. 
 I enjoyed it. It was good distraction and I had fun while reading this. I will read the next volume when my head gets heavy with the usual stuff I read. 
 PS: Four stars because.