# The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman

Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/blacktongue-thief/

3 people recommended The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman in Hacker News comments and none criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 1 of 12 months, in 1 thread. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule.

3 of the 3 people who recommend it commented in one thread, “Ask HN: What are you reading?”.

**Verdict:** People recommend it for its witty, snarky voice and solid character development and world building, even among readers who don't usually pick fantasy.

Summary written by Claude from 3 comments.

## Why people recommend it

- Witty, snarky fantasy tone (1 comment in the sample): "witty and snarky fantasy, solid character development and world building" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49901607))
- Enjoyable outside usual genre (1 comment in the sample): "I'm surprised that I'm enjoying it, it's not my usual genre" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49903770))
- Strong personal enjoyment (1 comment in the sample): "I really enjoyed The Blacktongue Thief." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49906581))

## Other fantasy novels people recommend

- [The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien](https://hackerapproved.com/p/lord-of-the-rings/): 52 recommend, 13 mixed, 10 criticize
- [Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman](https://hackerapproved.com/p/dungeon-crawler-carl/): 43 recommend, 4 mixed, 6 criticize
- [The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien](https://hackerapproved.com/p/hobbit/): 34 recommend, 6 mixed, 9 criticize
- [Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality by Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://hackerapproved.com/p/harry-potter-and-the-methods-of-rationality/): 15 recommend, 4 mixed, 17 criticize

## The badge

A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged.

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman", https://hackerapproved.com/p/blacktongue-thief/ (3 recommend, 0 mixed, 0 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026).

Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.