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hans_gougar's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I think this is my new favorite Abercrombie. I loved it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Minor: Rape
josiah17's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Unfortunately, this is my least favorite First Law book so far. While I can appreciate what Abercrombie attempted to do with the plot and structure of the book covering all 3 days of a brutal battle, I was not a fan of the limited scope and it felt stale and repetitive at times. The characters were also not quite clicking for me early on. And as the book progressed, too many pov's were introduced and I thought some side characters were meshing with others and it felt somewhat messy.
What I did like though was of course Abercrombie's humor. He made the dull moments tolerable with some laughs. The last 35% or so has some pretty good stuff. The character arcs for the book wrap up well and I look forward to hopefully encountering some of these characters again in future books.
Overall, it's a decent read. But I did struggle in the beginning. Still very excited to continue with First Law.
Edit 1/20/24: I think after sitting on this for a while, I'm bumping up to 3.5 stars.
What I did like though was of course Abercrombie's humor. He made the dull moments tolerable with some laughs. The last 35% or so has some pretty good stuff. The character arcs for the book wrap up well and I look forward to hopefully encountering some of these characters again in future books.
Overall, it's a decent read. But I did struggle in the beginning. Still very excited to continue with First Law.
Edit 1/20/24: I think after sitting on this for a while, I'm bumping up to 3.5 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, Violence, and Blood
amir_hamza's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
A clear step up from Best Served Cold and comfortably my second favourite First Law Book after Last Argument of Kings, The Heroes was still something that left me somewhat disappointed. By all means, it's not a bad book, but my expectations from it were much, much higher. When I finished Day 2 I thought the quality of the book would just keep on climbing higher, but it seemed from that point the quality, like the pacing, it just jogged steadily towards the ending. This is a straightforward book, almost painfully so. (Vague spoilers) There's no mind-blowing plot twist, no jaw-dropping revelation or epic magical twist (this book has basically no magic or fantastical element at all). There's just a deus ex machina in the very last part Shivers killing Dow , after which literally everything goes to Calder's favour instantaneously , which was the only decision in the book I hated, as it was far too convenient a thing to occur by First Law standards.
Yes, the character work is the best yet, by far. Yes, so is the thematic work. This is absolutely one of the most thoughtful reads I've had along with Dandelion Dynasty. But it just lacks that oomph that to me, regrettably makes it harder to rate above:
8.5/10.
Yes, the character work is the best yet, by far. Yes, so is the thematic work. This is absolutely one of the most thoughtful reads I've had along with Dandelion Dynasty. But it just lacks that oomph that to me, regrettably makes it harder to rate above:
8.5/10.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Torture, Cursing, and Gore
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault
k22ks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Violence, and Gore
yknight's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Sexual content, and Violence
adammtucker's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Absolutely gripped multi-day battle novel that you can't help but keep reading and hoping things turn out okay. Highly recommend for any Abercrombie or grimdark fans, as well as for people who enjoy historical accounts of battles or military history. You can't put it down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, and Violence
Minor: Animal death and Sexism
Abercrombie is the master of making me care about minor characters includingbookishwondergoth's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Still great. Enjoyed it even more on a reread via audiobook. Rereading all of these back to back continues to be a rewarding and worthwhile exercise!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Cursing, Blood, War, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Kidnapping, Animal death, Sexism, Vomit, and Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault, Medical content, and Excrement
lvl52_grant's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
A bloody story of war, Joe Abercrombie continues his grimdark tale in the World of the First Law. The North hasn't been peaceful yet in these books, but now the war is front and center. Focused on characters on both sides of the Battle of Osrung, it's hard to know who to root for, which is the point. Everyone is vile and wonderful, you love to hate and hate to love them. Ultimately, there are no heroes, and yet I'd hold a shield in the circle for any one of them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Blood, Violence, and War
Moderate: Sexual content
ilereads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Grimdark allo stato puro: 3 giorni, una sola battaglia, nessun eroe. I personaggi sono costruiti benissimo come sempre, in particolare Brivido e Curden hanno il mio cuore. Odio Bayaz con tutta me stessa. 3.5 stelline solo perchè 700 pagine di continui combattimenti un pò si sono fatte sentire.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
mikeypwest's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book was amazing and a great entry in the First Law series. Definitely one of my favorites so far.
Pros:
+ As usual, the characters shine in this. I don't think I found any character boring (unlike the previous installment).
+ The pacing and plotting was perfect. 5/5 there.
+ Dark humor is great, as usual.
+ The philosophy/theming was great. So many things to ponder about war, conflict, life, and peace.
Cons:
- I felt the word/term 'hero' was thrown around a little too much. It felt really heavy-handed and annoying by the end.
- I was a little let down by one POV character's involvement in the plot (Tunny )
Pros:
+ As usual, the characters shine in this. I don't think I found any character boring (unlike the previous installment).
+ The pacing and plotting was perfect. 5/5 there.
+ Dark humor is great, as usual.
+ The philosophy/theming was great. So many things to ponder about war, conflict, life, and peace.
Cons:
- I felt the word/term 'hero' was thrown around a little too much. It felt really heavy-handed and annoying by the end.
- I was a little let down by one POV character's involvement in the plot (
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Minor: Rape