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4.28 AVERAGE
4.28 AVERAGE
joe abercrombie. now there's a man who KNOWS how to write characters.
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Unfortunately, my least favorite from Abercrombie so far. A lot of the characters blend together. The stakes don't feel high. The battle scenes kind of drag on. But still an enjoyable read.
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Heroes worked the least for me out of all of Abercrombie's work (that I've read -- haven't read Age of Madness yet). War narratives aren't my thing & while I do appreciate what he's doing with the genre & the point he's making (broadly, war = bad), it just didn't grab me the way that Red Country or even the other First Law books did. Loved a lot of the characters, as usual, & his way of making villains & heroes indistinguishable from each other. The geography was a stumbling block, even with the map (a map! finally!) & I pretty quickly gave up keeping tabs on everyone & just let the story happen.
dark
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
'The Heroes' is good but not great, which is all the more frustrating because there are glimpses of greatness in there but they're buried under an unwieldy, sprawling cast of characters.
I understand that Abercrombie needed a lot of bodies on hand so that he could throw them merrily into the meat grinder of battle and kill them off at a whim. Effective as that was, it meant that the truly interesting characters didn't have adequate room to be explored.
I would have liked to see more intimate and revealing scenes with Black Dow, not just the one-page peek that was offered. Caul Shivers has truly been reduced to two dimensions despite being a rich character just one book earlier. The only character who I felt completely satisfied by was "Cracknut" Whirrun, who was shallow by design.
I wouldn't suggest skipping the novel if you're reading the others in the series, but you should adjust your expectations accordingly.
I understand that Abercrombie needed a lot of bodies on hand so that he could throw them merrily into the meat grinder of battle and kill them off at a whim. Effective as that was, it meant that the truly interesting characters didn't have adequate room to be explored.
I would have liked to see more intimate and revealing scenes with Black Dow, not just the one-page peek that was offered. Caul Shivers has truly been reduced to two dimensions despite being a rich character just one book earlier. The only character who I felt completely satisfied by was "Cracknut" Whirrun, who was shallow by design.
I wouldn't suggest skipping the novel if you're reading the others in the series, but you should adjust your expectations accordingly.
The Heroes is a really interesting dissection on war and serves as a really interesting look into the minds of the people that take part in them. It has everything that I feel Abercrombie is known for writing. There were some excellent fight scenes, in particular I really enjoyed the changing perspectives as a battle would progress. However, in large part due to the nature of the type of book and plot Abercrombie is setting out to write, similar to a failing I found with Best Served Cold, there isn't really enough time to get truly invested in any of the characters that take the center stage in this book. That's really my only detraction. It feels more as a bridge point for other stories that Abercrombie wants to tell in the world.
Abercrombie also seems to have written the most realized Incel archetype I've ever read.
Minor Spoilers discussing some character stuff from here on out.
Shivers appearances have become a major part in my enjoyment in this series now. I really enjoyed the Gorst and Corporal Tunny chapters. The one thing that stood out to me though that I did not expect is the characterization of Black Dow. The scene where Craw is discussing what he was before being a Named Man and Black Dow's response was my favorite part of the book. Abercrombie managed to pull back the covers and highlight the humanity of a character that has felt so inhuman for 5 books now. The subtle sense of futility and overall characterization of Black Dow was great, the highlight of this book for me.
Abercrombie also seems to have written the most realized Incel archetype I've ever read.
Minor Spoilers discussing some character stuff from here on out.
Shivers appearances have become a major part in my enjoyment in this series now. I really enjoyed the Gorst and Corporal Tunny chapters. The one thing that stood out to me though that I did not expect is the characterization of Black Dow. The scene where Craw is discussing what he was before being a Named Man and Black Dow's response was my favorite part of the book. Abercrombie managed to pull back the covers and highlight the humanity of a character that has felt so inhuman for 5 books now. The subtle sense of futility and overall characterization of Black Dow was great, the highlight of this book for me.
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes