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luis_vieira's review
- 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
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Murder, Violence, Domestic abuse, Gore, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Blood, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Cursing, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Slavery, Colonisation, Toxic relationship, Classism, Xenophobia, Confinement, Grief, Racism, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Abandonment, Cannibalism, Kidnapping, Vomit, War, Dysphoria, Alcohol, Rape, and Sexual content
riley_mccullough's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Abandonment and Physical abuse
carlack7's review
- 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? It's complicated
4.25
I read the first book to appease my husband, but I will continue to read the trilogy because I want to know what happens to each of the characters! I think I'm honestly interested in finding out what happens in each of the storylines!
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Gore, Animal death, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, and Fire/Fire injury
alexkendall's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Ableism, Blood, Gore, Death, Violence, and Torture
Minor: Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Bullying, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Alcoholism, and Classism
the_night_reader_'s review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, War, Sexism, Physical abuse, Chronic illness, Torture, Excrement, Grief, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Blood, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Violence, Slavery, Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Murder, and Medical trauma
albon's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Torture, Violence, and Physical abuse
lookingforvheissu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
(I tagged racism as a content warning, but would like to specify that the racism is in universe terminology such as “pink” or in the case of more real world example, “savage.” I don’t know if the distinction is necessary, please ignore if you feel it isn’t)
Graphic: Slavery, Physical abuse, and Racism
da3m0nic's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Blood, Death, Torture, Physical abuse, Gore, Domestic abuse, and Grief
Moderate: Kidnapping, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Classism, Sexism, Confinement, Mental illness, and War
mnkeemagick's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Having seen some reviews depicting Abercrombie's characterization as one dimensional and stereotypical, I must admit that when first reading the book I began to wonder much the same myself. It seemed initially to be a bunch of base archetypes just doing stuff without much regard to plot. But being someone who is loathe to not finish a story once started, I continued on and feel now that these choices may be more intentional than they appear at first glance.
Abercrombie's stories seem to idle slowly, reveling in simply living within the world without unnecessary rushing of time lines for the sake of plot points or story length. I feel the story is offering a slow burn for the sake of realistic stakes and a more in depth character arc through a fuller experience of their various starting points.
It's refreshing to see characters dealing with more aspects of a personal reality if im honest. One of our main protagonists being an aging war monger trying to be better yet still fighting is all the more believable, in my eyes, when he fights more than one person and actually gets injured. His bloody transgressions in his youth not only haunt the fringes of his mind, but actively form his decision processes and, as shown later, are not entirely gone and are genuinely terrible to behold both for himself and the audience.
There's a subtle play on nuance throughout that I find interesting. Shifting situations just enough to subvert expectations for the genre without beating you over the head with the idea that that's what he's doing. Characters developing slowly and with caution as information is presented or withheld, experience had, and while their initial bases feel like archetypes, they are developing more like people than like characters. Even with the mysterious nature surrounding the interweaving of our characters, allowing it to just be left in mystery, while some may find it frustrating, feels to me to be angling a better build for a better payoff down the line.
So while one might argue that this entire book would be the composition of another book's building toward action, I'm glad to have somethin to work toward. Abercrombie's style may not be for everyone, but I enjoy it and can't wait to dig in further to see if my ideas are correct in that this is a story we'll earned rather than a story simply told.
Graphic: Violence, Slavery, Physical abuse, and Torture
nerdkitten's review
- 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
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Animal death, Alcohol, Torture, Physical abuse, Murder, Sexism, Alcoholism, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Ableism, Confinement, Deportation, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Slavery, Trafficking, Vomit, Xenophobia, Excrement, Fatphobia, War, and Body shaming
Minor: Slavery, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Cannibalism, Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Grief, Police brutality, Child abuse, and Genocide