Reviews

The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie

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mridzyreads's review against another edition

5.0

Officially renaming this book to "Orso never seems to catch a break"

You think the series that started 9 books ago is finally over. You'd be wrong. Granted the stories are also split across two trilogies and three standalones but I've a feeling it's not the end. Specially when there's a vision of the future in the epilogue. whoops, mini spoiler alert.

Let's get back to Orso. The rest of them are irrelevant. For me, not the book. The others all take centre stage but I do have a soft spot for the quick witted fuckboi, King of the Union, Orso. He never seems to catch a break. It's one bad luck after another. Specially if you remember how the last book ended.

Huge character developments. Some for the better, some for the worse. I'm looking at you, Young Lion. This book is about giving power to the people and how outrageously out of control it can get when the sheep becomes the wolf. But there are always two sides of the coin and not necessarily both shine the same.

I grudgingly admit, the book is aptly named. Wisdom of the crowds is a fool's farce. The North is preparing for war and the Union is staring down another war. The age of technology is here and the time of wizards are over. Well almost. And people are still shit no matter how many years pass by.

Thank you Savine, Leo, Orso, Rikke, Calder, Stour, Old Sticks for a brilliant trilogy.

kennyo's review against another edition

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medium-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? N/A

4.5

oliver755's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

dgd12's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

theravenkingx's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

"Dear Joe Abercrombie, You have exhausted my patience. But I do hope you understand... that even now... what's about to happen... this is me... being reasonable."

A trilogy implies that by the end of the third book, readers should receive a satisfying conclusion—a resolution to the story or at least the completion of character arcs. Is that too much to ask, Mr Joe?

While I didn't love the open-ended conclusion of the first trilogy, it didn't infuriate me as much as this book did. Unfortunately, the writing and overall concept fell short. The first 200 pages and the last 100 pages held the most substance, leaving the middle section feeling like filler. The ending lacked the anticipated climax, leaving us with a cliffhanger and the possibility of future books rather than a fulfilling resolution. Most of the character arcs were left unfinished or concluded poorly. Some characters ended up becoming more unlikeable then they were in the beginning

I think everyone was a loser in the end, some more than the others. Orso, the only truly virtuous character, deserved a better conclusion. I questioned the purpose of his character and his father's. Joe Abercrombie seems to enjoy giving bad endings to good characters just because he can. Savine and Leo's character development felt circular—they returned to where they started. Savine’s 360° turn infuriated me the most. The journey of most characters seemed unfinished.

From the moment we met Rikke in the first book, I disliked her. However, I held out hope that her character would improve and that her long eye would lead her to play a significant role. Unfortunately, she didn't play any role and only grew more annoying. In the end, her betrayal left me wanting to strangle her.

Everything felt disjointed. I kept hoping that the various points of view and character arcs would eventually converge into a satisfying climax, but unfortunately, they didn’t. Broad’s perspective added nothing interesting to the story—he felt utterly useless. He remained a one-dimensional muscle man with no development. Vick’s chapters, on the other hand, oscillated between filler material and genuinely engaging moments.

Shivers, on the other hand, felt like wasted potential. His presence in this book remains unclear, and I struggle to understand why he was even included. He has been in every book so far but he hasn't played a significant role in any of them.

I hoped for more involvement from Bayaz, expecting him to actively defend his position. But like always, he appeared cryptically in the final few pages to utter some cryptic shi* and leaving us wondering about his true intentions. it seems both Bayaz and Joe Abercrombie share a talent for building anticipation but fall short when it comes to delivering on those promises. Perhaps they should form a club—the “Anticipation Society of Lackluster Results."

The only twist i cared for was Glotka's transformation, although I predicted it as soon as they came for Vick in the end. Other plot twists were disappointingly predictable—those expected to die did, and those expected to survive lived.

Joe played it safe by recreating characters from the First Law trilogy, but in a less compelling manner. Vitari resembled Vick, Carlot mirrored Savine, and Leo echoed Black Dow, etc.

I anticipated more integration of the standalone books into the series, especially after the cliffhanger in 'Best Served Cold' involving Monza and her defiance of the Wizards. Unfortunately, Joe Abercrombie excels at promising but falls short on delivery.

While the original First Law trilogy remains a favorite, subsequent books have been disappointing. 'Red Country' had its moments, 'Best Served Cold' tried too hard, and 'The Heroes' was merely okay.

If there are more books in this universe, I'm hesitant to read them.