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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
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
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
onthesamepage's review
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The author sets out to do something very specific here: write an entire book about one multi-day battle. This is something that is either going to work for you or it won't, but regardless you are guaranteed some fantastic writing and characters as usual.
I think the pacing was a bit too slow for me, and the book could've been 200 pages shorter and still achieve the same thing. I do really love several of the characters we are (re-)introduced to. We get a new, really interesting female character in the form of Finree, the daughter of Marshal Kroy, who is ambitious enough for her and her husband. Then there are a few familiar names: Black Dow, Shiver and Calder all make an appearance, and Calder's character arc was my favourite.
The descriptions of war and battle are top-notch, but I'd expect nothing less from Abercrombie at this point. There were a couple of chapters where he alternated points of view between characters in a way that seamlessly connected all of them together, and I kept being impressed by how clever the writing is. And throughout all the grim and dark events, we get moments filled with humor. I also appreciate the commentary on war, and how it only serves to make powerful men even more powerful.
Speaking of powerful men, Bayaz is really being built up in my head as a massive villain. I hate him more with every book, and I am waiting for the moment of his fall.
I think the pacing was a bit too slow for me, and the book could've been 200 pages shorter and still achieve the same thing. I do really love several of the characters we are (re-)introduced to. We get a new, really interesting female character in the form of Finree, the daughter of Marshal Kroy, who is ambitious enough for her and her husband. Then there are a few familiar names: Black Dow, Shiver and Calder all make an appearance, and Calder's character arc was my favourite.
The descriptions of war and battle are top-notch, but I'd expect nothing less from Abercrombie at this point. There were a couple of chapters where he alternated points of view between characters in a way that seamlessly connected all of them together, and I kept being impressed by how clever the writing is. And throughout all the grim and dark events, we get moments filled with humor. I also appreciate the commentary on war, and how it only serves to make powerful men even more powerful.
Speaking of powerful men, Bayaz is really being built up in my head as a massive villain. I hate him more with every book, and I am waiting for the moment of his fall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, and War
henry_eyrich's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
How much can change in three days of battle?! This book was an adventure that covered the North vs Union in an epic battle for three days. One thing that i didn't like so much was i thought that there was too many POV character. I felt that if Abercrombine just focused on the main characters of Dow, Craw, Calder, Gorst, and Fin this book would have been better off. I felt that this pacing was well done there wasn't any part of the book that felt that too slow or rushed! This book did have some great battle scenes but i feel like the majority of book was focused on the parts between the battles, the waiting, the planning, the burials, the conflicts between the leaders which i really liked. It showed that there is more to battle than just fighting. Additionally Beck or Red Beck chapters were a good addition to the book because it showed that not everyone is cut out for the Named Man Lifestyle. I do think that this is my least favorite book in the series not because it was bad but because it was very focused on just one topic the battle of Osrung. and nothing else happened. I am still enjoying the series very much!
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Violence
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