Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - A Little Hatred

An excellent start to a new trilogy, with riveting characters, an eventful plot, and a well-maintained pace. Abercrombie seems to be improving with each installment, and I was impressed to see how everything continued to feel fresh and exciting. However, I wasn't exactly blown away by certain story moments this time, since it's still setting up things and some of them simply didn't grab me much. I felt like he rather overused the POV switch this time as well, which didn't seem to possess the same charm anymore. But at the end of the day, it was a page-turner I really enjoyed, with a strong ending that makes you wanna jump into the next book immediately. For me, the highlights undoubtedly lie in the characters and their interactions with each other, even if I don't love them like the OG cast yet.

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ripxw's review

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adventurous dark fast-paced

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

5.0

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josiah17's review against another edition

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dark funny 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

4.5

Abercrombie is purely phenomenal with character work. Every character here is interesting and engaging. They're shown at their most appalling lows and when they're trending upward. And I loved how more focus was placed on the cunning and wits of these characters.

I'll never stop talking about how good Abercrombie is with dialogue too. It's part of his fantastic character work where he creates distinct voices for each character and keeps the reader thoroughly entertained. And I love how commonly he uses interjections. It offers perfect comedic relief.

It was also nice to see some familiar faces from the first trilogy. And the legacy of iconic characters and the transformation of the world continues to be perfectly interweaved into every consecutive installment in the First Law World. I still get excited at every mention of The Bloody-Nine.

And while I think I like The Blade Itself more than this book, I did appreciate how there was more plot here with the beginning of this trilogy than with the First Law trilogy. I feel like I have more to look forward to than I did going into Before They Are Hanged.

And pleasantly, I was not annoyed by all the romance.

I just can't wait to read book 2.

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reggiethebird's review

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adventurous 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? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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maday's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

4.25

This book starts off the Age of Madness Trilogy in the First Law Universe. The characters we follow all are connected to those from the original trilogy. Reading this after the previous 7 books really makes the connections that the characters have that much deeper.

The book does start off fast, but I felt the ending was a little rushed for where it left our characters.

Overall would recommend to First Law fans.

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