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A review by rharriskay
Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie
medium-paced
4.0
The first standalone novel in Joe Abrocrombie’s First Law world, Best Served Cold is an enjoyable novel, but one that is basically summarized by its title. If you know how revenge stories go, you won’t be too surprised by the twists this takes.
Not that this isn’t an enjoyable read. Abrocrombie has a knack for pacing and writing witty and darkly funny characters and scenes that makes this book fly by. Particularly impressive is how each section of the book should feel repetitive by its structure (go to a new place, locate the target, kill the target, repeat) but every section has a new complication that keeps it fresh.
All the same, I can’t say I enjoyed this as much as any of the First Law books. That trilogy was one that the author had sat on for years, and to a degree I think that can be seen in how it’s written.
I also was a bit disappointed in how much this novel leans on the previous one for motivations and backstory. To be clear, this book can be read standalone, but you’d be doing a disservice to any future read of the First Law trilogy. I can’t help but wish the standalone was more stand alone.
This is an easy recommend though for anyone who read the First Law and wants more. You’ll generally know what to expect but it’s a fun ride.
Not that this isn’t an enjoyable read. Abrocrombie has a knack for pacing and writing witty and darkly funny characters and scenes that makes this book fly by. Particularly impressive is how each section of the book should feel repetitive by its structure (go to a new place, locate the target, kill the target, repeat) but every section has a new complication that keeps it fresh.
All the same, I can’t say I enjoyed this as much as any of the First Law books. That trilogy was one that the author had sat on for years, and to a degree I think that can be seen in how it’s written.
I also was a bit disappointed in how much this novel leans on the previous one for motivations and backstory. To be clear, this book can be read standalone, but you’d be doing a disservice to any future read of the First Law trilogy. I can’t help but wish the standalone was more stand alone.
This is an easy recommend though for anyone who read the First Law and wants more. You’ll generally know what to expect but it’s a fun ride.