A review by loru
A Little Hatred by Joe Abercrombie

adventurous challenging dark funny medium-paced

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

3.75

I really liked the first entry into this trilogy and the new POV characters. The world in this book is facing industrial revolution, and with that comes the oppression commoners face as a result. Their homes are taken and they are forced to live in hovels and work in terribly harsh conditions. The cycle of violence and disregard for people that the world of the First Law introduced has continued and is digging itself lower and lower. 

As always for me, my personal preferences for stories and characters combat with the themes and character intentions that Abercrombie has written. I am always wanting to root for people and hope for the best, but this story consistently bleak and shows the worst of humanity. It’s a strange struggle for me because I know better know having read the previous First Law books, but I can’t help but want to wish for not even the best, but just a little bit of good. 

I wonder how this trilogy will play out because even if the world has changed quite a bit, some of the major forces at play (

thinking of Bayaz in particular

) that have shaped the previous trilogy are still at play. With that in mind, I hope the story takes a departure from the story beats of the original trilogy.