Sunday, August 7, 2016

Book Review - The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

This is a very entertaining and interesting fantasy novel with diverse, idiosyncratic characters and an engaging plot line with lots of mysteries to uncover and plot twists to negotiate.

The perspective shifts around between 3 or 4 main characters, none of which is a traditional fantasy hero material. Glotka is probably the most intriguing and popular character, a former POW and torture victim turned torturer himself. He's stumbled onto some sort of conspiracy and can't help but quietly investigate it, even as he acknowledges it makes no sense to put himself at risk by doing so. Another character nicknamed the Bloody Nine is probably the most traditionally sympathetic main character. Jezal, a contemptible twit, was definitely the least likable but even he had his charms.


The setting was pretty standard fantasy, not to say it wasn't interesting, but nothing too out there. The tone was grim and dark but not too grimdark. The style of writing was laid back and colloquial, as opposed to the more archaic feel of, say, Game of Thrones. The plot was engaging, the characters memorable, and overall it was a good, fast read.

You will love it if you appreciate:
A fantasy setting with diverse and offbeat characters

You may not appreciate:
Relatively graphic gore and torture scenes
Colloquial style

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