Tag: First Law Trilogy

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Book Review – The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie.

The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)

The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Blade Itself is a fantasy novel about … well, a host of characters and the parts they play in this tale of feuds, conspiracies, and wars. Set in a vicious world with well-established cultures and classes, magic and science, superstitions and beliefs.

The Cover: I do get the feeling that this is a fantasy novel. The blood splatter suggests there will be some violence. It’s quite plain and doesn’t really grab me.

The good stuff: This book has a full cast of characters from Logen Ninefingers, Bayaz and Jezal Dan Luthar, to Major Collem West, Sand dan Glokta, and Ferro. Their paths woven seamlessly into the story in a world where life is neither fun nor fair. The characters own their individual personalities, their individual traits and their individual problems, while war broods all around. Abercrombie weaves a tale of respected men who lie and scheme, barbarians who have honour and respect and strong women who kick some serious arse.

The Bad Stuff: The only bad thing about this book is it comes to an end and leaves you wanting more.

In my opinion, this is a superbly written fantasy novel with a mix of aristocratic society and down-in-the-gutter, bang-to-rights hard men. This action packed novel packs a punch and deserves a place on the shelf of any true fantasy fan. I’m giving it 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Here Are My Top 10 Reads, What Are Yours?

For this post I thought I would give you a rundown of my 10 favourite books as they stand right now. You may notice that the top 5 are all by the same author. I make no apologies for this. This is my favourite author and I’m yet to find another whose writing I enjoy so much. Then the next three are again from one author – but I note that one of these titles is clearly different from the other two. Anyway, here they are:

1 – The Blade Itself by Joe Abercombie.

The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)

Wow! I love this book so much. It has everything I want: fantasy, magic, blood, gore, great characters and more. If you haven’t read this, you’re missing out.

2 – Before they are hanged by Joe Abercombie.

Before They Are Hanged (The First Law, #2)

Oh, so awesome.

3 – Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercombie.

Last Argument of Kings (The First Law, #3)

Oh, so twisted.

4 – The Heros by Joe Abercombie.

The Heroes (First Law World, #5)

Oh, so gory!

5 – Best Served Cold by Joe Abercombie.

Best Served Cold

Oh, so good!

6 – Alcatraz Versus The Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson.

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (Alcatraz, #1)

This book was a pleasure to read. It is witty and quirky, well paced and fun.

7 – The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson.

The Final Empire (Mistborn, #1)

I loved the magic system in this book, I found it to be very original and interesting.

8 – The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson.

The Hero of Ages (Mistborn, #3)

Because I enjoyed the first book so much and this continues the story.

9 – The Lascars Dagger by Glenda Larke.

The Lascar's Dagger (The Forsaken Lands, #1)

I liked this because the characters were interesting and the paganism that was included in the story really helped to build a magical world for me.

10 – Blood Faerie by India Drummond.

Blood Faerie (Caledonia Fae, #1)

This book surprised me and I found it a really enjoyable read.

And there you have it. So what’s your top ten?

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in some libraries.

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Book Review – Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

Best Served ColdBest Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie is ultimately a story of revenge. Monzcarro Murcatto is betrayed by the man she has spent years elevating to a position of power. Strangled, stabbed, beaten and thrown down a mountain side clinging to life by a thread. All those involved will come to wish they had done the job right.

The Cover: Though not what I would consider a traditional fantasy cover, it is appropriate for the story and its genre. There is also a hint at the blood and gore between the pages.

The Bad Stuff: Not for the faint hearted, there is blood, gore and treachery. A bad point if you don’t like these things.

The Good Stuff: There is blood, gore and treachery – and so much of it. Abercrombie’s style is so raw, so tough, so gritty, that for me it’s like a fine blue cheese – filled with everything rotten, but tastes so good and leaves you wanting more. The characters, as always, are so mean and so bad arse, yet so well developed that you can’t help but love them. If you’ve read Joe’s other books, there’s reference to characters like ‘The Bloody Nine’, ‘The Cripple’ and others, that make the memories come rushing back and have you thinking “Oh yeah, I remember that” or “Yep, that sounds like something they would say/do,”. I loved this book as much as his others and even though it follows the story of new and less explored characters, they became my new best friends.

Wow! How does Joe do it? How does he make you love such despicable characters? Set in the same world as the First Law Trilogy this book continues the story of some of the characters I have come to love, building on their characters and giving insights into how they became who they are.

This one gets a bone crunching, skull smashing 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks with a splash of blood for good measure.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries. 

If you liked this post please share it on social media.