Welcome to this week’s post. First, I apologise for the lack of a post last Friday. I have been really struggling with the extremely hot weather and could not think clearly enough to write anything! I have, however, managed to read two books since my last Reading Roundup.

I decided to revisit the work of one of my favourite authors: Joe Abercrombie. I love his dark humour and amazing characters. The funny thing was that when I entered the book titles on Goodreads, I realised that I had actually read this series before! So, I was re-reading them. However, although there were some faint echoes of the plot and some characters in my mind as I read, I couldn’t really remember much of the plot. Perhaps my stroke in 2019 affected my book reading memories somehow? Anyway, I have now read the first two books in The First Law trilogy and have started on the third.

Here is the blurb for The Blade Itself…

“Logen Ninefingers, infamous barbarian, has finally run out of luck. Caught in one feud too many, he’s on the verge of becoming a dead barbarian – leaving nothing behind him but bad songs, dead friends, and a lot of happy enemies. 

Nobleman Captain Jezal dan Luthar, dashing officer, and paragon of selfishness, has nothing more dangerous in mind than fleecing his friends at cards and dreaming of glory in the fencing circle. But war is brewing, and on the battlefields of the frozen North they fight by altogether bloodier rules. 

Inquisitor Glokta, cripple turned torturer, would like nothing better than to see Jezal come home in a box. But then Glokta hates everyone: cutting treason out of the Union one confession at a time leaves little room for friendship. His latest trail of corpses may lead him right to the rotten heart of government, if he can stay alive long enough to follow it. 

Enter the wizard, Bayaz. A bald old man with a terrible temper and a pathetic assistant, he could be the First of the Magi, he could be a spectacular fraud, but whatever he is, he’s about to make the lives of Logen, Jezal, and Glotka a whole lot more difficult. 

Murderous conspiracies rise to the surface, old scores are ready to be settled, and the line between hero and villain is sharp enough to draw blood.”

And this is the blurb for Before They Are Hanged…

How do you defend a city surrounded by enemies and riddled with traitors, when your allies can by no means be trusted, and your predecessor vanished without a trace? It’s enough to make a torturer want to run – if he could even walk without a stick – and Superior Glokta needs answers before the Gurkish army comes knocking at the gates. 

Northmen have spilled over the border of Angland and are spreading fire and death across the frozen country. Crown Prince Ladisla is poised to drive them back and win undying glory. There is only one problem – he commands the worst-armed, worst-trained, worst-led army in the world.

And Bayaz, the First of the Magi, is leading a party of bold adventurers on a perilous mission through the ruins of the past. The most hated woman in the South, the most feared man in the North, and the most selfish boy in the Union make a strange alliance, but a deadly one. They might even stand a chance of saving mankind from the Eaters. If they didn’t hate each other quite so much.

Ancient secrets will be uncovered. Bloody battles will be won and lost. Bitter enemies will be forgiven – but not before they are hanged.

Today, I don’t have the brain power to write any kind of response on Goodreads, so I will try to do something on this post. Abercrombie’s characters are incredibly well written. They are a group of unusual people with a range of abilities and outlooks. Of the main ones, none is wholly bad or good. There is nuance and also some unexpected developments. Over the series, all of them grow and change. There are also many humorous moments, usually dark, but sometimes poignant.

His writing of violence and battles seems to be very realistic to someone who has never (thank goodness) experienced war. The deep fear, the stupidity of leaders, the waste of lives are all shown in stark words and descriptions. When I finish the final book I will probably take a break from Abercrombie and read something lighter. But, I know I will return to his work for more re-reading very soon.

Happy Reading!

Love and best wishes,

Anne

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