A Little Hatred- Joe Abercrombie
Gah it feels good to read two awesome books back to back. I mean technically I've been reading them at the same time as well as at least ten other books, but I finished this right after the awesome The Tyranny of Faith by Richard Swan. Check my previous post to see my review.
Anyways, A Little Hatred by the King of Grimdark, Joe Abercrombie. I read his original trilogy way back when it first came out, it was a breath of fresh air in a room filled with the same Middle of the road Magic heavy fantasy that dominated the market. What is great is that this series brings you right back to the best of Joe Abercrombie. It brings it full circle and it shows why Joe is still at the top of the game, the writing is unmatched, the characters are phenomenal, the worldbuilding is Aces. Heres a synopsis taken from Amazon.
The New York Times best-selling first book in Joe Abercrombie's The Age of Madness Trilogy where the age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die.
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua, and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal's son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specializes in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta - socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union - plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another....
Superb writing. The better a book is written the quicker it reads. This is a problem with most Indie books no matter the genre, the writing is generally unrefined and clunky, and that's not even getting to the characters, plot, or worldbuilding. This is the difference right here. Top of the game writing, his characters read as if you are in the room watching these scenes unfold and his world-building is expansive without info dumping. Abercrombie will always be a must read and an author to follow.
A good writer makes all of their characters interesting, a great writer makes you care what happens to the characters even if they are the antagonists.
His cameo wasn't too big but gotta love Shivers... Brings me back to The First Law Trilogy and I'm here for it. I would have already started reading The Trouble with Peace if I didn't need to finish like 6 books I'm currently reading, but I'm not sure how much longer I can resist starting it. Go read this is you haven't already.
A Little Hatred
4.5/5