One Sentence Summary
This is a rollicking, violent, at times hilarious, suicide squad-esque fantasy book from the Lord of Grim Dark himself about a group of dangerous “devils” sent by the her Holiness, The Pope, on a quest to restore the long-lost heir of the Trojan Throne; this one is full of classic Abercombie witticisms and characters, honorable sinners, reluctant heroes, and absolutely no chance of redemption.
Review
I enjoyed reading this book by Joe Abercrombie and it is a promising start to his new series. The writing flows well and is easy to read. You are thrust into the world but can find your footing after a few chapters. The alternative medieval Europe is an interesting concept (I appreciated the nod to classical mythology like Achilles and Hector) and hilarious realized. The inclusion of different types of magic and man-eating elves was fun for the world building. However, I must confess that while it is a Good Read, it falls short of the greatness and unexpected hilarity of his original The Blade Itself trilogy.
Much like his other works, it is truly less about the plot, which is a straightforward get from point A to point B, and more about the characters and how they interact with each other. I did find myself liking them increasingly as the story went on.
The Devils group was a fun mix and match of oddballs. The necromancer Balthazar was very amusing in his attempts to escape from his binding. The Jakob of Thorn POV passages were also very well written. I love the world-weary warrior trope. It never ceases to be epic when they are able to pick themselves up for one last heroic push at the end.
There is a lot more that could be explored in upcoming books, both for these characters and the greater humanity v the elves plotline. I intend to continue with this series and classify The Devils as a Good Read.
Quotable Quotes
- “Happy endings are just stories that aren't finished yet.”
- “You need to stop clinging to the notion that there is only one right path. You’ll waste half your time panicking you’re not on it, and the rest backtracking to find it.”