The Blade Itself

Wow, this ended up really surprising me. I walked into this book having heard some of the more common criticisms, namely the almost complete lack of plot. I'm more of a character reader myself, so I wasn't terribly worried. But even though interesting character work is important to me as a reader, I also really REALLY don't like it when the first book of a series exists solely as an introduction without its own story to lean on, so I started this off This book expecting to be really critical of that. However I knew that Abercrombie's character work was very well regarded, so I was curious to see how that tension panned out. And I have to admit, the characters won me over hard.

We follow several different POV characters as they move about their own individual adventures without any real consistent through line or story. There are hints of a larger conflict brewing, but it's kept hidden away from the reader for the most part. Each character is dynamic and interesting in unique ways: a pompous noble-blooded soldier who starts to grow a heart for "commoners", a mutilated and discarded war veteran turned cold blooded investigator, a violent one-track minded brute, a frenzied rage fueled former slave, and a cryptic and cynical wizard. Each have their own motivations and goals which rarely overlap with each other. But each story was so compelling on its own that I found it really fascinating to follow, even without a strong connection between them. While the book didn't have a compelling story alone, each of these characters had a compelling, fully fleshed out story, lending to a satisfying reading experience. The ending I also found compelling enough that I am now motivated to jump right into the sequel. Maybe I'll resist that urge to push through some of the rest of my TBR, but maybe not!

I had been dragging my feet on reading this book because I'm not usually feeling like reading grimdark stuff which can be full of masculine toxicity. I'm not saying this one wasn't but I was hooked anyhow.

I couldn't really tell you much of the plot, as The Blade Itself establishes its casts of characters who are going to the travel to the edge of the world in the next book. It loosely establishes the world, with the Union beset on all sides by enemies.

None of the characters are particularly likeable. There's Logen, a hideous barbarian who gets into murderous rages but overall seems tired of fighting, having lost everyone he cared about. There's Jezal, a pampered nobleman who falls in love with a woman beneath his standing. Most intriguing is probably the inquisitor Glokta, a former glorious soldier who got broken in body and spirit under torture when he was captured by the Gurkish Empire. Now he's a torturer himself, and gets swept into the political intrigues of his leader, the Arch Lector.

There are more PoV characters, and I want to learn more of them, and in turn learn more of the world, as there is a threat and laws are being broken, and I just want to know more.

4.5 stars really, quite excellent, want to read more.