The Blade Itself, First Law Bk 1 - Joe Abercrombie Logen Ninefingers, Infamous Barbarian, has finally run out of luck. Caught up in one feud too many he's about to become a dead barbarian, leaving nothing behind but bad songs and dead friends. Jezal Dan Luther, paragon of selfishness, has nothing more dangerous in mind than winning glory in the fencing circle. But war is brewing, and on battlefields of the frozen north they fight by altogether bloodier rules. Inquisitor Glokta, cripple turned torturer, would like little better than to see Jezal come home in a box. But then He hates everyone. Cutting treason out of the heart of the Union one confession at a time leaves little room for friendships - and his latest trail of corpses could lead straight to the rotten heart of government... if he can just stay alive long enough to follow it... Well I've started this now and It's setting up the three characters named above so far, I'm finding it has got a slow start, but I'm sure I'll get into it. There's a good description of the book, In the book; '
' I'm on Page 230 now There are some quite funny bits in it like the bumbling group of soldiers, but he still seems to be setting a lot of the story up.
Other than the soldiers mentioned above this seems to be a straightforward fantasy so far. I've got to the bit where the old man is asked to prove who he is. Page 424.
Overall
A good read, I hope the bumbling guards make another appearance and have a bigger part to play, I was a bit disappointed when peoples own talents were boosted by helpers. Other than that it was a good start to a set. He laid the groundwork for a good story.