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Book review
Written by Joe Abercrombie
Gollancz paperback
Release date Out now
Jezal dan Luthar has nothing more pressing on his mind than winning a fencing contest, if he can be bothered. Logen Ninefingers has had about as much as he can take of the internecine barbarian hordes of the North. Inquisitor Glokta has only bitter memories of when he was a war hero, before he was caught by the enemy, tortured and crippled…
Although science fiction and fantasy’s star is in the ascendant at the moment (just look at how many ‘high-concept’ or ‘genre’ shows are being picked up by American TV networks) the majority of fantasy books have long been stuck in a well-worn rut. Considering fantasy should, by its very nature, be fantastic and a realm where the impossible is probable, there seems to be some heavy guidelines. Dwarves are frequently dour, Elves are arrogant and the heir to thrown is an orphan/raised by a kindly old commoner/recruited by a wise old Sorcerer etc etc.
The Blade Itself differs from this conformity of fantasy in that it follows the fortunes of four to five protagonists and you are never entirely sure which one is the ‘good’ guy. Shades of grey abound here as the characters are flawed, spoilt, arrogant or world weary. None of them could be considered clichés and there is a distinct lack of Tolkien-esque races (Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, Orcs).
The real joy of the book, though, is the writing style, which is fast-paced, deeply sarcastic, spitefully witty and well observed. The dialogue is razor sharp, the author is comfortable changing voices depending on viewpoint and there is very little to find fault with. The book’s only downfall is that it fails to end in a satisfactory manner; merely contenting itself to set the stage for book two. Den Patrick
