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maverickschmit's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
duedate8898's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
nohadon's review against another edition
4.5
A gripping slow burn, Abercrombie showcases his excellent ability to inhabit the mind of his characters and display humanity in difficult times. I’m definitely intrigued what Bayaz and Yulwei are planning for the next two books, and can’t wait to follow all my favorite characters.
Quotes:
You have to love the small things when you’ve nothing else.
Danger and opportunity often walk hand in hand.
A mistake. One should attend the details. It is easy to forget the little things, but without the oar the boat is useless.
He who strikes first often strikes last. So fighters come to rely on their baser instincts, to answer always with violence, to become proud and brutal.
Some things have to be done. It’s better to do them than to live with the fear of them.
I am not proud of it. But good men must sometimes do violent things.
What can we do, except to try to do better?
You got to have fear to have courage.
Quotes:
marsius's review against another edition
4.0
Individual books in series often don't quite feel like a whole. Second books in trilogies are famously often just journeys or the book where the band splits up and the entire thing is them getting back together. The first book of a series, though, could almost always survive as a not only a standalone novel, but even a good standalone novel. The Blade Itself is not that. Rather, although it's the first book, it in no way feels like a completed work. Rather, this is more like Volume I of a three-volume novel, and any review thus feels incomplete and ill-informed, as this is a work that clearly has to be judged entirely as a 1,600-page whole. The writing is fun, the characters deep, and the plot moving, though, so definitely worth the ride so far.
ilman002's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this book. The characters were not very likeable and that was a good thing. Logen Ninefingers is a barbarian on the run from his previous ruler. Inquisitor Glokta is a crippled man (and my favorite character in this book) who tortures his victims to get them to confess in crimes they did and did not commit. A young and passionate Jezal is looking to win a contest and become the Union's champion. There are many other characters in this book but these three are the main ones.
The book is packed with action, betrayals and court intrigue. At first the plot might feel slow-moving but it picks up when most of our characters meet in the capital. Unfortunately, it feels like Abercrombie had used the first book in the series to mainly set up the story for its continuation in the second book. That's not necessarily a bad thing but I wish that we would have more closure in the first book. Having said that, I am interested enough in this story to continue reading this trilogy and I will be checking out book two soon.
I would recommend this book to any fans of dark fantasy and fantasy fiction. If you enjoy violent, character-driven stories you will probably like The Blade Itself. Overall, I liked this book and it scratched my itch for fantasy but I felt like it was missing something. Hopefully, the next book in the trilogy will improve on the story of the first book and develop into something bigger.
The book is packed with action, betrayals and court intrigue. At first the plot might feel slow-moving but it picks up when most of our characters meet in the capital. Unfortunately, it feels like Abercrombie had used the first book in the series to mainly set up the story for its continuation in the second book. That's not necessarily a bad thing but I wish that we would have more closure in the first book. Having said that, I am interested enough in this story to continue reading this trilogy and I will be checking out book two soon.
I would recommend this book to any fans of dark fantasy and fantasy fiction. If you enjoy violent, character-driven stories you will probably like The Blade Itself. Overall, I liked this book and it scratched my itch for fantasy but I felt like it was missing something. Hopefully, the next book in the trilogy will improve on the story of the first book and develop into something bigger.
victorvalelover's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
daniellop's review against another edition
5.0
Relectura para cerrar la trilogía. Sigue siendo lo mejor que he leído de fantasía de este rollo y los personajes siguen siendo lo mejor del libro. Con ganas de releer el segundo y de darle por fin al tercero.
loganj20's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
rg9400's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The Blade Itself is a book I only picked up based on its reputation in the fantasy community. To be honest, if it weren't for that reputation, I probably would not read the sequels. It's not a bad book by any means, but there are some significant issues with it.
First, there is no female character up until like Chapter 12. I don't mean female main character POVs, not even just a female side character, not even just a named female character. I just literally mean a female person on page. And this introduction itself is a male character lusting over her and being grateful that she isn't fat. I think this improves in the second half with more female characters including a female POV, but it still decidedly feels like a male-driven book, and probably the most skewed in that regard that I've read in a while. I have heard that Abercrombie took criticism on this aspect to heart and improved a lot in books past the first trilogy, so I can overlook it even though I'm not a huge fan.
Second is probably a common complaint, but this book doesn't really have a plot. There is no driving narrative thrust, and mostly characters are just living their lives for half of it. The second half starts to introduce some more mystery and direction, but it feels like a very long prologue. A lot of people say this is because it's a character-driven story, but I think that it's more just a novice writer's earlier work. I fully expect this area to improve in subsequent books.
I did enjoy *some* of the characters. Namely Glokta and Ferro. Jezal annoyed me a ton. Logen didn't really have enough things happening for me to feel anything specific about him. West and Dog Man just did not have a lot of page time. I definitely am intrigued enough to see where they go though, so these characters are at least compelling.
I also found the lore and mystery/horror elements very interesting. A lot more than the world politics for sure. I am interested in learning more about these elements as well.
Overall, I don't particularly have strong feelings towards this book in either direction. In some ways, after Sun Eater, I think that's a good sign since a lot of my issues are things I believe can easily improve (and have been told do improve). Because of that, I might pick up the sequel after reading a few other things.
First, there is no female character up until like Chapter 12. I don't mean female main character POVs, not even just a female side character, not even just a named female character. I just literally mean a female person on page. And this introduction itself is a male character lusting over her and being grateful that she isn't fat. I think this improves in the second half with more female characters including a female POV, but it still decidedly feels like a male-driven book, and probably the most skewed in that regard that I've read in a while. I have heard that Abercrombie took criticism on this aspect to heart and improved a lot in books past the first trilogy, so I can overlook it even though I'm not a huge fan.
Second is probably a common complaint, but this book doesn't really have a plot. There is no driving narrative thrust, and mostly characters are just living their lives for half of it. The second half starts to introduce some more mystery and direction, but it feels like a very long prologue. A lot of people say this is because it's a character-driven story, but I think that it's more just a novice writer's earlier work. I fully expect this area to improve in subsequent books.
I did enjoy *some* of the characters. Namely Glokta and Ferro. Jezal annoyed me a ton. Logen didn't really have enough things happening for me to feel anything specific about him. West and Dog Man just did not have a lot of page time. I definitely am intrigued enough to see where they go though, so these characters are at least compelling.
I also found the lore and mystery/horror elements very interesting. A lot more than the world politics for sure. I am interested in learning more about these elements as well.
Overall, I don't particularly have strong feelings towards this book in either direction. In some ways, after Sun Eater, I think that's a good sign since a lot of my issues are things I believe can easily improve (and have been told do improve). Because of that, I might pick up the sequel after reading a few other things.