Reviews

“You were a hero round these parts. That's what they call you when you kill so many people the word murderer falls short.”

Monza Murcatto, also known as The Snake of Talins, is the most feared mercenary of the Grand Duke Orso, ruler of Styria. She fights his battles, spreads fear into all who dare oppose his rule, and does not shy away from ruthless bloodshed. One fateful day, the tables turned, and Orso began seeing Monza as a threat to his rule, and in an attempt to get rid of her, had her brother murdered in front of her eyes and had Monza stabbed multiple times and thrown off a cliff. Unbeknownst to him, Monza survived this attack, and was left as a crippled and broken version of her former self. But her iron-will had only grown stronger, and she had become hell-bent on murdering Orso and everyone else who had a hand in what happened to her and her brother. She goes out of her way gathering a group of warriors, thieves and assassins, and all sorts of devious people, to help her on her bloody path. Thus begins this classic tale of revenge, as we are plunged back into Joe Abercrombie's "The First Law" universe.

If you had read my previous reviews on The First Law trilogy, you would know that I had started off really enjoying the series, only to be disappointed by it at the end of the third installment, because I was taken aback and surprised by how Joe Abercrombie decided to conclude the trilogy, more specifically, without giving much substance to the plot and world-building. Now, as I became a seasoned reader of his works, I approached this book with more experience regarding his writing, knowing better what to expect from him, and that really helped, because the things I found to be lacking in his writing did not bother me, since I didn't get into the book expecting them in the first place.

Abercrombie is a firm writer of character-driven stories, and the great emphasis he places on the characters he writes, leaves little room for an extremely richly developed plot and worldbuilding. If you approach this book with that knowledge, you won't be disappointed, and this doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing, because the vividly crafted psyches of the characters we are following and the in-depth exploration of their motives and interactions, make up for it quite well.

Monza is a person of deep conviction and her inner moral compass plays a firm role in guiding her decision making process, and as any Abercrombie reader knows, good and evil are two dichotomies that are very hard to pinpoint in his stories, since all the characters solely operate out of self-interest, and with Monza, we see very well how she uses her convictions to justify the bloody path she decided to take. We start the journey off from the perspective of how terrible it was for Monza to be betrayed by the man she works for, and how traumatizing it must of been for her to see her brother brutally murdered in front of her eyes. However, throughout the book, as we begin seeing the situation from multiple perspectives, we can equally ponder about whether Orso was justified in what he did, and we might even begin to think that Monza and her brother actually deserved what happened to them.

This is the beauty of Abercrombie's writing. We get introduced to very horrible characters, and we have no "good side" to root for. We just have to choose which terrible person we prefer over other terrible people. We also have hundreds of pages of sharp cynical wisdom, which is Abercrombie's forte.

“Good steel bends, but never breaks. Good steel stays always sharp and ready. Good steel feels no pain, no pity, and above all, no remorse”

This story takes place some time after the events of the third book of The First Law trilogy, and we see some characters from there make appearances in this book, some having more major roles than others, so I definitely recommend reading that trilogy first. Monza really reminds me of Ferro from the First Law trilogy, but a tad bit less brutal and more in touch with her emotional landscape. The plot itself is pretty straightforward, but the character interactions are satisfyingly intricate. The world is as harsh as ever, and Abercrombie subverts any potentially heartwarming and morally "good" moment with his unrelenting cold fist of cynical realism.

Overall, a nice read that makes me want to continue reading Abercrombie's standalones in this universe.

“That was the difference between a hero and a villain, a soldier and a murderer, a victory and a crime. Which side of a river you called home.”

4 stars.

aradi_yusuf's review against another edition

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dark lighthearted reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

thedashdude's review against another edition

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3.0

Not as engaging as the First Law trilogy, but enjoyable all the same. Monza didn't quite resonate with me, but the rest of the cast did.

lukesid00's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

daria_nedelcu19's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Enjoyment 8/10
Concept 9/10
Execution 9/10
Writing 10/10
Plot & Logic 7/10
Pacing & Structure 9/10
Atmosphere 10/10
Characters 9/10
Intrigue 7/10
World Building 9/10
Audio Performance 10/10

Rating: 4.4/5

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